Ryanair launches first buy, get free sale Business

Ryanair launched its first ‘Buy One, Get One Free’ sale with the aim of increasing declining passenger numbers.

Customers who book a flight before midnight on Thursday to travel through December 14 on 1,600 routes will receive a second ticket at no additional cost.

The move follows the airline’s decision to further scale back operations due to coronavirus travel restrictions.

Its capacity in October will be 40% of 2019 levels, compared to the 50% previously announced.

Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary said demand for future bookings was terrible.

“In November and December, our forward bookings are running at around 10% – about a quarter of what they would normally be this time of year,” he told Sky News.

“We cannot rule out job losses, but at Ryanair we are certainly working desperately with our employees to avoid them.