Ryanair has announced that 1,000 new jobs are to be created in the North West, 180 of which will be in Liverpool, after the Dublin-based airline unveiled two new routes that will operate from John Lennon Airport.
The move will see flights from Liverpool to Lublin in Poland and Zadar in Croatia due to start next summer, with an extra 180,000 passengers travel through JLA as well as sustaining 2,100 ‘on-site’ staff.
The news comes at a good time for Ryanair, after Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Michael O’Leary said earlier this year that the airline was braced for a difficult winter as austerity measures and the euro-zone crisis hit demand.
Speaking to BBC Breakfast, O’Leary said: “We’re growing like gang-busters. Because more and more people want to fly cheaply we fly them many other places around Europe.
“The great thing is that you see the development of these big regional airports, such as Liverpool, and now we’ll be landing over a million new passengers at these airports next year, which will create over a thousand new jobs across those airports.”
Craig Richmond, Peel Airports CEO, said: “We’re delighted with Ryanair’s latest commitment to grow their business from Liverpool.
“Their decision to increase their Liverpool operations for next summer, along with brand new routes, including Zadar on Croatia’s Dalmatian Coast, is great news both for the airport and the region too.
“It gives holidaymakers an even greater choice of value-for-money destinations next year and a further boost for the local economy with more visitors to Liverpool and the North West.”