Ryanair in hot water over cost of Ukraine repatriation flights
Ryanair found itself in hot water today after Larysa Gerasko, the Ukrainian ambassador to Ireland, lambasted the low-cost company for increasing flight prices out of Poland.
A major refugee route, Poland in recent weeks has become a safe haven for Ukrainians fleeing the horrors of the war.
“Ryanair raised the prices and it’s unfortunate, and I’m waiting for a meeting with the Minister for Transport of Ireland,” Gerako told an Irish parliament’s EU Affairs committee yesterday.
The ambassador – who said she had tried to contact the company last week but to no avail – welcomed the idea of charter flights between Warsaw and Dublin.
“We would be very grateful for [charter flights], because it is very difficult to buy tickets from Warsaw or from Krakow to Dublin,” she added.
Ryanair’s apparent hike in prices directly contradicts what chief executive Michael O’Leary told journalists a few weeks ago, when he said the airline would maintain prices low to help fleeing Ukrainians reconnect with their loved ones.
“We’re keeping our air fares low, we want to play our part as best as we can,” O’Leary said during a press conference in early March.