A second wave of the coronavirus could delay the recovery for airlines into next year. That’s what Ryanair says, who’s expecting a loss all summer anyway. However, the crisis can also create opportunities.

In the months of April to June, when its aircraft were completely grounded, the Irish airline recorded a loss of EUR 185 million. Ryanair resumed flights on July 1. In the current quarter, the company expects another loss, but less than that of preceding months.

Ryanair said that it is impossible to predict the duration of the coronavirus pandemic and that a second wave of the virus in Europe this autumn is the ‘greatest fear’. The entire Ryanair financial year, which runs from April to March, is in any case challenging, the company states, also because of the consequences of the Brexit.

However, the low cost airline believes that the crisis offers opportunities because airlines will reduce their capacity at higher costs. Ryanair could attract more customers. The company itself worked on its costs by agreeing wage reductions with staff in the United Kingdom, Austria and Ireland. In countries where staff did not want to join, such as Germany, the company threatens to close its bases.

This month, Ryanair is still operating around 40% of its normal number of flights, but that should be 60% next month if there are no unexpected events and 70% in September.