Ryanair's CEO says flight bookings in Europe have surged since Middle East travel chaos began

"We've seen, certainly, there's a big collapse in bookings to the Middle East, and a big surge in bookings on short-haul airlines within Europe. The Gulf states will suffer damage to their tourism product. Although O'Leary doesn't expect there to be any fundamental change or impact on booking trends into the start of summer."

"He doesn't think Iran can maintain their retaliatory strikes, and that President Donald Trump has a short attention span, so he would want it to be over reasonably quickly or he'll get bored. Meanwhile, he added, the Irish budget airline can benefit because, like other carriers, it hedges against oil prices."

"More than 13,000 flights in and out of the region have been canceled since Saturday, affecting more than 1 million passengers, according to data from Cirium. Some 300,000 British people and 20,000 Irish citizens are in the Middle East, according to the countries' governments."

Following US strikes on Iran, European airline bookings are surging while Middle East travel bookings are collapsing. Ryanair's CEO reports significant shifts in passenger demand toward short-haul European flights, particularly during the Easter vacation period. The Gulf states face tourism damage from reduced bookings. The CEO expects the conflict to resolve quickly, citing Trump's short attention span and Iran's inability to sustain retaliatory strikes. Ryanair benefits from increased European travel and oil price hedging. Over 13,000 flights in the Middle East have been canceled since Saturday, affecting more than 1 million passengers. Approximately 300,000 British and 20,000 Irish citizens remain in the region.

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