Cost of flights could DROP because of Brexit, Ryanair boss says

RYANAIR boss has suggested that the cost of flights after Brexit could drop.

Michael O'Leary believes that the UK leaving the EU could "shake out" low-cost competitors on the market.

He said: "While we have reasonable visibility over forward quarter four bookings, we cannot rule out further cuts to air fares and/or slightly lower full-year guidance if there are unexpected Brexit or security developments which adversely impact yields between now and the end of March.

"We believe this lower fare environment will continue to shake out more loss making competitors, with Wow, Flybe, and reportedly Germania for example, all currently for sale."

His comments follow the Flybe bailout after it was bought by Virgin Atlantic while WOW Air have sold a number of planes while cutting their destination routes to the US.

The comments come after the airline issued a profit warning after lower than expected airfares.

Ryanair winter fares are expected to fall by seven per cent, a much larger drop than the predicted two per cent.

Despite the £1.2 billion profit Ryanair recorded last year, the Irish airline has struggled following a number of pilot and cabin crew strikes as well as rising fuel costs.

Post-Brexit travel could change for Brits when it comes to flights, passports and visas.

Instead of being allowed to enter EU countries for free, an ETIAS could be introduced, at a cost of £6.

It is similar to an ESTA which Brits currently have to pay £11 for to be allowed to enter the US.

Passports with less than six months on them could also be affected by Brexit.

Travellers who are not from the EU must have at least six months left on the document to be allowed into the country.

This could result in Brits being subject to the same rules, which could lead to a rush of passport renewals.