Monarch collapse: Shares of rival airlines including Ryanair rise

Troubled Irish airline may now ‘poach’ pilots from Monarch

Shares in UK airlines and tour operators climbed after rival Monarch Airline collapsed into administration in the early hours of morning today.

Among the prime benefactors were shares of budget airlines easyJet and Ryanair. With a four per cent rise, easyJet became one of the biggest climbers on the FTSE 100 index, while Irish airline Ryanair which has been struggling with rampant flight cancellations due to staffing issues also saw a three per cent rise.

The collapse of Monarch has led to the cancellation of all its flights, stranding 110,000 passengers abroad. Media reports suggest that Monarch is the third European airline to collapse since the start of the summer, although its surviving rivals have been able to take advantage of the situation.

The collapse of British airline Monarch has also put at risk the jobs of its 2,750 staff members. Monarch, headquartered in Luton, had a capacity of more than six million seats a year and tour operator passenger volumes of more than 200,000 a year, according to the airline.

There are now growing media reports that Ryanair is set to ‘poach’ the pilots of Monarch to ease the growing pressure from stakeholders. Ryanair had also been training pilots at a Scottish airport to ease its staffing crisis. No confirmation has been received from the airline so far.

Earlier this week, Ryanair had suspended 34 routes, including all flights from London to Scotland, all through November to March 2018 in an attempt to its flight cancellation troubles. This sudden decision by the airline has affected around 400,000 bookings.

Following this, the British aviation regulator CAA had rebuked the airline for providing “misleading information” after it offered affected passengers either the choice of refunds or alternative Ryanair flights.