Ryanair hiring Ukraine staff in anticipation of return after war

DUBLIN (Reuters) – Ryanair is hiring significant numbers of Ukrainian pilots and cabin crew so that it will be ready to return to the country when the war with Russia ends, Chief Executive Michael O’Leary said on Monday.

“We are very committed to returning to Ukraine as soon as it is safe to do so,” said O’Leary, who had said on the eve of the conflict that he was considering basing up to 20 aircraft in the country.

“We are hiring quite a number of Ukraine pilots and cabin crew specifically so that we can … restore bases in Ukraine if and when it is safe to do so,” O’Leary told analysts after the release of third-quarter financial results.

(Writing by Conor Humphries; Editing by David Goodman)