Ryanair is to create 460 new jobs at East Midlands airport

Budget airline company Ryanair is to create 460 new jobs at East Midlands airport over the next year. The roles, for which the company is now recruiting, include engineers, pilots, cabin crew and baggage handling staff.

The Dublin-based carrier will add a total of nine new routes from three of its airports, flying an extra million passengers next year.

Two of the new routes will be flying from East Midlands – to Marseille and Menorca. Ryanair believes the secret of their success is basing a higher number of aircraft at regional airports that are more convenient for their customers to fly from.

Manchester and Liverpool airports will also benefit from the expansion, with 1,000 jobs created in total. The news, however,  is particularly welcome at East Midlands Airport, which suffered a major blow when BMI Baby closed and left the airport without one of its chief partners.

The move comes despite Chief executive Michael O’Leary warning earlier this year that the airline was braced for a difficult winter as austerity measures and the Eurozone crisis hit demand. The carrier reported a 29% drop in underlying pre-tax profits to 99 million euro (£77.5 million) in the  summer quarter as a 27% rise in fuel costs took its toll.