[31][32][33] Since its establishment in 1984,[11] Ryanair has grown from a small airline, flying the short journey from Waterford to London Gatwick, into Europe's largest carrier.

Under partial European Economic Community (EEC) deregulation, airlines could begin new international intra-EEC services as long as one of the two governments approved (the so-called "double-disapproval" regime).

[49] In a 1994 lecture, O'Leary described the strategy as adopting a simple all-Boeing 737 fleet, pursuing expansion over yield, creating a culture of cost-cutting, and "re-educating" the customer to prefer lower prices to "frills".

[52] After a successful flotation on the Dublin and the NASDAQ stock exchanges, the airline launched services to Stockholm, Sandefjord Airport, Torp (110 km south of Oslo), Beauvais–Tillé northwest of Paris, and Charleroi near Brussels.

Increasingly online booking contributed to the aim of cutting flight prices by selling directly to passengers and excluding the costs imposed by travel agents.

[79] On 22 January 2009, Ryanair walked away from the Aer Lingus takeover bid after it was rejected by the Irish government on the grounds it undervalued the airline and would harm competition.

[87] In April 2010, after a week of flight disruption in Europe caused by the 2010 eruptions of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland, Ryanair decided to end refusals to comply with EU regulations which stated it was obliged to reimburse stranded passengers.

[93] Ryanair cut capacity by grounding 80 aircraft between November 2011 and April 2012 due to the high cost of fuel and continuing weak economic conditions.

[99] The building was officially opened on Thursday 3 April 2014 by the then Taoiseach Enda Kenny, Minister for Finance Michael Noonan and the Lord Mayor of Dublin Oisin Quinn.

Ryanair said that the cancellations aimed "to improve its system-wide punctuality"[114] which had dropped significantly in the first two weeks of September which the airline attributed to "ATC capacity delays and strikes, weather disruptions and the impact of increased holiday allocations to pilots and cabin crew.

[135] Despite their original plan, to fly 60% of the previous year's schedule, in October 2020, the company decided to reduce the number of flights between the period of November 2020 – March 2021 to 40%.

[141] The Ryanair chief executive Michael O'Leary said its planes would not fly if the airline was required to leave its middle seats empty to comply with in-flight social distancing rules.

This expansion features Ryanair's introduction of ultra-low fares on 11 domestic routes - a first in Africa, aiming to boost internal connectivity and traffic growth.

[citation needed] In 2011, a former Ryanair captain was awarded financial compensation by an employment tribunal in London after being fired for handing out a union form to a cabin crew member while on duty.

Judge Cordoba stated: "I declare abusively and, therefore, null, the clause in the contract by which Ryanair obliges the passenger to take a boarding pass to the airport.

[201] While CEO Michael O'Leary initially claimed that charging passengers for toilets was "going to happen", he stated days later that it was "technically impossible and legally difficult" but "[made] for interesting and very cheap PR".

[29] Ryanair responded by saying that passenger numbers had risen 80% in the previous six years and this was a more accurate reflection of the airline's popularity than an "unrepresentative survey of just 8,000 people".

A court ruling in 2004 judged that the responsibility should be shared by the airline and the airport owners;[209] Ryanair responded by adding a surcharge of £0.50 to all its flight prices.

Duff had previously attempted to contact Ryanair on three occasions to inquire about its policy regarding travellers' colostomy bags, but each time no one answered the phone after half an hour.

[217] In June 2022, Ryanair faced severe anger and backlash for making South Africans take a general knowledge test in the Afrikaans language before allowing them to board UK-bound flights as a means to verify that their passports were genuine.

[245] The Irish Aviation Authority investigated the incidents and came to several conclusions, including: The Irish Aviation Authority made several recommendations, including that Ryanair should "review [its] fuel policy and consider issuing guidance to Crew concerning fuel when operating into busy airports with mixed aircraft operators and types, particularly in poor weather conditions when diversions are likely.

"[247] In an interview with the Dutch investigative journalism programme KRO Reporter, four anonymous Ryanair pilots claimed they were being pressured to carry as little fuel as possible on board to cut costs.

Although traditionally a full-service airline, Aer Lingus moved to a low-fares strategy from 2002, leading to a much more intense competition with Ryanair on Irish routes.

The runner-up, Aer Arann, was then allowed to start flights, a move Ryanair criticises as the basis of not initiating an additional tender process was unlawful.

[263] Ryanair traditionally prefers to fly to smaller or secondary airports, such as London Stansted or Paris Beauvais, usually outside major cities to help the company benefit from lower landing fees and quick turn-around times to reduce costs.

Ryanair's largest competitor is EasyJet which has a far greater focus on larger or primary airports such as Amsterdam and Paris-Charles de Gaulle, heavily targeting business passengers.

[268] In February 2018, due to the Scottish Government not abolishing or reducing Air Passenger Duty (APD), Ryanair announced that it would cut many flights out of Glasgow Airport resulting in the airline closing its base there.

[citation needed] On 14 January 2025, it was reported that Ryanair will be introducing four additional new routes to its destinations; Wroclaw, Cagliari, Valencia and Kaunas beginning June 2025.

[273] In April 2006, a failure to reach an agreement on a new commercial contract resulted in Ryanair announcing that it would withdraw service on the Dublin–Cardiff route at short notice.

[292] In the same month, O'Leary expressed concerns and frustration with the certification delays and revealed that, in parallel with discussions with Boeing regarding a potential order for new aircraft to be delivered from 2023, he was also talking to Airbus which was offering very aggressive pricing.