Ryanair has reported a loss of €306 million for the third quarter of the financial year, down sharply from a profit of €88 million for the same period last year.

In the three months to the end of December, the low-cost carrier welcomed just 8.1 million passengers, down 78 per cent from the 35.9 million a year ago.

Revenue for the quarter was €0.3 billion, down 82 per cent from the €1.9 billion seen during the same period of 2019.

The carrier said, while visibility to the end of the year was weak, it now expects to lose as much as €950 million for the full financial year.

However, looking further ahead, Ryanair said it hopes to be able to capitalise on the crisis in the longer-term.

The carrier said it expects to have a much lower cost base and a strong balance sheet moving forward.

This will enable it to fund lower fares and add lower cost aircraft to capitalise on the many growth opportunities that will be available in all markets across Europe, especially where competitor airlines have substantially cut capacity or failed.

Flybe, Germanwings, Level and Montenegro Airlines have already left the market, with other failures possible in the year ahead.