BUDGET airline Ryanair, which recently pulled its final route from Durham Tees Valley Airport, yesterday said it had made a loss in the final three months of last year.

The airline was forced to cancel more than 3,000 flights as strikes and severe weather grounded its aircraft.

Chief executive Michael O’Leary said the carrier had been expecting to break even in the third quarter but reported a net loss of 10.3 million euros (£8.5m).

However, a 15 per cent rise in average fares to 34 euros (£29), a surge of 20 per cent in ancillary revenues, such as inflight sales, and a six per cent hike in passenger numbers helped offset the impact of strikes in Europe and heavy snowfall in the UK.

The airline faced a 37 per cent rise in its third-quarter fuel bill but Mr O’Leary said the group was on course to hit full-year net profits at the upper end of its forecast range of between 380 million euros (£325m) and 400 million euros (£340m).

Mr O’Leary said: “This small third-quarter loss of ten million euros is disappointing, as we were on track to break even, but earnings were hit by a series of air traffic control strikes in the third quarter, compounded by a spate of bad weather airport closures in December.”

Mr O’Leary added that the 3,000 flight cancellations in the third quarter compared with 1,400 in the whole of the previous fiscal year.

He said that, although oil prices had risen significantly in recent months, the airline’s “fuel hedging strategy” was continuing to pay off, with 90 per cent of fourth-quarter fuel bought at a reduced rate.

In light of the adverse weather disruption, the chief executive took the opportunity to hit out at European regulations which require airlines to compensate passengers during widespread cancellations.

He said: “It is inequitable that airports enjoy a boost to their restaurant and retail revenues from stranded passengers when their runways close, yet the airlines are obliged to pay for meals, drinks and hotels, when these cancellations are outside our control.”

Last month, Ryanair said it will no longer offer its summer route from Durham Tees Valley Airport to the Spanish holiday destination of Alicante.

The route was Ryanair’s last remaining flight from the airport following its withdrawal of services to Dublin and Barcelona Girona.