sensitive on air travel but it will not be good for yields. It is too early to say yet," he said. The carrier has said fuel surcharges imposed by flag carriers such as British Airways, Air France, and Lufthansa, had made Ryanair ticket prices more competitive, increasing demand and reducing the need for it to cut fares. Ryanair hopes to increase traffic by 27 percent to 35 million passengers this year. Like most airlines, it faces a higher fuel bill this year with oil prices hitting new records above $70. The airline is unhedged for fuel in August but had locked in 90 percent of its September volumes at $57 per barrel. Thereafter it is hedged for 90 percent of its needs until March at $47 per barrel. O'Leary said in the long-term he expected more European airlines to collapse, leaving four main big airlines left in Europe. --SP 1054 Local Time 0754 GMT
