12.11.05
Budget airline Ryanair today announced a long-term $1 billion (£575 million) expansion plan for its operation at Frankfurt Hahn, which will see it become the carrier's second-largest hub behind Stansted.
Ryanair said it planned to increase the number of its aircraft operating at Frankfurt Hahn airport to 18 from 6. The company said it aimed to carry more than eight million passengers a year from Hahn by 2012.
Ryanair's plan would see the regional German airport overtake Dublin as its second-busiest base. London Stansted is currently Ryanair's main base of operations. The Frankfurt Hahn airport is about 120km (70 miles) from the city of Frankfurt.
Ryanair has already announced plans to expand its fleet of Boeing aircraft by 2012, from 92 at present to 234. The company said it would spend $1bn on new aircraft for Frankfurt Hahn.
The airline also said it would loan authorities at Frankfurt Hahn 12.5m euros (about £8.4m) to help build a new passenger terminal. It said its expansion would create 8000 jobs at the regional airport in Germany's Rhineland-Palatinate state.
Ryanair chief executive, Michael O'Leary, said: 'This is the single biggest investment in German aviation by a non-German company and will make Frankfurt Hahn one of the largest airports in Germany.'
