Ryanair cut its traffic target for fiscal 2027 to reduce its exposure to unhedged jet fuel during the winter season.

The Dublin-based budget airline said Wednesday that it is now targeting traffic of 214 million passengers in the fiscal year to the end of March 2027, down from 216 million passengers previously. It reported 208.4 million passengers in fiscal 2026.

The company said it is sensible to reduce its exposure to unhedged--or not previously guaranteed--jet fuel prices during the "unprofitable" winter schedule between November and March. It expects traffic in the winter period to be flat on year.

Ryanair said the winter capacity cut will reduce its losses for the winter period by between 70 million euros ($81.2 million) and 100 million euros.

Ryanair said it is on track to grow its summer traffic by over 5% to 145 million in summer 2026.

The company said 80% of fiscal 2027 jet fuel is hedged at around $67 per barrel. As a result, the company said it is well placed to record another profitable year, albeit below fiscal 2026's profit of 2.17 billion euros. It remains too early to provide meaningful profit guidance, Ryanair added.

The airline said if higher oil prices continue through to the 2027 season, it expects short-haul airfares in Europe to rise materially. Ryanair expects "some less well-hedged competitors" to struggle to "maintain capacity or even survive" during the coming winter season.