Christopher Ryan (aviation executive)

Christopher “Christy” Ryan (12 December 1936 – 14 March 2007) was an Irish aviation executive. Ryan was a co-founder of Ryanair, Ireland’s first low-fare airline, and served as its first managing director during the company’s establishment, playing a pivotal role in the early years of Ryanair's development.

Christy Ryan was a colleague and close friend of Tony Ryan, another businessman involved with Ryanair's creation, along with Liam Lonergan, owner of a travel agency. Despite sharing the same surname they were not related.

Early career at Aer Lingus

Christy Ryan was born in 1936 and grew up in Kilsheelan, County Tipperary, around 40 km from Waterford. His first job in 1956, after leaving school, was with Aer Lingus at Shannon Airport, where he was employed as a traffic assistant. At the time Shannon Airport was an important hub for transatlantic aviation, and Aer Lingus ran its North Atlantic services from there.

While working at Shannon Airport he met Tony Ryan, a few months older than Christy Ryan, and also from Tipperary but unrelated to Christy. Tony Ryan started work for Aer Lingus, in the dispatch team, on the same day as Christy. They became very close friends, a friendship that continued for over 30 years. Christy Ryan was godfather to Tony Ryan's second son, Declan Ryan, who as an adult was to have a key role in Ryanair.

The launch of Ryanair

After leaving Aer Arann Ryan developed a proposal for a new low‑fare airline to challenge Aer Lingus. He entered into discussions with Tony Ryan and Liam Lonergan, who were to become the three founders of Ryanair. They initially arranged the incorporation of Danren Enterprises as the shareholding structure for the new company, with Tony Ryan's sons holding the majority stake, and Christy Ryan holding 10% of the shares. Christy Ryan was appointed the company's first managing director.

The airline's name was a point of contention since Tony Ryan was nervous of being seen to be too compromised with the new airline. He was still involved with Guinness Peat Aviation, with its links back to Aer Lingus. Consequently Tony Ryan's financial involvement was channelled through his three sons, and Tony's initial idea was to call the airline Trans-Tipperary. Christy Ryan suggested that branding the fledgling airline as Ryanair would make more sense in that the Ryan family name added credibility. Tony Ryan eventually agreed, and Christy then submitted the paperwork to rename Danren Enterprises to Ryanair and applied for operating licences.

As managing director Christy Ryan oversaw Ryanair’s regulatory applications, operational setup, staffing, and early route development, including the airline’s first scheduled service on 8 July 1985, on a route that Ryan had deliberately chosen. This was a Monday to Friday service from Waterford to London Gatwick airport, using a 15 seater Embraer Bandeirante, with ticket prices below that of Aer Lingus' typical fares for services between Ireland and Britain. In addition to this being Ryanair's first scheduled flight, it was also the first time Waterford had an international route.

Throughout the late 1980s he held senior operational and board roles at Ryanair, as the airline continued to expand, before being seconded in 1990 as managing director of Waterford Airport. In July 1992 the taoiseach Albert Reynolds opened a IR£1 million terminal building, in August Ryanair withdrew all services from Waterford citing the recession in the aviation business.

birth name	Christopher Ryan
birth date	December 12, 1936
birth place	Kilsheelan, County Tipperary, Ireland
death date	March 14, 2007
death place	Waterford, Ireland
known for	Co-founder and first managing director of Ryanair
occupation	Aviation executive
education	CBS High School Clonmel, County Tipperary

Christopher Ryan (aviation executive)

Early career at Aer Lingus

Guinness Peat Aviation

Aer Arann

The launch of Ryanair

Falling out with Ryanair

Later life

Legacy

References