Article at a glance:

The battle for Europe's low-fare flyers

• Europe's low-cost airlines have grown at a tremendous rate in recent years as attractive ticket prices incited more people to fly.
• Now, however, many of the Continent's main markets are becoming saturated, and competition is heating up among low-cost rivals, charter carriers, and traditional airlines.
• Low-cost airlines must trim costs as well as find new sources of revenue to ensure continued growth and to survive a coming period of consolidation.
• Traditional carriers must also lower costs, but to hang on to their lucrative business customers they must ensure that higher ticket prices correspond to significantly better service than the economy-class airlines offer.