The airline has also threatened to stop routes to other countries
Ryanair is making waves by slashing a selection of its European flight routes in protest against climbing aviation taxes and various policies. The low-cost carrier has also issued a warning that it could scrap more routes should taxes in certain countries increase.
So far, the airline has axed some services to several destinations, including Spain, Italy, Denmark, and Germany. Just last month, Ryanair blasted Spain for “excessive fees” and declared it would reduce this summer’s offerings by 800,000 seats, resulting in 12 Spanish routes being dropped.
Ryanair operations at Jerez airport and Valladolid airport will also be completely stopped. Spanish airports like Vigo, Santiago, Zaragoza, Asturias, and Santander will also get fewer flights during the peak season.
Following increased municipal surcharges set for April, Ryanair decided to remove one aircraft from its base at Rome’s Leonardo da Vinci International Airport, Italy. German cities are not spared either, with Dortmund, Dresden, and Leipzig airports losing Ryanair flights completely and Hamburg seeing a decrease, totalling 22 routes gone from their schedule.
As of January’s announcements, Ryanair is set to close its Billund airport base in Denmark consisting of two aircraft and also terminate all routes in and out of Aalborg by March’s conclusion, eliminating yet another 32 routes. Ryanair’s top boss, Michael O’Leary, issued a stark warning to France last week, as reported by The Independent: “France is already a high-tax country and if it increases already high taxes further, we will probably reduce our capacity [to and from France].”
While the airline hasn’t completely dropped its Austrian flights, it is shifting strategies according to The Standard, with a preference reportedly set to be given to airports with lower fees like Linz and Salzburg. This comes after Ryanair warned travellers to Vienna could already expect an increase in ticket prices this year.
On New Year’s Day, Ryanair unveiled a “resolutions” manifesto which calls for governments throughout Europe to scrap aviation taxes and lift traffic limits. The carrier has advocated for a decrease in air traffic control charges and demanded that air traffic control should be fully staffed from the first morning departures.