RYANAIR is set to axe 1.2 million seats from its Spanish flights this summer due to ‘uncompetitive’ airport charge hikes.
The budget airline’s CEO Eddie Wilson has confirmed the cancellation in Spain’s regional airports that sit within the Aena network.
Aena, the world’s leading state-owned airport operator, revealed that it plans to raise its fees by about 3.8% per year from 2027 to 2031, leading to a total 21% increase over five years.
These higher fees make it more expensive for airlines to operate which is why Ryanair has decided to make its cut, a move that brings the total number of seats it has cut since summer 2024 to three million.
Now the Irish airline is calling on the Spanish government, which owns 51% of Aena, to utilise its power and stop the price increase.
Aena has however pushed back and justified its rise in fees saying that it is necessary due to a €10 billion investment plan that will expand airports, lower passenger numbers since the global pandemic and higher operating costs.
This reasoning did not appease airlines who, through the ALA association, stated that they believe Aena could proceed with its investments while lowering its prices by 4.9% annually.
Ryanair will still continue to grow in Spain’s main airports with the decline occurring in regional routes.
The airline has claimed that Spanish regional airports are being let down, partly because the government benefits from Aena’s profits.
Wilson says that the government has become ‘dependent on Aena’s dividends, which have amounted to nearly €5 billion over the last four years.’
When Aena distributed its most recent dividends, which totalled €1.65 billion, the Spanish government received €834 million.
This alone has led Ryanair to state that the government is maximising cash returns rather than demanding lower regional airport charges, according to Wilson.
With Aena’s recent actions in mind, Ryanair’s focus remains on Morocco and Italy with Wilson saying that ‘these countries are significantly more competitive than Spain’.
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