Ryanair confirmed a reduction of approximately one million passenger seats to and from Spanish regional airports this coming winter. The cuts target smaller regional airports in response to planned fee increases by Aena, the Spanish airport network. The airline asserts many regional airports are heavily underused—around 70 percent—and therefore uncompetitive at current prices. Ryanair will publicly name affected airports and precise cut numbers at a Madrid press conference. Executives described the cutbacks as "quite severe" and criticized Aena as a monopoly raising prices, contrasting fee reductions in other countries where airports compete to attract traffic. Major hubs like Madrid, Barcelona, Malaga and island airports are expected to grow.
Low-cost Irish airline Ryanair has confirmed that it will cut flights to Spain by a further million seats this winter. This follows repeated threats by company executives to reduce flights to smaller regional airports in response to plans from Aena, the Spanish airport network, to increase airline fees. However, traffic will continue to grow at major Spanish airports such as Madrid, Barcelona, Malaga and those in the Balearic and Canary Islands, the airline stressed.
Europa Press and Reuters report that the airline will "officially announce next Wednesday a reduction of its capacity to and from regional airports by about one million passenger seats during the coming winter," citing Eddie Wilson, Ryanair chief executive. The airports affected and the exact number of seats to be cut will be revealed at the press conference in Madrid. Wilson said previously that the cutbacks would be "quite severe".
Ryanair argues that the root problem lies in the lack of competitiveness of Spanish regional airports, many of which are 70 percent underused or almost empty. "If airports are empty, that means the price is wrong. It's as simple as that," Wilson said. The executive criticised Aena for being "a monopoly that exercises its power by raising prices", adding that in other parts of Europe, such as Italy and Sweden, airports are lowering fees to be more competitive and attract traffic.
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