The Irish low-cost airline Ryanair has announced that it will reduce its offering in Spain by 2025% in the summer of 18. The decision affects a total of 800.000 passenger seats and 12 routes at seven regional airports. Ryanair justifies this drastic measure with excessive fees and a lack of incentives from the Spanish airport operator Aena. The conflict between the airline and the operator highlights the challenges facing the aviation industry and the growing competition among European airports.
Ryanair's cuts mainly affect smaller, less busy airports. Flight operations at Jerez (XRY) and Valladolid (VLL) airports will be completely suspended. An aircraft based in Santiago will be taken out of service and flight schedules at five other airports - Vigo (VGO), Santiago (SCQ), Zaragoza (ZAZ), Asturias (OVD) and Santander (SDR) - will be significantly reduced.
These airports, which often function as important transport hubs for their regions, are not only losing passenger volumes, but also economic importance. Such route cancellations are a major setback, especially for smaller towns and rural regions, as they can affect connectivity and tourism.
Criticism of Aena and the fee structures
Ryanair blames the decision of airport operator Aena for the cuts. Aena, which manages 48 airports in Spain, is accused by the airline of not creating sufficient incentives for airlines to use unused capacity at regional airports. Instead, Ryanair says, Aena prefers to invest in airports outside Spain, such as in the Caribbean or in North and South America.
Eddie Wilson, CEO of Ryanair, was particularly critical of Aena's fee policy. Although the Spanish National Commission for Markets and Competition (CNMC) has frozen passenger fees for 2025 at the 2024 level - 10,35 euros per passenger - Ryanair believes this is not enough to offset the consequences of the fare increases in 2024 and the lack of incentives. Wilson called for a five-year fee freeze and targeted incentive packages that could encourage airlines to shift their capacity to Spanish regional airports.
shift to other markets
As a direct result of the lack of support in Spain, Ryanair plans to move aircraft and capacity to other European markets such as Italy, Sweden, Croatia and Hungary, where Wilson says governments are actively creating incentives for air travel. Morocco is also one of the winners of this development, which shows how dependent the aviation industry has become on national support programs and location advantages.
Broader economic impact
The reduction in service by Ryanair could have far-reaching effects. In addition to the direct losses for the airports affected, jobs are also at risk, both at the airline itself and in the tourism and service industries. Regional airports are often an important driver of the local economy, and their importance goes beyond pure passenger traffic.
The criticism of Aena also raises questions about the operator's long-term strategy. While the concentration on larger and more profitable airports seems to make business sense, in the long term it could impair regional development and increase competition among European airports.
The conflict between Ryanair and Aena underlines the tensions that exist between airlines and airport operators in Europe. While airlines increasingly rely on incentive programs and low fees to remain competitive, airport operators face the challenge of financing their infrastructure and operating it economically.
It remains to be seen whether Ryanair's calls for a comprehensive incentive system and a fee freeze will be heard. What is clear, however, is that competition for passengers and investment among European airports will continue to increase. Countries that actively create incentives could benefit in the long term - at the expense of locations that are less flexible.