TAXING FLIGHTS FOR ORDINARY FAMILIES WILL DAMAGE UK TOURISM, JOBS AND GROWTH
Ryanair the UK’s number 1 Airline today (Fri 1 Nov) condemned the new Starmer Govt budget decision to increase APD on short-haul low fare air travel by £2 per passenger which will further burden ordinary UK families travelling abroad on Holidays or to visit friends and families. A family of 4 flying to Spain on a low cost holiday next year will pay £60 in air travel taxes to a Govt whose Minister receives £1000’s in free clothes and concert tickets. This anti-growth tax hike will damage UK tourism, jobs and economic growth, especially the UK Regions, with Regional Airports being particularly damaged by this tax on ordinary families.
Higher air travel taxes means higher UK access costs, which makes the UK a less competitive destination for tourism and airline investment. Less tourism means fewer flights, higher fares, and job losses which will be especially damaging for UK Regional Airports and for UK domestic flights (which pay APD on the double).
If the new Labour Govt are serious about their claims to deliver “growth” then they should start by scrapping APD and lowering air access costs to the UK which will stimulate Tourism, giving rise to rapid growth in visitor numbers, regional tourism and jobs.
Ryanair’s Michael O’Leary said:
“As an Island economy on the periphery of Europe, it is vital that the UK lowers air access costs so that low fare Airlines can grow tourism, traffic, visitor numbers and jobs especially in the regions. Instead, Chancellor Rachel Reeves this week has damaged the UK’s growth prospects and made air travel much more expensive for UK families travelling abroad on holidays, or to visit friends and family.
This Labour Govt promised to deliver growth but instead their first budget has damaged growth, damaged tourism, and damaged air travel to/from the UK. At a time when Ireland, Hungary, Sweden and many regions in Italy have abolished air travel taxes, Chancellor Rachel Reeves idiotic decision to further raise the UK’s already high air travel taxes will deliver cuts, not growth.
This week’s anti-growth air tax increase shows that Chancellor Rachel Reeves has no clue how to deliver growth in the UK economy. This short-sighted tax grab will make air travel much more expensive for ordinary UK families going on holidays abroad and will make the UK a less competitive destination compared to Ireland, Sweden, Hungary and Italy where these Govt’s are abolishing travel taxes to stimulate traffic, tourism, and jobs growth in their economies. Ryanair will now review its UK schedules and expects to cut capacity to/from UK airports by up to 10% in 2025. This will reduce air travel to/from the UK by up to 5m passengers as the Labour Govt’s budget delivers higher taxes and tourism declines not growth.”
£5M INVESTMENT & 500 JOBS FOR ENGINEERS AND MECHANICS
Ryanair, Europe’s no.1 airline, today (Thurs, 31 Oct) celebrated the opening of an engineering Training Academy at Prestwick Airport, delivering an investment of £5M and creating 500 highly skilled jobs in the locality, including licensed engineers, mechanics and support staff.
This investment sees the addition of state-of-the-art classrooms and workshops and installation of a training aircraft on site, for the delivery of highly qualified engineers and mechanics to support the maintenance of Ryanair’s fleet as it grows to 800 aircraft by 2034.
This investment underpins Ryanair’s commitment to the UK and Scotland as it further drives connectivity, inbound tourism & employment.
CEO of Ryanair, Eddie Wilson, said:
“As the number 1 airline in Europe, we are delighted to announce an investment of £5 million in a Training Academy at Prestwick Airport creating 500 new engineer and mechanic positions at Prestwick.
The upgrade includes new classrooms, workshops, and training facilities, including a training aircraft on site and we look forward to investing in Ayrshire with state-of-the-art training facilities to support our 6 bay Heavy Maintenance Facility.”
RYANAIR’S INDUSTRY-LEADING ROUTE NETWORK, FREQUENCIES, AND FARES NOW AVAILABLE FOR CORPORATE TRAVELLERS THROUGH CONCUR TRAVEL
Ryanair, Europe’s No.1 airline, today (29 Oct) announced that Ryanair flights are now available for corporate travellers to book via new Concur Travel through a direct connection. This means direct access to Ryanair’s industry leading low fares and unrivalled network of key city connections across Europe (240 airports) with regular morning and evening flights, giving the business travel world more choice at the lowest fares in Europe.
Corporate customers who book Ryanair flights directly through the new Concur Travel will also benefit from significant efficiencies and the convenience of their booking details being fed into SAP Concur solutions, reducing any unnecessary admin. They also won’t have to complete Ryanair’s Customer Verification making their business travel experience even more seamless.
Ryanair CMO, Dara Brady, said:
“This is great news for the business travel world as corporate travellers will now be able to access Ryanair’s low fares and industry leading route network of 3,600 daily flights across 240 airports, conveniently through Concur Travel, giving them more choice and flexibility for their business trips. Our low fares and high frequency schedules cater perfectly for business travel, saving money and time for businesses.”
Paul Dear, Regional Vice President – Supplier Services EMEA, SAP Concur commented:
“Everything we’ve built with Ryanair aims to connect them to the wider business travel industry in the most seamless, effective, and productive way. Ryanair wanted to bring its travel options to the corporate world and came to us as they see us as a trustworthy partner thanks to our transparent customer paths.”
Ryanair, Europe’s No.1 airline, today (23rd Oct) launched its Winter 2024 schedule for Copenhagen, with 29 routes including 4 exciting new routes to Barcelona, Bristol, Poznań and Sofia, giving Danish citizens/visitors more choice at the lowest fares in Europe. Why not meander through Las Ramblas in Barcelona, bask in the culture of Bristol’s industrial heritage, stroll through Poznań’s Old Market Square and by the scenic Malta Lake or take in Sofia’s many churches representing different eras of its rich history?
While Ryanair continues to invest, grow traffic & tourism to Copenhagen, and provide much-needed competition to high-fare carriers, like SAS & Norwegian, this growth is in jeopardy of the Govt’s ridiculous proposal to introduce an Aviation Tax of DKK 50 per departing passenger from Jan 2025, which they are dressing up as a fake ‘eco tax’.
Denmark is one of the few European States that has yet to recover its pre-Covid traffic at just 95% of its 2019 levels. If Denmark introduces this Aviation Tax, it would make Danish air travel even less competitive than other EU States, such as Sweden, where the Govt determined that aviation taxes do nothing to promote sustainable aviation but only damage economic growth, tourism, and employment, whilst also limiting low fare connectivity. As a result, the Swedish Govt made the pragmatic and forward-thinking decision to abolish the Aviation Tax, which Ryanair responded to by adding 2 extra aircraft ($200m investment), 10 new routes, and 60 new jobs for Sweden’s Summer 2025 schedule.
Ryanair calls on the Danish Govt to follow Sweden’s example and scrap its plans to introduce an Aviation Tax, and instead make Denmark more competitive and attractive for airlines, like Ryanair, to invest, grow and deliver more low fare routes, which Denmark needs if it is to fully recover its pre-Covid traffic, as most other EU countries already have.
Ryanair’s Dara Brady said:
“Despite Ryanair’s significant post-Covid growth in Denmark (+35%), including 4 new Copenhagen routes (Barcelona, Bristol, Poznań & Sofia) for Winter 2024, Denmark is one of the few European countries (like Germany) that has failed to recover its pre-Covid traffic due to its high access costs and high airport charges. Despite this, the Govt is absurdly proposing to introduce a new Aviation Tax from Jan 2025, which would make Denmark even less competitive than other EU States, who are abolishing taxes and lowering airport costs to stimulate traffic growth.
Ryanair is the only major airline growing traffic in Europe, and cost is the main factor we consider when deciding where to allocate our new aircraft and growth. Ryanair calls on the Danish Govt to follow Sweden’s example, scrap its plans to introduce an Aviation Tax, and instead promote policies to lower costs to incentivise growth and competition to high fare national flag carrier, SAS.”
Ryanair, Europe’s No.1 airline, today (21 Oct) announced that its low-fare flights are now available through Etraveli Group’s platforms – a leading global technology provider for flights. This marks the latest milestone in the partnership between Etraveli Group and Ryanair, Europe’s No.1 airline, following their “Approved OTA” agreement announced in July 2024.
This integration comes just in time for the Winter season, enabling Etraveli Group customers to easily book Ryanair low fare flights across the airline’s impressive network of 240+ destinations. With this partnership, Etraveli Group guarantees customers a seamless booking process, ensuring that their correct contact and payment details are securely provided to Ryanair. This will allow them full access to their myRyanair accounts, giving them direct communication from the airline and important flight updates.
The collaboration highlights Etraveli Group’s continued commitment to expanding its offering and providing its customers with the best travel options available.
Ryanair CMO, Dara Brady, said:
“We’re pleased to announce that Ryanair flights are now available to Etraveli Groups customers to book with the guarantee of full price transparency and full access to their booking. We look forward to working with Etraveli Group over the years to come and carrying their customers onboard Ryanair’s market-leading network of low-fare flights and routes.”
Johan Elwin, Chief Commercial Officer, Etraveli Group, said:
“We are thrilled to partner with Ryanair, bringing even more choice and value to our customers. With Ryanair’s unmatched low fares and extensive route network, this collaboration strengthens our mission to offer seamless and competitive travel options. Our customers can now book Ryanair flights directly through our platforms with the added assurance of a smooth, transparent process and full access to all the benefits Ryanair provides.”
This partnership is set to continue over the coming years, creating more opportunities for Etraveli Group’s customers to enjoy affordable and convenient travel across Ryanair’s vast network of routes.
Ryanair, Europe’s no. 1 airline, today (17 Oct) announced that the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) has formally validated its near-term emission reduction target[1]. Ryanair’s near-term target conforms with the SBTi Aviation pathway and is classified in line with a 1.5o trajectory. This sees the Group committing to reduce its carbon intensity by 27% by 2031.]
Ryanair’s Director of Sustainability and Finance, Thomas Fowler said:
“Ryanair’s ambitious decarbonisation targets are underpinned by our increasing use of sustainable aviation fuel and new fuel-efficient aircraft entering the fleet. Last year, we reset our decarbonisation target following the order for 300 Boeing MAX-10 aircraft (21% more seats, 20% less CO2). We’re delighted that SBTi have agreed that this target is in line with the levels required to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement.”
About the SBTi
The SBTi is a corporate climate action organization that enables companies and financial institutions worldwide to play their part in combating the climate crisis. SBTi develop standards, tools and guidance which allow companies to set greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reductions targets in line with what is needed to keep global heating below catastrophic levels and reach net-zero by 2050 at latest.
[1] Ryanair Holdings plc commits to reduce Well-to-Wake scope 1 and 3 jet fuel GHG emissions 27% per RTK by 2031 from a 2023 base year. * **
* Non-CO₂ factors which may also contribute to aviation induced warming are not included in this target. Ryanair Holdings plc will publicly report its non-CO2 impacts.
** The target boundary includes land-related emissions and removals from bioenergy feedstock.”
2 BASED AIRCRAFT ($200M INV) & 40% TRAFFIC GROWTH TO 1.2 MILLION P.A.
Ryanair, the UK’s No.1 low fares airline, today (16th Oct) launched its Winter 2024 schedule for Belfast, with 13 routes including an exciting new route to Kaunas. Ryanair has also added extra Winter flights on 3 popular city-break hotspots – Alicante, Krakow, & London – giving Ryanair’s Belfast customers unbeatable choice and regular connections at the lowest fares in Europe.
Ryanair will operate 4x return services per week on its new Kaunas Winter 2024 route starting from 27th October, offering Belfast customers the opportunity to visit the south-central Lithuanian city and explore the charming streets of the old town, take in the beauty of the Kaunas castle, and soak up the city’s fascinating history. Kaunas is also home to one of Europe’s best Christmas Markets, which runs from the end of November right up to Christmas eve – the perfect reason to take a trip.
Since the re-opening of its Belfast base in 2023, Ryanair has grown and invested heavily in Belfast (+64% v pre-Covid), including the airline’s 2 based aircraft, which represent a $200m investment and support over 850 local jobs. Ryanair is also driving year-round inbound tourism for Belfast, carrying over 1.2m passenger to/from Belfast in 2024, and now with Dublin Airport closed for business due to the 2007 artificial traffic cap, Ryanair has switched over 50,000 Winter seats to Belfast, including flights for key sporting fixtures, school holidays and Christmas, further driving traffic to/from Belfast in the off-peak Winter season.
To celebrate the launch of Ryanair’s Belfast Winter 2024 schedule and its new Kaunas route, the airline has launched a limited time seat sale with fares from just £24.99 available only at www.ryanair.com.
Ryanair’s Chief Marketing Officer Dara Brady said:
“As the UK’s No.1 low fares airline Ryanair is pleased to announce our Winter 2024 schedule for Belfast, with 13 routes including an exciting new route to Kaunas – connecting Northern Ireland with the Baltics, as well as extra Winter flights to Alicante, Krakow, and London, and giving Northern Ireland citizens/visitors even more choice at the lowest fares in Europe.
Since reopening Ryanair’s base in 2023, we have grown and invested heavily in the region with 2x based aircraft ($200m invest.) and support of over 850 local jobs, as well as driving important inbound tourism year-round. Through our ongoing investment, we have grown our Belfast operation by +64% vs. pre-Covid levels, and we will continue to grow at Belfast, have recently switched over 50,000 Winter seats from Dublin due to the 2007 traffic cap rendering Dublin Airport closed for business.
Ryanair looks forward to continuing our positive relationship with Belfast International Airport and the growth opportunity it presents. We look forward to carry millions more Belfast citizens/visitors onboard our Ryanair flights over the years to come.”
Belfast International Airport’s CEO, Dan Owens said:
“Since returning to Belfast International Airport, Ryanair has offered local passengers’ greater choice and connectivity with fantastic routes on offer. Today’s announcement that they will deliver 13 routes over the winter period including an exciting new destination such as Kaunas in Lithuania only grows this offering.
The additional flights to Alicante, Krakow and London strengthen Ryanair’s presence in Northern Ireland and is warmly welcomed by all.”