RYANAIR CALLS ON PM DE WEVER TO SCRAP STUPID AVIATION TAX BEFORE EVEN MORE DAMAGE IS DONE TO BELGIUM’S COLLAPSING AIR TRAVEL MARKET

Ryanair, Europe’s No.1 airline, today (Tues, 20 Oct) launched its substantially reduced Belgium W26 schedule, which includes the loss of 6 aircraft (a $600m investment), 1.1m seats and the closure of 20 routes across Brussels Charleroi and Zaventem Airports. These cuts come as a direct result of the Federal Govt’s stupid decision to raise Belgium’s aviation tax by 250% (from €2 in Jan 2025 to €7 in Jan 2027), making Belgium hopelessly uncompetitive against tax free, cost reducing EU neighbours like Slovakia, Sweden, Hungary and Italy, all of whom have abolished aviation taxes and lowered airport fees to grow.

These cuts could have been avoided – Ryanair repeatedly warned the De Wever Govt that raising harmful aviation taxes (at a time when other EU states are abolishing aviation taxes) would cost Belgium reduced flights, less passengers, less tourism, and hundreds of local jobs. The competitiveness of European Aviation is already undermined by Europe’s ETS tax regime, which taxes only intra-EU flights, while exempting all non-EU flights. Belgian citizens/visitors should not be made to pay even more of these unfair and damaging taxes. When competitors like Sweden and Slovakia have abolished these harmful aviation taxes, the Belgium Govt only has to look at Austria or Germany – two of the highest cost, yet most failing, air travel markets in Europe – to see that raising aviation taxes is the road to collapse, not the way to grow. It damages growth, as traffic, tourism and jobs simply switch to lower cost, tax free competitor States elsewhere in Europe.

Ryanair calls on failing PM De Wever and his Govt to wake up and abolish their harmful €2/€7 aviation tax before any more damage is done to Belgium’s already collapsing air travel market.  

Ryanair CEO, Michael O’Leary, said:

“The Draghi Report warns that Europe must improve its competitiveness, yet the Belgian Govt is doing exactly the opposite. PM De Wever’s 250% tax hike on air travel from €2 to €7 is a textbook example of how to discourage investment, collapse traffic and tourism and lose jobs as it hands growth to lower cost competitor EU States, who have abolished aviation taxes and are lowering costs to improve their competitiveness and stimulate rapid traffic and tourism growth.

Taxing air traffic does not deliver growth; it simply sends it elsewhere. As a result of PM De Wever’s failed high-tax, anti-growth aviation policy, Ryanair has switched 6 aircraft, over 1 million seats, and 20 routes out of Belgium in our Brussels Winter 2026 schedule and send them instead to tax free, lower cost destinations elsewhere in Europe.

We call again on PM De Wever to abolish this harmful aviation tax grab on ordinary Belgian citizens/visitors before any further damage is done to Belgium’s collapsing air travel market. The longer this damaging tax remains, the more traffic, tourism, jobs and routes Belgium will lose to lower cost, tax free EU competitor States.”