RYANAIR CALLS ON BELGIUM GOVT TO REVERSE FIVE-FOLD FEDERAL TAX INCREASE TO PREVENT LOSS OF OVER 2 MILLION SEATS, TOURISM AND JOBS FROM WALLONIA IN WINTER 2026 / SUMMER 2027

Ryanair, Europe’s No.1 airline, today (Fri, 6 Feb) welcomed the sensible decision of the Walloon Govt to reject the regressive Charleroi pax tax, which would have resulted in the loss of low‑fare connectivity, local jobs, trade, and tourism for Belgium. Thanks to the action taken by the Walloon Govt, Ryanair will now operate its full Summer 2026 schedule at Charleroi, delivering 7.5 million low‑fare seats (+9% growth vs. S25) and preserving 112 direct connections that support tourism, jobs, and regional development in Wallonia.

Ryanair also supports the Walloon Govt’s position that the Belgium Govt’s proposal to increase the harmful federal aviation tax – which has increased fivefold since July 2025 – is discriminatory and will disproportionately damage the Walloon economy, undermining the very purpose of the tax. When will Prime Minister De Wever realise that taxing air traffic is not the way to grow tourism/jobs, it simply sends traffic to other lower cost, zero-tax, competitor destinations elsewhere in Europe, like Sweden, Slovakia, Hungary, Italy, or Albania, where Govts are abolishing aviation taxes to grow traffic, tourism and jobs.

Ryanair calls on Prime Minister De Wever to respect the autonomy of the Walloon Govt and allow it to have a say on its own tax matters, just as it did regarding the Charleroi pax tax. Otherwise, the Federal Govt will be responsible for the loss of over 2 million seats from October next at Charleroi Airport, with the loss of thousands of jobs.

Ryanair CEO, Eddie Wilson, said: 

“We welcome the Walloon Govt’s sensible decision to scrap the Charleroi pax tax – a regressive and ill‑judged measure that would have resulted in the loss of low‑fare connectivity, tourism, and jobs in Wallonia and across Belgium. Instead, Ryanair will not only maintain its full Summer 2026 schedule at Charleroi but grow traffic by +9%, supporting the local economy through the delivery of 7.5 million low‑fare seats across 112 routes.

However, this progress risks being wiped out by the Belgium Govt’s plan to further raise the harmful Federal Tax, which has already increased five-fold since last July. Prime Minister De Wever should listen to the Walloon Govt when they say that this discriminatory tax will disproportionately damage Wallonia’s economy, undermining its competitiveness while competing EU countries like Sweden, Slovakia, Hungary, Italy, and Albania are abolishing aviation taxes to grow.

Ryanair calls on Prime Minister De Wever to follow the lead of the Walloon Govt and scrap these silly tax increases, or he will be directly responsible for the loss of over 2 million seats from the Walloon Region (Charleroi Airport), along with thousands of local job losses, and the decimation of millions of euros in economic benefits for local communities.  These cuts, if the tax goes ahead, will take effect from October 2026.

Ryanair wants to grow in Belgium, but we cannot do so if the Federal Govt continues to price Wallonia out of the market with politically‑driven, anti‑consumer taxes.”