At a press conference held on Wednesday morning the CEO of the Irish low-cost airline Ryanair has announced that Michael O’Leary has said that is airline is to scrap 1.1 million seats from its Belgian operation. Mr O’Leary says that the decision is in response to higher taxes.
Ryanair to cut 1.1 million passenger seats on flights to and from Belgian airports in response to higher taxes
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Ryanair’s decision comes after the Federal Government’s announcement late last year that the federal air passenger tax will increase from the current 5 euro/passenger to 10 euro/passenger from 2027. From this year, the city authorities in Charleroi (Hainaut) will impose a tax of 3 euro/passenger on passengers that use the city’s airport that is also sometimes referred to as “Brussel South Airport”.
The majority of Ryanair’s services to and from Belgium land at or take off from Charleroi. On Tuesday Charleroi City Council told the press agency Belga on Tuesday that a “democratic vote” on the tax had already been held and the projected revenue from it had been included in the 2026 budget.
During the press conference Mr O’Leary called the decisions “stupid” and ‘ridiculous”, adding that his airline would move to other countries where taxes are lower. Ryanair previously warned that the increases made Belgium less attractive to airlines at a time when other countries are reducing taxes.
Ryanair carried around 10.1 million passengers through Belgian airports last year. 8.9 million of these are via Charleroi and 1.2 million via Brussels Airport at Zaventem in Flemish Brabant. Mr O'Leary says he will cut another 1.1 million seats next year if the federal government does not reverse the tax increase for 2027.