Spain's skies are being rearranged by a quarrel over money, as Ryanair pulls seats from its Spanish network and blames the airport operator Aena for raising its charges. Here the familiar pattern of the market shows itself: where one carrier withdraws, others hurry in to claim the space, and the seats do not vanish so much as change hands. Behind the figures lies an old question about who should bear the cost of moving people through the air, and whether a public airport manager's pricing can be tested by the threat of an airline leaving. The outcome will depend on whether the fee stands and w
Five Airlines Expand Spain Winter Routes as Ryanair Cuts Capacity Over Airport Fee Dispute
The king is dead, long live the king.
Mark
Why does this matter beyond one airline's complaint?
Mimi
Because places like Santiago, Vigo and Tenerife North lose a major carrier this winter. Ryanair shut its Santiago base and halted Vigo and Tenerife North flights entirely.
Mark
And the others are stepping in?
Mimi
Yes. Vueling, Binter and Iberia Express have added about 434,000 seats, and Wizz Air plans 40 new routes by March 2026.
Luke
Careful with that 434,000. It comes from Spanish media reports, and it's compared with last year, not a one-for-one replacement of Ryanair's seats.
Mark
Ryanair says the fee rise is excessive. Is that established?
Mimi
The 6.62% figure is the rise itself. Calling it excessive, and the highest in over a decade, is Wilson's characterization.
Luke
Right. Lucena says Ryanair distorts the figures, but the piece doesn't show which figures or how. Both sides are asserting.
Mark
What about the threatened further cuts?
Mimi
One million more seats, which could bring the total to 2.8 million next summer, per Spanish media.
Luke
That's a threat, not a decision. And the source says summer 2024, which looks like a mistake, so the timing is unclear.
El Pulso
- Ryanair has pulled roughly 600,000 mainland and 400,000 Canary Islands seats this winter, closing its Santiago de Compostela base and halting flights to Vigo and Tenerife North.
- Vueling, Binter and Iberia Express have rushed in with about 434,000 added seats, leaving the gap only partly filled and the Canaries especially exposed.
- Spanish ministers call the withdrawal blackmail and insist the government will not yield, while Aena's president accuses Ryanair of distorting the figures.
- Ryanair has threatened a further one million seat cut next summer, which could push total reductions toward 2.8 million, and the standoff over the 6.62% fee remains unresolved.
Spain's skies are being rearranged by a quarrel over money, as Ryanair pulls seats from its Spanish network and blames the airport operator Aena for raising its charges. Here the familiar pattern of the market shows itself: where one carrier withdraws, others hurry in to claim the space, and the seats do not vanish so much as change hands. Behind the figures lies an old question about who should bear the cost of moving people through the air, and whether a public airport manager's pricing can be tested by the threat of an airline leaving. The outcome will depend on whether the fee stands and whether the threat is carried out.
Ryanair has closed its two-aircraft base in Santiago de Compostela and halted winter flights to Vigo and Tenerife North. The airline says it is removing about 600,000 seats to and from mainland Spain and 400,000 to and from the Canary Islands this winter, and it blames a 6.62% rise in charges set by the airport operator Aena. Its chief executive, Eddie Wilson, calls the increase excessive, the largest in over a decade, and suggests Aena is chasing record profits. Ryanair says much of its regional Spanish capacity will move to airports in Italy, Morocco, Croatia, Sweden and Hungary.
Other carriers have moved quickly to fill the space. Vueling, Binter and Iberia Express have together added around 434,000 seats compared with last year. Vueling is adding 190,000 seats, many of them to the Canary Islands, with more capacity at Tenerife North and Santiago. Binter has raised its capacity by a third and is reinforcing routes to Vigo, Valencia and Asturias, while Wizz Air plans 40 new routes from Spanish airports by March 2026.
The dispute has grown sharper. Ryanair has also threatened to withdraw a further million seats next summer unless Aena reverses the increase, a move that could bring total cuts close to 2.8 million. Transport Minister Óscar Puente has answered that other airlines will take the capacity, and that the government will not give in to what it calls blackmail. Aena's president, Maurici Lucena, accuses Ryanair of distorting the figures. What remains to be seen is whether the fee holds and whether the threatened cut goes ahead.
Ryanair has closed its two-aircraft base in Santiago de Compostela, in northwest Spain, and halted all winter flights to Vigo and Tenerife North. The airline says it is removing roughly 600,000 seats to and from mainland Spain and about 400,000 to and from the Canary Islands this winter. Its stated reason is a decision by the airport operator Aena to raise the charges it levies on airlines.
Ryanair's chief executive, Eddie Wilson, called the 6.62% increase excessive and said it was the largest in more than a decade. He suggested Aena is interested only in record profits. According to Wilson, most of Ryanair's winter 2025 capacity in regional Spain will move to airports elsewhere that are keen to grow traffic, and he named Italy, Morocco, Croatia, Sweden and Hungary.
Other carriers have moved quickly to take up the space. Spanish media reported that Vueling, Iberia Express and Binter have already added 434,000 seats compared with last autumn and winter. Volotea and Wizz Air have also said they intend to fill part of the gap. Wizz Air will open 40 new routes from Spanish airports by March 2026.
Vueling, part of the IAG group, is adding 190,000 seats this winter, with a large share directed at the Canary Islands. It will schedule 1.5 million seats this winter at Santiago de Compostela and Tenerife North, two of the airports hit hardest by Ryanair's withdrawal. At Tenerife North its capacity is up 11%, with an extra daily flight to Barcelona and to Seville, and better links to Santiago, Málaga, Alicante and Valencia.
Binter, the Canary Islands airline, has raised capacity by 33%, operating 984,349 seats between the islands and the mainland, the Balearics or international destinations. It has scheduled around 240,000 extra seats, of which 100,000 are for Tenerife North, where its total is 413,000 seats. New routes go to Seville and Badajoz, and direct flights to Vigo, Valencia and Asturias have been reinforced. Iberia Express has added 30,000 seats for the Canaries, 5% more than last year, again largely aimed at Tenerife North.
The cuts may not stop here. Ryanair removed 800,000 seats over the summer, bringing the recent total to nearly 2 million. The source reports that it has threatened to withdraw a further one million seats if Aena does not reverse the increase. Spanish media say that would push the reduction as high as 2.8 million seats next summer. The source refers to this threat as being for summer 2024, which appears to be an error given the timeline.
Spanish officials have responded angrily. Transport Minister Óscar Puente said that even where Ryanair leaves, other airlines will take over the capacity, summing it up as "the king is dead, long live the king." He said the government will not yield to what it regards as the airline's blackmail. Aena's president, Maurici Lucena, accused Ryanair of distorting the figures and of trying to make more money at taxpayers' expense.
What to watch is whether Aena holds its fee increase and whether Ryanair follows through on the further one-million-seat cut.
Citas Notables
The king is dead, long live the king!— Óscar Puente, Spain's Minister of Transport
The increase is excessive, the highest in over a decade.— Eddie Wilson, Ryanair chief executive (paraphrased)
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Economy & Finance