Budget Airlines Prepare to Compensate for Ryanair’s Capacity Cuts

Budget airlines have launched an offensive to absorb the one million seats that Ryanair will leave unfilled in the coming months. On Friday, the airline threatened to withdraw an additional million seats next summer unless Aena reverses its airport fee increases.

Ryanair’s Capacity Reductions

Just ten days ago, the Irish airline announced a 16% reduction in its winter capacity and revealed plans to close its base in Santiago, including the suspension of flights to Vigo and Tenerife North from January 1. Ryanair had already cut 800,000 summer seats, bringing the total capacity reduction to nearly two million seats recently.

Future Threats

There is a possibility that the capacity could be reduced further, potentially dropping to 2.8 million seats next summer if Ryanair follows through on its threats. This comes in response to a 6.5% fee increase implemented by Aena.

In this context, Vueling and Iberia Express, both part of IAG, have already announced 190,000 additional seats this winter, particularly in the Canary Islands, where Binter has scheduled around 240,000 extra seats, 100,000 of which are for Tenerife North.

International Investment

Other airlines, such as Volotea and Wizz Air, have also reaffirmed their commitment to expanding in Spain. Wizz Air plans to launch 40 new routes from Spain by March 2026. Vueling has announced 1.5 million seats for this winter season in Santiago de Compostela and Tenerife North, two of the airports most affected by Ryanair’s absence.

Regional Reinforcements

Tenerife North will see an increase of 89,000 seats, offering a total of 900,000 (an 11% rise compared to 2024). This will include an extra daily flight to Barcelona and Sevilla, three additional weekly flights to Santiago, Málaga, and Alicante, as well as two more weekly flights to Valencia.

Vueling will also boost its seat offering in Santiago by 15%, adding 28 weekly flights to routes including Barcelona, Palma, the Canaries, Sevilla, and Málaga, while reinstating its route to Alicante and introducing flights to Zurich, London Heathrow, and Paris.

Focus on the Canary Islands

Following Ryanair’s decision to reduce 600,000 seats in regional airports and an additional 400,000 in the Canaries, airlines are now focusing on the islands. Notably, Binter plans to operate a total of 984,349 seats between the Canaries, the mainland, the Balearics, and international destinations this winter—an increase of 33% compared to last year.

Previous Planning

However, sources from the airline confirm to EFE that this operational capacity was already planned in advance. Binter is introducing 413,000 seats in Tenerife North, a 33% increase (100,000 more), with new routes to Sevilla and Badajoz, in addition to reinforcing direct flights to Vigo, Valencia, and Asturias.

Market Vigilance

Binter emphasises that Ryanair’s announcement has not led to a complete strategy overhaul, but they remain vigilant about market developments to identify potential “interesting opportunities”. Iberia Express has also launched its winter offer of 30,000 new seats for the Canaries between October and January, representing a 5% increase compared to last year.

Expanded Offerings

This increase translates to 116 more flights and 150 changes in the size of the aircraft used on these routes, with half of the new seats allocated to Tenerife North.

Response from Officials

The Minister of Transport, Óscar Puente, stated on Tuesday that despite Ryanair “leaving” certain airports, “others (airlines) will fill in the gaps.” He reiterated on Friday that the Government would not bow to “blackmail” following Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary’s announcement of further cuts.

Aena’s Reaction

Aena’s president, Maurici Lucena, accused the Irish airline of distorting figures in a bid to increase profits, “even if it comes at the expense of taxpayers.” This situation follows a record month for Aena’s Spanish airports in August, which saw 33.32 million passengers and 262,001 aircraft movements, up by 3.1%.