Friday, January 07, 2022
Too expensive
Ryanair gives up its base in Frankfurt again
It was only in 2017 that the low-cost airline Ryanair opened its base at Frankfurt Airport. Now he is closing it again – and directing allegations to the operator Fraport. The airline promises that all passengers affected by flight cancellations will be notified and reimbursed.
After five years, Europe’s largest low-cost airline, Ryanair, is giving up its base at Frankfurt Airport. The five planes still stationed there are to be relocated to more cost-effective airports for the flight plan change on March 31 of this year, the Irish company announced on Friday. Nuremberg was given as an example, where two aircraft are to be stationed again.
However, Frankfurt remains as a destination for the Irish in the summer flight schedule published so far. The company has not yet commented on the scope of the future offer with aircraft from other bases.
Allegations after allegations
The company cited the increased take-off and landing fees at the largest German airport at the turn of the year as the reason for the withdrawal. “Instead of giving Ryanair an incentive to stay and grow, Frankfurt has decided to drive away traffic and jobs by increasing airport charges,” the statement said. Ryanair manager Jason McGuiness accused the federal government of having distorted competition with the billions in aid for Lufthansa.
Passengers with already booked tickets will be notified in the coming days and will receive refunds, the company said. For the Frankfurt crews, Ryanair offers alternative jobs in its rapidly growing European network.
Lured by the incentive program of the operator Fraport
Ryanair first came to Germany’s largest airport for the 2017 summer flight schedule, which as an international hub wanted to expand its range of European flights. Ryanair benefited from an incentive program run by the operator Fraport with reduced flight fees for new providers at the location. According to a Fraport spokesman, these incentives expired in 2020 for Ryanair. The airport operator rejected the Irish criticism as unjustified. With an approved price increase of 4.3 percent, it would be very low in a European comparison of the turnstiles, said a spokesman.
The MDax group, which is supported by the state of Hesse and the city of Frankfurt, has to think about the utilization of Pier G, which is almost completed, and which is explicitly tailored to the needs of direct flight providers such as Ryanair. Due to the Corona crisis, however, an opening was only planned for the entire Terminal 3 in 2026.
Forecast for current fiscal year lowered
The actually highly profitable Ryanair has lowered its forecast for the current financial year due to the ongoing Corona crisis. The company is now calculating with a deficit for the financial year running until the end of March 2022 of 250 million to 450 million euros, after the airline had recently assumed a minus of 100 to 200 million euros.
In terms of passenger volume, the group now expects less than 100 million passengers instead of more than 100 million.