Ryanair threatens major cuts in Belgium over planned tax hikes
Ryanair has sharply criticised the Belgian federal government’s decision to raise air passenger taxes again in 2027. The company warned it will slash its Belgian winter schedule for 2026-27.
The Irish low-cost giant says it will drop 20 routes next winter: 13 from Charleroi and seven from Brussels Airport. At Charleroi, the airline also plans to withdraw five based aircraft. The move would cost the airport “$500 million in lost investment”, Ryanair said.
Overall capacity from Belgium would fall by around one million seats, or 22 per cent. This winter, Ryanair operates 119 destinations from Charleroi with 18 based aircraft, and 11 from Brussels Airport. The proposed cuts would reduce its Belgian footprint by more than 15 per cent.
Ryanair points to the government’s decision to double the levy on flights over 500 km to €10 from 2027. That would match the tax on shorter flights, which is set to rise to €11 by 2029. Commercial director Jason McGuinness called the move “bizarre” and argued that repeated increases leave Belgium “entirely uncompetitive” compared with countries such as Sweden, Hungary, Italy and Slovakia, which have scrapped similar taxes to boost traffic and jobs.
The airline also attacked Charleroi’s plan to introduce a €3 charge per departing passenger next year. McGuinness warned that the “reckless proposal” would trigger even deeper cuts at the airport from April 2026. That would put “thousands of local jobs at risk”.
Ryanair is urging both the federal government and Charleroi’s city authorities to reverse their plans.
Trade union ACV Puls reacted with outrage. It said staff were left to learn about the potential restructuring through the media. “Workers have to find out from the press that the company is considering such drastic changes,” said union secretary Hans Elsen. He called Ryanair’s approach “blackmail, not policy”.
The union is demanding an urgent extraordinary works council to question management about the plans. While no industrial action is currently on the table, “nothing is being ruled out”, Elsen said.
© BELGA PHOTO NICOLAS MAETERLINCK