The budget airline Ryanair is reducing its fleet in Vienna, removing two more aircraft due to high taxes and fees. This decision means a loss of investment of about 200 million dollars and may affect the aviation market in Austria in 2025. This is reported by Visit Ukraine.
Why Ryanair is leaving Vienna
The carrier explained that the Austrian government ignored a proposal for a large-scale investment project of 1 billion euros, which could have increased the country's passenger flow to 12 million people a year and added ten new Boeing 8-200 aircraft by 2030. Despite the potential, the authorities have not taken any steps to reduce aviation tax and fees.
The cause of the conflict was a tax of 12 euros per passenger, which is one of the highest in Europe. In comparison, Italy, Hungary, Slovakia, and Sweden, on the contrary, are reducing or eliminating these fees to stimulate tourism development.
Consequences for the market
High taxes make the Austrian air transport market uncompetitive. Because of this, not only Ryanair but also other companies — Wizz Air, Level, and easyJet — have reduced their bases in Vienna. Additionally, Lufthansa announced a reduction of its subsidiary Austrian Airlines (AUA) fleet by ten aircraft.
Experts predict that the reduction in the number of aircraft may lead to fewer flights, higher ticket prices, and a decrease in tourist flow to Austria, which is gradually losing positions in favor of cheaper neighbors — Italy and Slovakia.