Ryanair has announced it will cut one million seats in Spain this winter.
The budget carrier is cancelling all flights from Tenerife North and Vigo, slashing capacity from Zaragoza (-45%), Santander (-38%), Asturias (-16%) and Vitoria (-2%).
Meanwhile, it will keep services suspended in Valladolid and Jerez. The airline will also close its two-plane base in Santiago de Compostela, blaming what it calls ‘excessive and uncompetitive’ airport charges.
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The low-cost carrier said 600,000 seats would be removed from Spanish mainland routes and 400,000 from the Canary Islands, with much of that capacity shifted to markets like Italy and Morocco.
Ryanair CEO Eddie Wilson insisted the airline will continue to grow at hubs such as Madrid, Barcelona, Palma and Alicante, but warned that regional airports risk ‘closing in five to 10 years’ if investment is not made.
‘We should be growing in regional airports, but clearly there is no will to invest in them,’ he said.
The cuts mean the end of 36 direct connections between mainland Spain and the Canaries, although flights will still operate to and from Santiago despite the base closure.
Services in Vigo will stop on January 1 2026, while Tenerife North flights will cease with the start of the winter schedule.
Aena hits back
The announcement triggered a blistering response from Aena, Spain’s state-controlled airport operator, which accused Ryanair of running an ‘intolerable extortion strategy.’
In a strongly worded letter, Aena president Maurici Lucena said: ‘If Spanish airports were to evolve according to Ryanair’s whining, tricks and extortion, in the medium and long term they would stop functioning well, as they do now, and they would no longer be financially sustainable.’
Lucena argued that Ryanair is misleading the public, noting that the official flight schedules filed with aviation databases show ‘significantly higher’ capacity than the figures announced by the airline.
He said Ryanair moves aircraft to airports where it can charge higher fares and maximise profits, regardless of lower fees at regional hubs.
He also pointed out that regional airport charges are already discounted, at just €2 per passenger compared with the €10.35 average across Aena’s network, undermining Ryanair’s claim that fees are uncompetitive.
Government joins the fight
The row has drawn in Spain’s government. Transport Minister Óscar Puente has previously accused Ryanair of ‘blackmail’ after the airline allegedly linked expansion plans to a reversal of fee hikes and years of discounts. Wilson rejected that characterisation, saying the proposals were meant to benefit all airlines.
Ryanair, meanwhile, accuses Madrid of ‘anti-tourism policies,’ arguing that keeping dozens of underused airports open at just 30% capacity is wasting potential. Wilson warned that the closure of the Santiago base alone represents a loss of $200 million in investment for Galicia.
But Lucena said Aena will not bend to pressure, noting that Spain is on track for another record year in international arrivals and air traffic.
While praising Ryanair’s ‘undeniable success story’ in democratising air travel, he concluded: ‘It is a pity that Ryanair’s communications and institutional relations strategy is guided by hypocrisy, rudeness and blackmail.’
What this means for travellers
For passengers, the cuts mean fewer options from regional airports this winter, potentially higher fares on remaining routes, and in some cases, the need to travel to larger hubs such as Madrid or Barcelona.
The Canary Islands, already heavily reliant on air connectivity, will lose dozens of direct services, while cities like Zaragoza and Santander will see nearly half their Ryanair flights disappear.
In short: if you’re planning to fly with Ryanair from a regional Spanish airport this winter, check your booking – or prepare to adjust your travel plans.
Read more Spain travel news at the Spanish Eye.
