Ryanair to make 2.2 million seats vanishing in Belgium in 2026 and 2027
It is a boring trick from Ryanair: as soon as taxes are raised in a specific European country, the low-cost carrier steps in and announces to cut seats. After Austria, Denmark, France, Germany, or Spain, it is time for Belgium to get the same treatment.
On January 14, 2026, Ryanair revised its Brussels 2026 schedules following Charleroi City Council (where Brussels South Airport is located) and the Belgian government decision to raise taxes.
The airline announced to reduce the number of seats on offer at Charleroi by 1.1 million in 2026, with a further planned 1.1 million seat cuts in 2027. It follows Charleroi City Council plans for a €3 tax per passenger departing Charleroi from April 2026. And the decision of the Belgium government to implement a 5-fold increase in passengers taxes from €2 in Jan 2025 to €10 in Jan 2027.
Ryanair qualifies “these tax increases are silly when other EU countries including Sweden, Slovakia, Hungary, Italy and Albania, have abolished Aviation Taxes to grow traffic, tourism and jobs. Belgium’s tax rises will now send traffic and jobs to other, more competitive, EU countries“.
Ryanair calls on Prime Minister De Wever to reverse these tax rises, which will damage Belgium’s competitiveness, and cost Belgium millions of passengers, thousands of flights, and thousands of jobs in tourism and support industries.
Ryanair is certain of its power to exert pressure on public authorities. It is indeed Belgium’s largest airline, carrying 11.6m passengers in 2025. It will now cut this figure to (10.6m) in 2026 (if Charleroi Council goes ahead with its €3 tax plan) and will cut further to 9.6m passengers in 2027, if the Belgium government doesn’t reverse this “idiotic” 5-fold increase in pax taxes.
The competitiveness of European Aviation is already being damaged by Europe’s ETS tax scheme, which taxes only intra-EU flights, while exempting all non-EU flights. The low-cost carrier explains that Belgian citizens/visitors cannot be asked to pay even more of these unfair and damaging taxes.
Ryanair is insisting that taxing air travel loses traffic, routes and jobs as already shown in many other European States. If the Belgium economy really wants to grow, then the government needs to scrap these travel taxes, and allow low-fare airlines – led by Ryanair – to return to growth in Zaventem and in Charleroi.
Ryanair’s CEO Michael O’Leary bluntly commented: “What these silly politicians don’t understand is that aircraft and passengers are mobile. Raising taxes will deliver fewer flights, less passengers, less tourism, and cost thousands of jobs at both, Zaventem and Charleroi airports. Scrap these damaging aviation taxes (as many other EU States have), and allow Ryanair to continue to grow. We will keep cutting until Belgium’s silly government works out that taxing traffic is not the way to grow tourism and jobs.”
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