Ryanair halves Alicante services over airbridge dispute
Ryanair has cuts its Alicante services by 50% for next year blaming the airport for forcing it to use ‘unnecessary’ airbridges.
The airline, which claims the airbridges cost it 2million euros a year in fees, has appealed to the Spanish Commercial courts over the charges which is due to be heard in early February.
Ryanair refutes claims from the airport that the airbridges are a safety issue and that Ryanair’s cutbacks were already planned.
It added that if the compulsory airbridge use is withdrawn or if they win the appeal, the Alicante flights, traffic and job cuts will be reversed for summer 2012.
Ryanair’s Michael O’Leary said: “ AENA Alicante are now proving that inefficient airbridges and
higher fees will result in the airport suffering route, traffic and job cuts.
“We call again on AENA to reverse this abusive decision to force Ryanair and other airlines to use and pay for unnecessary airbridges at Alicante.”
Ryanair had already cut its winter 2011/12 services at Alicante by 50%.
A new base is being opened in Palma by Ryanair serving 17 new routes and sustaining up to 2,800 Balearic jobs.
The new routes are Palma to Aarhus, Cork, Gothenburg, Haugesund, Kaunas, Krakow, Maastricht, Malaga, Magdeburg, Marseille, Oslo, Paris Beauvais, Poznan, Santander,Santiago, Stockholm, and Tampere.
To launch the new flights, which go on sale tomorrow, Ryanair is having a seat sale from 9.99 euros for travel across European routes in late January and early February 2012.
This ends midnight on December 15th
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By Diane Evans
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