Ryanair closes base at Valencia

Following a dispute with the local council, Ryanair has closed its operational base in Valencia, Spain, meaning the loss of 70 flights each week.

The Irish budget carrier’s decision will impact 10 routes that connect Valencia with the UK airports at East Midlands, Liverpool and Stansted – routes that are travelled by as many as 750,000 passengers annually.

Ryanair has said that the move, in effect from 4 November, was a result of the local authority failing to present a satisfactory scheme for promoting the Valencia airport, making it an unsustainable destination.

The carrier said that it would shifts its operations to another existing base.

Ryanair’s action comes at a time when the downturn in the airline industry shows no signs of easing.

British Airways, easyJet, Ryanair and Virgin have all made cuts to winter schedules and discontinued flying on unprofitable routes. As the cutbacks are being made, the industry is reporting figures that confirm aviation is in the midst of its worse crisis since the outbreak of SARS in 2004.

Even with millions of seats having been cut from carriers’ capacity, the fall in demand is even more significant.

For Europe, passenger numbers in September were down by 0.5 per cent from the same month last year, according to figures reported by the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

www.ryanair.com