Ryanair invests in smaller airports in Emilia-Romagna | EUROtoday

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Ryanair has stored its guarantees and after the Emilia-Romagna Region minimize the municipal surcharge on smaller airports, a tax that straight impacts the ultimate price of the air ticket, it introduced 20 new routes from Forlì, Rimini and Parma for subsequent summer season, a rise that the corporate estimates at 660 thousand passengers a 12 months, 50% greater than the present presence within the area the place the low price airline at the moment flies solely from Bologna. The 20 new routes go from Cagliari London Stansted to Forlì; Tirana, Reggio Calabria and London Stansted from Parma, Wroclaw, Manchester, Cologne and Catania from Rimini. No change nonetheless for the capital’s airport the place the tax discount just isn’t foreseen.

Emilia Romagna is the fifth Italian area to have abolished the tax that Ryanair defines as “regressive” as already finished by Abruzzo, Calabria, Friuli Venezia Giulia and Sicily to stimulate the expansion of site visitors, tourism and employment. Ryanair a while in the past began a marketing campaign throughout Europe to cut back airport taxes which weigh on the ultimate value of the ticket. The service estimates that if this tax have been abolished all through Italy, the Irish service might base one other 40 planes in Italy for an funding of 4 billion {dollars}, add one other 20 million passengers a 12 months, 250 new routes and 15 thousand jobs in Italy.

The determination to abolish the tax to assist smaller airports for as much as 700 thousand passengers was put ahead by the Region chaired by Michele de Pascale and accepted by the federal government within the newest funds legislation. This determination didn’t go unnoticed by the CEO of the Bologna airport Nazareno Ventola, in accordance with whom this measure distorts the air transport market within the Region with repercussions on investments and employment. Ryanair, the primary firm in Europe and Italy, along with welcoming the Region’s determination, believes that “now is the time just to take a step forward – said Ryanair CEO Eddie Wilson – and abolish this anti-growth tax in all Italian airports”.

In Europe, Ryanair has began its private battle for the discount of the airport tax in quite a few airports: in Spain it threatened to cut back the seats provided by 41% by decreasing its presence as a result of “excessive and non-competitive airport tariffs applied by the operator Aena”. The low price service’s ax additionally fell on Germany and France: within the first case, 800 thousand seats provided have been lowered and 24 routes have been cancelled. While within the second case, 750 fewer seats and the cancellation of 25 routes, with a 13% drop in its capability in France.