Ryanair has threatened to cut even more flights to Spain in a tense ongoing battle over tax. The budget airline's CEO Eddie Wilson warned it would stop routes by the winter if the airport authority, Aena, does not lower fees to operate in its "empty" facilities, in an interview with El Economista.

It adds to a bleak scene for regional airports after Ryanair removed 800,000 seats this summer, which Wilson said were reallocated to "better options" financially. The CEO explained to the Spanish news outlet: "There will be more cuts in the winter of 2025, and even more in the summer of 2026, because it doesn't make sense to continue investing in loss-making operations. The rational decision is to move traffic to where access costs are falling, not rising, so we will continue to do so gradually. We have no plans to invest in regional airports because their pricing structure is broken."

Blaming "excessive fees", Ryanair announced it would close operations at Jerez and Valladolid this summer, and reduce routes from Santiago de Compostela, Asturias, Cantabria, and Zaragoza.

The airline added 1.5 million seats at more tourist-oriented destinations instead, such as Madrid, Malaga, and Alicante.

Airport fees in Spain, which are decided by state-owned Aena and have been frozen since the pandemic, were increased by 4.09% last year due to inflation.

Mr Wilson clarified the airline is not asking for "subsidies or special treatment for Ryanair", but a model with competitive rates for all airlines, arguing that regional airports needed low costs and fares to stimulate growth. 

Ryanair wants Aena to "share the risk" by giving discounts for three or four years on certain routes, before increasing rates when both parties are sure the demand is there. 

Mr Wilson previously said: "Aena's excessive airport charges and lack of viable incentives for growth continue to harm Spain's regional airports, limiting their growth and leaving huge areas of airport capacity unused."

Last Wednesday, Aena's president, Maurici Lucena, told shareholders: "Changing fares on a whim by Aena or due to spurious pressure from an airline would be a serious illegality."