Ryanair has announced the addition of three new flight routes from Liverpool for winter 2024, expanding their offerings to 24 destinations.
- The routes will include Budapest, Marrakech, and Paphos, providing both winter sun and city break options.
- To enhance connectivity, Ryanair will also increase the frequency of key routes such as Kaunas, Košice, and Krakow.
- The new services are part of a significant regional investment, supporting over 1,550 jobs in Liverpool.
- Ryanair is urging the UK government to abolish air passenger duty to boost tourism and economic growth.
Ryanair is set to expand its winter 2024 schedule with three new routes from Liverpool, aiming to provide travellers with more flexibility and choice. The new destinations, Budapest, Marrakech, and Paphos, will enhance options for both leisure and cultural experiences during the colder months. This addition seeks to cater to a rising demand for diverse travel opportunities from the region.
In an effort to improve scheduling efficiency and meet customer demand, Ryanair will increase the frequency of several existing routes. These enhancements include more frequent flights to popular destinations such as Kaunas, Košice, and Krakow, indicating a robust strategy to strengthen its flight network across Europe. Furthermore, the airline will introduce two weekly return flights to Lapland Rovaniemi starting from the end of October 2024.
Additional destinations for winter 2024 encompass a wide array of sun and city break options, including Lanzarote, Barcelona, Faro, Knock, and several more. The enhanced flight schedule is supported by Ryanair’s fleet of four aircraft stationed in Liverpool, highlighting a substantial $400 million investment in the region’s aviation infrastructure. This strategic move underpins Ryanair’s commitment to fostering job creation, with the promise to sustain more than 1,550 positions.
Jade Kirwan, Ryanair’s head of communications, has articulated a critical message to the UK government, calling for the removal of air passenger duty (APD). According to Kirwan, this tax hinders the competitive nature of UK air travel, particularly disadvantaging regions like Liverpool that heavily rely on robust tourist inflows. Kirwan’s statement underscores the broader economic benefits of such a move, suggesting that abolishing APD could catalyse rapid growth by increasing passenger numbers and thereby stimulating regional economies.
Ryanair’s stance is clearly geared towards facilitating substantial growth in UK air traffic, with projections of achieving 65 million passengers annually by 2030, subject to the removal of APD. The airline draws parallels with other European regions, like Italy and Sweden, where reductions in similar taxes led to significant investments and job creation. With Liverpool’s new routes and increased frequencies, Ryanair positions itself as a pivotal player in advancing the UK’s air travel industry.
Ryanair’s proposed expansions reflect a strategic push towards growing its network and enhancing the UK’s competitive position in European aviation.
