The CEO of Ryanair, Eddie Wilson, this Tuesday in Madrid, JUAN BARBOSA
Eddie Wilson (Dublin, 60 years old) is CEO of Ryanair, which last year established itself as Spain's largest airline with almost 50 million passengers, well ahead of its immediate competitors Vueling and Iberia. The manager explains in an interview in Madrid that the aim of the low-cost Irish company is to continue to grow. However, he criticizes Aena's proposal to increase airport taxes by 4% this year and calls for the government to offer incentives to attract passengers to regional airports.
Questions. What are your plans for this year?
Answer. We will significantly increase capacity over the next seven years. In Spain we will grow by 7% in 2024. We have already fully recovered from the pandemic: we are 125% above 2019 levels. Much of this recovery is due to the government's commitment to freeze airport taxes until 2027 and now Aena has proposed increasing them by 4%. We need stability to grow. If we need to continue to grow, we need to know what changes will happen in order to make investments. In Spain we quickly expanded our capacity and managed to recover the market quickly, and not just in Madrid or Barcelona.
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Q Will capacities be relocated to other countries in the event of a tariff increase?
R. These changes may affect all airlines. There is a lot of capacity available in Europe as not all countries have returned to pre-Covid levels. Airlines will make rational decisions and select airports with the most competitive airfares. Spain grew sharply because airport taxes were expected to remain frozen until 2027.
Q Can Aena change her mind?
R. Last Friday we met with the President of the Government and presented a plan to increase traffic in Spain by 40% within five to seven years. But we told him that something had to be done about the tariffs: we asked Aena to reverse the increase. We have also applied for an incentive plan with temporarily lower rates for some regional destinations. If Aena's fares are not competitive, its flight capacity will move to other countries to grow.
Q To which?
R. Everywhere in Europe, because many countries have not yet regained their capacity before the Corona crisis. Germany remains at 75% of pre-pandemic levels. There are countries that offer incentives, such as Italy. We also have a long-term agreement with Stansted in London [Reino Unido]. Aena manages the airports very well and our relationship with them is very good, but we say that we should not discard what has been achieved. An airplane is like a mobile factory, it is taken to where it is most profitable.
Q The government and the tourism sector defend that Spain needs tourism with greater purchasing power instead of cheap tourism. Do you agree?
R. I don't think there is such a thing as a cheap tourist, but rather that there are tourists who want to spend as little as possible on transport to get to a place and once they get there they spend so much, as you can or want. They are normal people, there is everything. There are also people who visit their relatives and can do so more often thanks to the low cost. And there are also people who travel for work. You travel somewhere cheap and then spend the money on accommodation.
Q What do you think of the government's announced move to ban aircraft if there is an alternative train route of less than two hours?
R. There is no reason to ban these aircraft. Ryanair does not fly from Madrid to Malaga as there is already a train that connects the cities every hour. And it's faster than the plane. That's why most people already take the train from one place to another because it makes sense. On these routes the train wins. This measure would not affect any of our routes.
Q Will you continue to charge fees for carrying carry-on baggage in the cabin? There have been a number of judgments against this measure recently and the European Parliament also wanted to ban the imposition of this measure.
R. At European level, I believe that this question has already been resolved. Anyone can carry a backpack if it fits under the seat. If it's bigger, Ryanair has to pay. If a student wants to pay the lowest rate and doesn't want to bring a suitcase, then don't bring it. We do not want to include a service in the price that some passengers do not want to pay for. It's like forcing everyone to order a pizza that includes all the ingredients, even the ones you don't like or the ones that are leftover.
Q How can an industry as polluting as the aviation industry be linked to the climate emergency?
R. Airlines are necessary for trips over 500 kilometers. There are people who have to fly to work or to visit family. It's not always an option. We have purchased aircraft that use 20% less fuel, carry 20% more passengers and make 50% less noise. The CO2 footprint per passenger is reduced. In Spain, we have reached an agreement with Repsol for the supply of renewable fuels (SAF) from 2025. The aim is to operate 12.5% of flights with SAF in 2030 and to achieve zero emissions in 2050.
Q The SAF is much more expensive. Doesn't that contradict Ryanair's low-cost business model?
R. It will have an impact on demand but will affect all airlines equally. The solution is to produce more of this fuel, and governments should incentivize production.
Q In Spain there are comments from some politicians and business people questioning the country's security for doing business. How do you see it?
R. We have made major investments in Spain. We also have investments in Italy, Poland, Lithuania and the United Kingdom. But Spain is the country with the most investment after Ireland. In every country there are difficult moments from time to time. It is normal.
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