Ryanair has announced it will cut two million seats from its Belgian schedule by early 2027, following the Federal Government's decision to raise the country's aviation tax from €5 (£4.20) to €7 (£6). The budget carrier plans to remove five aircraft from its base at Brussels South Charleroi Airport and reduce capacity at both Charleroi and Zaventem airports. The cuts will affect the winter 2026 and summer 2027 schedules.
Ryanair criticised the tax increase, which it described as a "250% increase since 2025," though the actual rise is from €5 to €7. The airline's CEO, Eddie Wilson, said in a statement: "It’s absurd that the Federal Govt have decided to increase Belgium’s aviation tax by 250% from Jan ’27, especially when competing EU countries... are abolishing aviation taxes to grow traffic, tourism and jobs."
This is not the first time Ryanair has reduced services this year. Earlier, it cut one million seats from winter 2025 routes and 1.2 million from summer 2026 in Spain and Portugal. Routes affected included Valladolid, Jerez, Asturias, Vigo, and Tenerife North, while the airline closed its base at Santiago de Compostela. In Portugal, six routes to the Azores were cut, affecting around 400,000 passengers, with Ryanair blaming rising airport charges and environmental taxes.
Wilson added: "We warned Prime Minister De Wever that increasing Belgium’s aviation tax would result in traffic cuts, but he failed to listen. As a result, Ryanair will now remove 5 aircraft from our Charleroi base and 2m seats from our Brussels schedules... and relocate to more competitive economies."
