Walloon Minister-President Adrien Dolimont emphasised the need to diversify airline operators at the airport in Charleroi after low-cost airline Ryanair announced it will reduce its flight offer in Belgium.
"We are familiar with Ryanair's communication, which is regularly aggressive; I have no intention of trembling at each of their statements," affirmed Dolimont (MR) in a reaction to Belga.
Ryanair announced it will withdraw five aircraft based at Charleroi Airport and reduce its offer by two million seats in Belgium (at Charleroi and Zaventem airports), from the upcoming winter season and during the summer season of 2027, in response to the increase in the airline ticket tax.
The Federal Government decided on Saturday that the boarding tax at airports, currently set at €5, will ultimately increase to €7 from 1 January 2027, rather than €10 as initially planned. Dolimont was involved in the discussions.
Nonetheless, despite the moderation of the announced increase, Ryanair has said it will follow through with its previous threats to reduce its offer in the country.
"Their decision is theirs to make," said Dolimont (MR). "Being a manager and responsible means finding the right balance. On the Walloon government side, we secured a tax cut of 30 million euros at Charleroi Airport: 15 million in municipal taxes and as much in federal taxes. Claiming that we can go even further would be unrealistic in the overall context."
"We have done our utmost at the Walloon Government level, notably thanks to excellent coordination with the federal authorities; everyone needs to recognise the effort," he argued.
The Walloon Government states that it remains in contact with the airport "to analyse and monitor the situation very closely."
The regional minister for Airports, Cécile Neven (MR), also lamented Ryanair's announcement, "even as the Walloon government has taken its responsibilities within its competencies to defend the competitiveness of regional airports and the thousands of jobs that depend on them."
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