European LCC Ryanair is to axe a million seats on 20 routes on routes from Brussels and Charleroi. Five aircraft based in the country are to be redeployed elsewhere.
The routes affected will be cut from the Winter 2026/2027 schedule.
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The announcement is in response to the Belgium government’s plan to double air passenger duty to €10 per pax from 2027 and the Charleroi council’s plan to impose a further €3 per passenger departing from its airport.
Ryanair’s CCO Jason McGuinness said: “The De Wever Govt has bizarrely decided to further increase Belgium’s already sky-high aviation tax by another +100% from Jan 2027, on top of the +150% in July last. These repeated increases to this harmful aviation tax make Belgium completely uncompetitive compared to the many other EU countries, like Sweden, Hungary, Italy, and Slovakia, where Govts are abolishing aviation taxes to drive traffic, tourism, and jobs”.