Spanair, Vueling and Clickair cancel Granada flights as Ryanair stays – at a price
GRANADA is feeling the strain of Spain’s economic crisis and rising global fuel costs after three low-cost airlines announced plans to cancel flights from the city.
Spanair, Vueling and Clickair will all stop using the Aeropuerto de Federico Garcia Lorca Granada-Jaen from September.
The three budget airlines had a total of 12 weekly flights coming into the city.
But it is good news for British residents in the area after Ryanair announced it would not – as previously announced – be cancelling its London-Stanstead, East Midlands and Liverpool services.
This was after the Diputaciónes de Granada and Jaen provincial councils and the chamber of commerce for Granada agreed to pay greater subsidies so that the company would continue landing at the airport.
Ryanair will receive 1.5 million euros a year before the deal is reviewed in 2010.
“We are not victims of Ryanair’s blackmail,” said the leader of the Granada’s Diputación, Antonio Martínez Caler. “We were free to negotiate or not with the company. We recognised the business the flights bring to the area.”
National low-cost airlines that use the airport do not enjoy any of the financial aid given to Ryanair. In the face of the increasing cost of petrol – which have risen to 140 US dollars a barrel – and a drop in demand, Spanair has announced it will cancel its Granada-Madrid service later this year.
The company, which has also made 900 employees redundant, will ground a total of 15 aeroplanes from September after recording losses of 40 million euros in the first quarter of 2008.
As well as the Granada service, flights the company makes between the capital and Girona, San Sebastián, Oviedo and Munich in Germany will be stopped.
Gone also are services between Barcelona and Zurich, Bilbao and Málaga and Bilbao and Jerez.
The company maintains, however, it is still the low-cost market leader in Spain.
“I feel proud that in such a difficult climate, Spanair is able to make such cutbacks yet still keep its position as Spain’s number one budget airline,” company director Marcus Hedblom told the Olive Press.
“With increasing overheads and the state of the economy in Spain, there are airlines in a worse situation than us.”
Two of these airlines have joined forces to combat decreasing revenue. Clickair and Vueling have announced a merger that will see the new company completely depart Granada.
This will see the cancellation of flights to Rome, Paris and Barcelona.
Despite the losses, airport bosses remain in a bullish mood. “The loss of certain links should not be seen as a threat to Granada but an opportunity to attract other airline companies, which can come here and operate with very little competition,” said director Bienvenido Rico.
I tremble to think how ryan air will cut costs in the future, Taking the seats out, or not using the air presurisers are two that spring to mind. The no frills airline has just been told by the courts that they cannot charge extra or sepparately for luggage, and that luggage allowance is transferable between customers so they have lost a large chunk of their income!
Fair play to Ryanair, at least they still fly to Granada. I travel with them most weeks and they have been extremely reliable. The only thing that is a pain is the midnight arrival time back at Stansted. People seem to forget it is a low cost airline and that if you don’t like it you can fly to Malaga or Almeria and have a 2 hour drive to Granada.
Tried booking a Ryanair flight to East Midlands in November,Not Available,so much for keeping on their flights
We have just had friends book their December flights from Stansted to Granada with no problem.
Ryanair are offering flights to Liverpool and Stansted but not East Midlands,have had to book to Stansted ourselves unfortunately
Ryan Air flights are not available from Liverpool to Seviila for the christmas period and for all of january…. There is no mention anywhere on the Ryan Air site that this service has now been cancelled… does anyone have info on why…
I have checked Ryanairs web site for flights from Granada to Liverpool and East Midlands and there are none after October 22nd right through to July 2010. I have trauled through their news Items and can’t find anything about them stopping these routes, I’ve even contacted Liverpool Airport who replied “The last flight is showing for the winter as the 22nd October and we have not been notified of flights beyond this date”. I’m waiting to hear back from a friend in air traffic control who is trying to find out what is happening with the flights. Looks like we have to fly to Stanstead or from Malaga.
May be The Olive Press could contact Ryanair on everybodys behalf and find out what is going on.
They just cancelled our May flights from Stansted to Granada leaving us to rebook to Malaga or get a refund. Will they help with expenses to get from Malaga to Granada? 3 guesses…