Ryanair Will Boost Its London Stansted Boeing 737 MAX Operations This Winter

Low-cost powerhouse Ryanair is set to bolster services out of London this winter with the addition of seven new routes and a bump-up in frequencies for thirty additional frequencies.

London calling…

Through the Winter 2023 to 2024 travel season, London’s Gatwick (LGW), Luton (LTN), and Stansted (STN) will add new connections to seven destinations across Europe and North Africa, including ski slope gateways Basel (BSL) and Tatry (TAT), as well as winter sun breaks Ouarzazate (OZZ) and Vigo (VGO). Major cities Belfast International Airport (BFS), Tirana International Airport (TIA), and Treviso Airport (TSF) are also eyed in the network expansion, strengthening connectivity between the UK, Ireland, and Southern Europe.

An additional thirty services will have their frequencies increased, notably popular getaways, Alicante (ALC), Athens (ATH), and Faro (FAO), expanding Ryanair’s traffic in London by up to 15%.

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In preparation, the carrier is set to base two new Boeing 737 aircraft at Stansted to meet capacity demand, growing its fleet across the UK capital to 50 aircraft. The expansion will add 60 high-paying flight deck, cabin crew, and engineering roles for a total of 1,500 aviation professionals based out of London.

Continued controversy

Current traffic out of London sits at 27 million passengers per year, nearly half of its predicted UK traffic for 2023-2024. Despite its continued UK growth, the carrier faces setbacks from the ongoing NATS staff shortages, limiting air traffic into the country’s second-largest airport, Gatwick.

Over 2,000 flights were canceled in August following a technical issue that shut down the NATS air traffic control system. Further staff shortages through September have seen the airport request airlines to scale back services amid a surge in COVID-19 cases. Ryanair has refused to cancel any services, citing its fees of €100 million ($105 million) per year paid to the service provider.

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In a statement shared earlier this week, the low-cost carrier explained,

“It is unacceptable that airlines have been asked to cancel flights to/from Gatwick Airport for the next six days (until 2 Oct) as a result of NATS’s failure to adequately staff UK ATC. It is the most basic requirement to hire and train adequate staff numbers including standby coverage. NATS has been a shambles for years, causing unnecessary disruptions at UK airports.”

Ryanair has frequently pushed back against NATS findings, referring to the reports as “whitewashed” and calling on NATS chief executive Martin Rolfe to step down following repeated difficulties with the agency. In its most recent statement, Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary pled his case to the UK Government for urgent ATC reform to prevent further disruption to passengers. O’Leary added,

“Ryanair calls on Transport Minister, Mark Harper, and the UK Govt to urgently reform ATC and guarantee UK passengers that they will not suffer any more disruptions as a result of repeated NATS failures, mismanagement & incompetence.”

Speaking to The Evening Standard, NATS disputed Ryanair’s claims, noting that it is training ATC controllers; however, Gatwick’s complex procedures and the required times to achieve ATC certification limit its ability to add further coverage.

What are your thoughts on Ryanair’s winter expansion plans? Will you be flying with the airline this year? Let us know in the comments.

Source: The Evening Standard