A Christmas the skies remain emptier than usual: Ryanair, the largest low-cost airline in Europe, stop all flights for the entire day. Over 3.000 flights disappear from radar, representing more than 10% of continental traffic.
In recent days, however, the Irish company has received an unwelcome gift from Italy: theCompetition and market authority inflicted a on the company huge fine of 256 million of euros, one of the highest ever imposed in the sector. The dispute concerns an alleged abuse of dominant position, with the company accused of having limited the operation of online travel agencies in the sale of tickets.
Why Ryanair is grounding all flights for Christmas
The decision to completely stop the fleet is not due to strikes, bad weather or technical problems, but arises from a combination of cultural motivations, religious ed economic. Headquartered near Dublin, Ryanair operates in a country deeply CatholicChristmas is a sacred holiday, and all staff—pilots, flight attendants, ground staff, and office staff—stay home to celebrate with their families. This policy is adopted every year, making December 25th a day without flights across the airline's European network. As a result, no travel site or official portal Ryanair allows you to purchase tickets for that day, regardless of the destination.
In addition to the cultural motivation, the company also evaluates the economic reasons: the flight request around Christmas it is generally Too short To make fleet management profitable, Ryanair prefers to concentrate flights after the holidays, when demand grows, especially on the most popular routes.
On December 24, the day before, Ryanair scheduled approximately 1.720 flights, the last of which departs at 18:30 from Kerry to Dublin. traffic will resume regularly tomorrow, Friday, December 26, with over 2.600 departures, starting in the early hours of the morning.
Economic impact and comparison with other companies
Although the lack of flights means the loss of over 500 passengers and approximately 40 million euros, experts explain that the economic impact is mitigated by lower operating costs and higher revenues on ordinary days.
Other low-cost and traditional airlines, such as the British Jet2.com e Aer Lingus (always Irish), adopt similar strategies. On the contrary, WizzAir ed EasyJet They operate normally, albeit with reduced capacity. Some Israeli airlines also observe weekly shutdowns for religious reasons, such as Shabbat.
