Ryanair to close Athens base for winter season

Low-fare carrier, Ryanair, is set to close its Athens base for the winter season 2022/23, starting October 29th. The reasons given for this stated that it was due to the airport’s ‘dysfunctional’ charging structure, which favoured German operators.

“Athens Airport is a prime example of how the Greek government and German high-cost ownership is failing to deliver for Greece’s people and economy,” said Ryanair’s CEO, Eddie Wilson.

This is a blow to Ryanair’s previously outlined ambitious growth plans, as the Greek government has failed to lower its airport charges and assist traffic post-COVID recovery (as Croatia and Portugal have done, amongst others).

“This failure of engagement by the Greek government has already led to Ryanair’s closure of our Rhodes base this summer and has now forced us to close our Athens base this October and reallocate this capacity to lower cost competing destinations, such as Italy, Spain Cyprus and Portugal,” he added.