Ryanair is poised to slash half of its services from a significant European airport. The airline, which operates from Birmingham Airport (BHX), has announced it will be cutting its flight schedule to and from Berlin by 50 per cent.

UK routes will be impacted, including services from London, Manchester, Birmingham and Edinburgh. Eddie Wilson, Ryanair DAC CEO, said: “We regret to announce this planned closure of our 7 aircraft Berlin base from October 24, 2026, but we have no alternative following the Airport’s latest 10 per cent fee increase to its already high airport fees.

“This comes on top of the 50 per cent increase in Berlin’s airport fees since 2019.”

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Mr Wilson added: “Efficient operations and competitive airport fees are the foundation which enable Ryanair to deliver long-term traffic growth and increased connectivity for airports and regions.

“This is impossible at Berlin following the German Govt’s failure to abolish its harmful aviation tax and Berlin Airport’s decision to again increase its already high airport fees.”, reports Birmingham Live.

“With no meaningful cost reform in Berlin or in Germany nationally, we have no alternative but to switch aircraft from Germany to other more competitive markets elsewhere in Europe.”

The changes mean Ryanair’s passenger numbers are expected to drop from 4.5million to 2.2million by next year.

The budget airline, which competes with Jet2, TUI and Easyjet, has attributed the cuts to rising airport charges in Berlin. Airport charges have surged by 50 per cent since Covid, with a further 10 per cent rise on the horizon, according to a warning from Ryanair.

The announcement comes alongside news that Ryanair is recruiting 100 new cabin crew members at its London Stansted base, as part of its ambitious plans to carry 300 million passengers by 2034.

Ryanair’s Jade Kirwan said: “We’re excited to announce 100 new cabin crew positions at our London Stansted base to support Ryanair growth to 300 million passengers by 2034.

“Those interested in building a career with Europe’s largest and lowest fare airline – Ryanair – where hard work is rewarded with fast-track career opportunities and incredible benefits, like discounted travel across our industry leading network of over 235 destinations, should come along to our recruitment event taking place on Monday, 27 April, in Radisson Blu Hotel at Stansted Airport, to meet some of the Ryanair team and learn more about these exciting new cabin crew roles.”

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