Not all airlines are equal, and while we all know budget carriers offer cheaper fares, there is quite a difference between national carriers, too.<\/p>\n
Research from AirAdvisor<\/a>, a global flight and baggage compensation service, has examined the revenue per average seat kilometre (RASK) data to rank 23 European airlines by how much passenger revenue they generate for each kilometre flown per available seat.<\/p>\n This data is an indication of how much passengers are paying to fly with an airline in relation to the distance travelled and seats available. It also includes the cost of extras such as luggage and seat fees, not just advertised ticket prices. So, in general, the higher the RASK, the more expensive the airline.<\/p>\n AirAdvisor’s sample consists of high-volume, major national and notable regional carriers, and found that smaller airlines typically come with heftier costs.<\/p>\n That’s because these airlines have “higher operating costs per passenger because they fly fewer routes, operate smaller fleets, and often serve remote or low-demand destinations,” AirAdvisor said.<\/p>\n “With fewer seats to sell and less competition on many routes, ticket prices are often higher,” it also said, adding that this isn’t always the case and travellers should always do their own research.<\/p>\n Overall, however, a year-on-year comparison from 2024 to 2025 found that RASK for most airlines had decreased. Out of the 14 airlines AirAdvisor was able to access year-on-year RASK data on, only five had increases while the remaining nine experienced decreases.<\/p>\n So, which European airlines come with heftier costs and which are more on the wallet-friendly<\/a> side?<\/p>\n The most expensive carriers<\/p>\n With an RASK of \u20ac0.32, Wider\u00f8e is Europe’s most expensive airline.<\/p>\n If you haven’t heard of them before, the Norwegian carrier is the third largest in the country and primarily connects tiny regional airports, such as B\u00e5tsfjord, Leknes, and Namsos, to primary ones, although it does also operate a small number of international routes including to Aberdeen, Hamburg and London Southend.<\/p>\n