WizzAir

February 2025, the CEO of Ryanair stars in a discount campaign in which he encourages buying “before a clown raises prices”. Michael O’Leary, who is not new to insulting political figures, presents the campaign with an image of Pablo Bustinduy, Minister of Consumer Affairs, caricatured as a clown. And he issued a warning: either they reject the rate increase or they leave the regional airports. Almost a year and a half later, Ryanair has disappeared or reduced its operations in a few places and yet it moves more passengers than ever. Of course, competitors are already eating up market share. an exit. Those days in February, Ryanair’s departure from a good number of Spanish regional airports began to be planned. A decision regarding last year’s summer campaignthat stayed through the winter and? has been expanded this summer. The result is airports where activity has been reduced to a minimum, with collateral victims such as Valladolid airport workers where the cafeteria has seen its turnover reduced by 80%. But also with a loss of connectivity for some cities that was key so that residents did not have to travel to Madrid or Barcelona. And more travelers. All in all, Ryanair is moving more passengers than ever in our country. Last year it broke a new record for travelers. Despite reducing its offer, the number of travelers grew by 5.6% in 2025. So far this year, according to Aena data collected by Expansionthe figure continues to grow although this time it has remained at 1.7%. The company has moved 29.8 million passengers so far this year and remains at the top of the table. The first months were weaker for the company but with the arrival of summer, operations have skyrocketed again. And that makes a lot of sense if we look at its distribution. Because while domestic flights have fallen by 23%, international flights have grown by 5%. Eating market share. What is striking is that Wizz Air and Vueling, the two most important low-cost companies in our country after the Irish company, are not only growing, they are also managing to eat into Ryanair’s market share. Vueling has consolidated itself as the second Spanish airline, with 16.5 million travelers and a growth of 4.6%, adding 721,769 new travelers. For its part, Wizz Air remains at 5.74 million travelers but its growth of 39% shows that the company’s commitment to our country is being consolidated. The data is the clear result that both companies are occupying the space that Ryanair had been leaving in recent months. Already in the first quarter of 2026 it was clear that the strategy of these two companies was working for them, providing service where Ryanair has been fully or partially dismissed. More than rates. Although in recent days the message has been sent by Ryanair that they would return to regional airports if they reduce airport taxes, it is clear that the company has undertaken a strategy to continue increasing the occupancy of its flights, leaving more risky bases to bet on the large Spanish tourist centers. The company assures that the rates in these spaces are too high, what the CNMC agrees onand has used it as a flag to blackmail Spain with more exits. However, the truth is that has gone to routes where seat occupancy maintains the same problems but where he takes advantage of advertising contracts that allow him to increase his income. And given the data, the strategy is working because international flights to preferred destinations in Spain are allowing the company to continue growing in our country. Photo | Fotis In Xataka | What is the airplane seat belt for? An unfortunate Ryanair passenger has the answer