DALLAS — Ultra low-cost carrier (ULCC) Ryanair (FR) has announced the launch of four new London routes to Dubrovnik, Linz, Reggio, and Sarajevo for Winter 2024. 

With over 640 routes connecting the UK, the carrier boasts it continues to offer UK travelers and visitors the lowest fares in Europe while supporting year-round tourism and over 45,000 British jobs.

Despite this growth, the ULCC has criticized the UK’s Air Passenger Duty (APD), arguing that it disadvantages UK tourism compared to EU countries. The airline urges the new Labour government to abolish the APD tax, enabling further growth in UK traffic, jobs, and tourism.

Ryanair's growth plans include increasing UK passenger traffic by 14% to 65 million annually by 2030, creating 1,000 new jobs for pilots, cabin crew, and engineers, opening an engineering training facility at Prestwick, and basing 20 new Boeing MAX-10 aircraft at UK airports.

Ryanair’s CEO Michael O’Leary Comments

“We are pleased to announce 4 new Ryanair routes from London to Dubrovnik, Linz, Reggio & Sarajevo for W2024, adding to Ryanair’s UK schedule of over 640 routes, giving UK citizens/visitors even more choice at the lowest airfares in the UK.

As an island economy on the periphery of Europe, it is vital that Ryanair continues to grow low-cost air access to/from the UK. Britain’s tourism growth is being hampered by UK APD, which unfairly imposes a £13 tax on all UK citizens/visitors, making air travel to/from the UK less competitive, particularly when other EU States, like Poland, Croatia, Italy, and Spain are lowering costs and cutting taxes, while growing rapidly.

If the UK Govt scraps APD on all flights, Ryanair will respond with rapid traffic growth for the rest of this decade, including 1,000 new jobs, 20 new UK based aircraft (additional $2bn investment) and a 14% growth in UK traffic to 65m passengers p.a. by 2030, just as we have done in Italy, where we added 3 new aircraft ($300m investment) & over 20 new routes following the decision of regions, like Calabria, to scrap the Italian Municipal Tax.”