Spain’s Transport Minister Óscar Puente has accused the Irish airline Ryanair of using delivery delays for new aircraft as leverage to press for lower airport charges. In an interview with Europa Press, published on 23 August 2026, Puente described delayed deliveries as an industry-wide problem – and suggested Ryanair was using the situation to make allocation decisions intended to secure political concessions on charges. He also warned that Spanish airports were under pressure at peak times, but saw room for growth during quieter periods at the start and end of the day.
According to Puente, Ryanair is shifting aircraft and seats from less profitable regional airports to major hubs, which it considers more attractive despite their higher charges. He cited Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas and Barcelona-El Prat, which remain profitable for the airline, while smaller locations such as Valladolid reported capacity cuts. By contrast, services are being expanded at major hubs, including Palma and Málaga .
Puente quantified the recent shift by referring to the 2025 and 2026 seasons: around three million seats had been cut at Spain’s regional airports, while about 600,000 additional seats were being offered at the main hubs. The airline is therefore withdrawing capacity where it believes returns are lower and moving it to places where greater profits are available.
The dispute touches on a long-running and contentious debate about airport charges and the incentive mechanisms of network operator Aena. Its charges are governed by a multi-year framework and state oversight; adjustments affect major hubs and regional airports differently. While the industry regards delays by aircraft manufacturers as a structural risk, the economic debate focuses on the extent to which charging structures and commercial strategies can enable regionally balanced connectivity.
In his remarks, Puente distinguished between technical, economic and regulatory issues: supply-chain problems in the industry are real; prioritising profitable routes is a legitimate but commercially motivated business decision; but the government determines the broad direction of transport policy. On short-term capacity management, he pointed to the option of directing more traffic to quieter periods to ease peak-time congestion. He gave no specific decisions or deadlines in the interview.
Editor: Mira Cadena (Article created with AI assistance).