Ryanair lashes out at EU over “avoidable” ATC delays, demands staffing reform

In a characteristically forthright statement, Ryanair has once again turned its ire towards what it describes as Europe’s “hopelessly mismanaged” air traffic control (ATC) systems, calling on the European Commission and national governments to urgently address chronic staff shortages in key countries.

Labeling the ATC services in France, Spain, Germany, Greece, and the UK as the worst performers in 2024, Ryanair pointed to what it calls “avoidable and polluting delays” caused by understaffing and lack of accountability within these state-run monopolies. The Irish low-cost giant claims these five countries alone are responsible for over 90% of ATC-related flight delays in Europe.

“If the Danes, the Belgians, the Dutch, the Irish and the Slovakians can properly staff their ATC services and eliminate ‘capacity’ delays, then why can’t the French, Spanish, German, Greek and UK ATCs do the same?” asked Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary. “Every year, these same monopolies cause millions of passengers to suffer needless delays and pump millions of tonnes of avoidable CO? into the atmosphere.”

According to Eurocontrol data cited by Ryanair, over 95,000 Ryanair flights were delayed by ATC-related issues in the five worst-performing countries, impacting more than 17 million passengers in 2024 alone.

Ryanair accuses the European Commission of “turning a blind eye” despite repeated promises to deliver competitiveness and efficiency across the bloc’s aviation infrastructure. The airline also took aim at the SESAR programme—Europe’s long-standing “Single European Sky” initiative—which Ryanair dismisses as a “failed” project after 20 years of effort.

“This scandal of short-staffing and mismanagement… can no longer be tolerated. Either fix the system or open it up to competition,” said O’Leary, repeating Ryanair’s long-standing demand to break the state monopolies that govern Europe’s ATC network.

Ryanair’s sharp criticism comes just ahead of the busy summer travel season, a period notoriously prone to airspace congestion. The airline is urging Brussels to take decisive action—or risk seeing another summer plagued by delays, inefficiencies, and unnecessary emissions.