Ryanair to leave Granada airport

On-going disagreements between the Provincial Government and Granada City Hall, controlled by opposing parties, is being blamed for the departure of Ryanair services from Granada airport.

The main issue is the subsidy being paid to the airline and - Ryanair says it will move from the airport unless the 1.3 million € agreed in 2005 is paid, and also citing ‘excessive costs’ at the airport. Currently 4 out of the 6 flights into Granada have been cancelled – those are the services from London, Liverpool, Girona and Madrid.

Problems first began 3 years ago when the Ayuntamiento said it would not longer be paying its 15% of the payment, which was also being met by a consortium made up of the local hoteliers federation, Chamber of Commerce, local savings banks and the Sierra Nevada ski resort.

Ryanair claim that the end of 28 weekly flights will result in the loss of 400 jobs and the 400,000 passengers carried through Granada by the airline will have to fly into an alternative airport.

It is believed that many of those holding Ryanair tickets to or from Granada airport after the closure date of May have still not been informed.