The CEO of the Ryanair group, Michael O’Leary, presented the campaign on Tuesday at a press conference in Madrid during he once again lashed out at the Minister of Consumer Affairs, whom he once again called a ‘crazy communist minister’, a ‘crazy politician’ and now a ‘clown’. The offer includes 179,000 seats at a reduced price that can be purchased through its website for three days, in a nod to the amount of the fine imposed by the Consumer Affairs Ministry on five airlines - Ryanair, Volotea, Vueling, easyJet and Norwegian - amounting to 179 million euros for charging for cabin luggage.
O’Leary reiterated that the fine is ‘fabricated’ and that it does not comply with European Union law, and pointed out that Ryanair had 60 million passengers in Spain during 2024 who saved up to 300 million euros thanks to its low fares. It has also accused the government of using an ‘obsolete’ law from 1960 created by the dictator Francisco Franco -Law 48/1960 on Air Navigation - to impose this fine.
The law stated that airlines are obliged to transport passengers and their luggage, regardless of the number of items and their size, although taking into account maximum weights, at a time when only the ‘privileged’ travelled. However, Ryanair is certain that the sanction is completely illegal because it takes into account European Regulation 1008/2008, which guarantees all airlines in the European Union the freedom to set prices without government interference.
He also reiterated that allowing all passengers to travel with a cabin bag would increase fares for everyone, both for those who want to carry it and for those who do not, whereas now only those who do not have enough room for a small bag that fits under the seat in front of them have to pay for it.
The Ryanair boss also said that it would be impossible for all passengers to travel with these cases, because they would not fit in the models used by the airline. Currently, the number of passengers who can travel with a ‘priority’ fare is limited to 41% of all passengers, which translates to about 91 passengers.
He has also pointed out that he is being accused of ‘bullying’ Aena, something he considers impossible because you cannot ‘bully’ a company that has a monopoly. However, the government has said that Ryanair’s investment plans in Spain, which amount to 5 billion euros, are still in place, with the only difference being that the airline will direct traffic towards larger airports, instead of the small ones that are ‘underused’.
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