Ryanair, Europe’s No. 1 airline, today (1 Dec) confirmed that it has applied for slots to base 9 aircraft at Berlin Tegel in addition to the 9 Ryanair aircraft based at Berlin Schonefeld. Ryanair believes that the validity of Easyjet’s so-called “slot purchase” is questionable and looks forward to confirmation from the relevant authorities that Berlin will be open to competition for the benefit of consumers and visitors alike.

Ryanair’s planned investment would deliver an additional 3,750* on-site jobs and bring even more tourists/visitors to Berlin, while connecting the German capital with additional destinations on the lowest fares. Ryanair’s larger aircraft, higher load factors, and efficient operation would also deliver the most productive use of Tegel slots.

Ryanair’s Chief Commercial Officer, David O’Brien said:

“Ryanair has applied for slots at Berlin Tegel and is prepared to invest up to $1 billion in additional Berlin aircraft and double its Berlin traffic to 10m over the next 18 months. This investment would guarantee access to Ryanair’s lowest fares, and enable Berlin citizens and visitors to avoid the emerging high fare Lufthansa/Easyjet duopoly.

We look forward to confirmation of the necessary slots in due course which would replace approximately 30% of lost Air Berlin capacity at Tegel with new low fare Ryanair routes. Additionally, Ryanair calls on the Berlin authorities to respect the vote of the Berlin people and keep Tegel open if and when Brandenburg eventually opens, so that Berlin has the connectivity and capacity a capital city of its stature deserves.”