Ryanair at Ben Gurion Airport. Photo: Shutterstock Ryanair publishes its October “Delay League,” noting that the worrying trend of flight delays and cancellations across Europe is expected to continue into 2025.
According to the Airline, more than 33 million passengers have been affected by disruptions caused by staff shortages and the mismanagement of air traffic control (ATC) services in key countries on the continent.
Leading the "Weak Performer" table are: France (64,095 flight delays; 11,537,100 delayed passengers), Spain (39,021; 7,023,780), Germany (18,413; 3,314,340), the UK (8,374; 1,507,320), and Greece (7,377; 1,327,860).
In contrast, the "Top Performer" table is led by Bulgaria in first place (117; 21,060), followed by Slovakia (460; 82,800), the Netherlands (592; 106,560), Belgium (725; 130,500), and Denmark (806; 145,080) - countries demonstrating stable and efficient ATC even during peak periods.
Ryanair and airline association A4E have long been calling on the European Commission to lead a comprehensive reform of the supervisory services, but they claim that, so far, no real steps have been taken by President Ursula von der Leyen.
The company has even opened a dedicated page called “Air Traffic Control Ruined Your Flight”, inviting passengers to contact the European Commission and demand urgent action. Ryanair proposes two main measures: asking national control services to ensure full coverage of the first wave of flights in the morning, with fines in case of non-compliance, and ensuring the continuation of transit flights even during local air traffic controller strikes.
Thus, the company continues to openly and publicly wage its wars. At the end of last month, the company announced that it would cut two aircraft from its operations in Vienna in the summer of 2026, due to what the company calls "the Austrian government's continued failure to reduce excessive fees."
Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary: "It is inexcusable that poor air traffic control services in Europe, in France, Spain, Germany and the UK, continue to cause avoidable delays and cancellations every month, affecting millions of EU citizens. Despite warnings, air traffic control performance in Europe is not improving because national providers continue to fail to recruit staff and manage properly.
Air traffic control services in the European Union need reform, and passengers are paying the price. Delays have already affected 33 million citizens this year, with France, Spain, Germany, and the UK continuing to fail to properly manage and deploy staff.
Ursula von der Leyen has done nothing to solve this air traffic control crisis, and EU passengers deserve better. It is time for the Commission to act to end this chaos and preserve the freedom of movement of European passengers."
CEORyanair CEO, Michael O'Leary: "It's unforgivable that Europe's worst air traffic control services - in France, Spain, Germany, and the UK - continue to cause unnecessary delays and cancellations each month, affecting millions of EU citizens. Despite warnings, the performance of air traffic control in Europe is not improving because national suppliers continue to fail in proper staffing and management.
EU air traffic control services need reform, and passengers are paying the price. Delays have already affected 33 million citizens this year, with France, Spain, Germany, and the UK continuing to fail in proper staff scheduling and management.
Ursula von der Leyen has done nothing to solve this air traffic control crisis, and EU passengers deserve better. It's time for the Commission to act to end this chaos and maintain the freedom of movement for Europe's travelers."