Ryanair to cut UK capacity by 16%

No-frills airline Ryanair said it would cut its winter capacity at airports in the UK by 16 per cent.

Ryanair is blaming the British government's £11 air passenger duty for the cuts, which will hit most of its UK bases with the exception of Edinburgh and Leeds Bradford. It says the move will result in the loss of two million passengers to UK airports during the period from November 2010 to March 2011.

Stansted will suffer the most from the cuts, with its capacity reduced by 17 per cent. Ryanair said it would cut the number of aircraft based there to 22 from 24, leading to the loss of 135 weekly frequencies and 1.5 million passengers over the period.

The airline said it would be moving the aircraft to other European bases where passenger charges and duties have been lowered.

Ryanair chief execuitve Michael O'Leary called for the passenger duty to be scrapped at UK airports.

"Independent capacity analysis shows that growth has returned to the Belgian, Dutch and Spanish markets after their governments scrapped tourist taxes and/or reduced airport charges, in some cases to zero, in order to stimulate tourism and jobs," he said.

The airline has also been vocal in its opposition to a similar charge levied on passengers in Ireland.