Quick summary
Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary has demanded an EU levy on US and Chinese airlines flying into Europe, arguing European carriers absorb climate costs their foreign rivals escape. He also tied the airline’s removal of one million seats from its Belgian winter schedule to higher passenger taxes.
No such levy exists — it is a political demand, not an adopted EU rule. The concrete consequence for travelers is thinner Belgian winter capacity and Ryanair’s own warning of steeper fares in 2027.
Ryanair will fly roughly one million fewer seats out of Belgium this winter, and its chief executive wants Brussels to make US and Chinese airlines pay for the privilege of landing in Europe.
Michael O’Leary made both points in a Euronews interview published October 20, 2026, calling European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen “useless” and proposing a levy on every flight arriving in or departing from the bloc, whatever flag the aircraft carries. The capacity cut is a business decision with a timetable attached. The levy is advocacy with no legislative text behind it. Nothing in EU law currently imposes a US- or China-specific aviation charge, and no proposal to create one has been adopted.
The affected geography is narrow but real: Belgium-based Ryanair passengers flying this winter, particularly from Brussels South Charleroi, the carrier’s main Belgian base. Anyone pricing Europe–US or Europe–China travel should treat the tax talk as noise until a formal measure appears.
What Ryanair actually announced — and what it didn’t
The verifiable piece of this story is the schedule. Ryanair is reported to be stripping one million seats from its Belgian winter programme, a reduction the airline links directly to passenger taxes levied in Belgium. Seats pulled from a winter timetable do not return because a politician changes her mind.
The political piece is louder and less concrete. O’Leary told Euronews that a levy should apply to flights landing in or departing from Europe, including services operated by US and Chinese carriers, and warned of substantially higher airfares in 2027. No EU institution has adopted such a measure.
His underlying complaint concerns asymmetry. The EU’s aviation climate framework imposes costs on the activity it covers, while some long-haul services flown by non-European carriers sit outside it. Whether that gap justifies a new arrival tax is a political question; whether the gap exists is an accounting one.
| Item | Status | Who it affects |
|---|---|---|
| Levy on US and Chinese carriers landing in Europe | Proposed by Ryanair’s CEO only | Long-haul carriers and their passengers |
| EU climate costs on covered aviation | In force | European carriers flying within the bloc |
| Ryanair Belgium winter capacity | Reported cut of 1 million seats | Belgium-based winter travelers |
| Airfare outlook for 2027 | Ryanair warns of substantial increases | All European short-haul passengers |
Fares on the routes Ryanair still serves move constantly, and Air Traveler Club’s tracking occasionally flags short-lived price drops on European short-haul that last three to seven days.
Superdeals cover departures from North America, Europe and Australia.
Flight deals most people never see
Air Traveler Club monitors thousands of routes for pricing anomalies that traditional search engines miss. With ATC Superdeals members save up to 80% on each flight vs. regular fares.
Too good to be true? Check it out yourself. It's free.
Delivered weekly. Unsubscribe anytime.
Why short-haul networks feel the cost gap first
Ryanair’s network is almost entirely intra-European, which means nearly every seat it sells falls inside the EU’s climate-cost perimeter. A carrier flying Chicago–Frankfurt or Shanghai–Paris spreads the same per-flight charge across far more revenue per passenger. That structural difference — not any single tax rate — is what O’Leary is pointing at.
Closing the gap would not be free. A levy on arriving foreign carriers would raise the cost of transatlantic and China–Europe travel, and it would invite reciprocal treatment of European airlines abroad. Market access between the EU and the US runs through the Open Skies treaty, so a unilateral arrival charge lands in politically sensitive territory.
Everything else is a proposal waiting for a legislator.
Protecting a winter booking on a shrinking schedule
Belgian winter capacity is contracting while the tax argument plays out — here is the order that matters.
- Confirm your booking now. Check winter Ryanair departures from Belgium directly with the airline; schedule trims usually surface as rebooking offers or refunds rather than silent cancellations.
- Price nearby airports early. Compare Charleroi against Brussels Airport, Eindhoven, and Maastricht before fares on remaining frequencies firm up.
- Do not budget for a levy that does not exist. Europe–US and Europe–China tickets sold today carry no US- or China-specific EU surcharge.
- Treat the 2027 warning as guidance, not a quote. O’Leary’s fare forecast covers next year’s pricing, not this winter’s.
Watch: Ryanair’s next schedule filing will show whether the Belgian cuts are a seasonal trim or a permanent retreat from the market.
Reporting by
Questions? Answers.
Is there an EU tax on US or Chinese airlines flying to Europe?
No. O’Leary’s call is advocacy, and no EU institution has adopted a US- or China-specific aviation levy. Existing EU climate costs apply to aviation activity covered by the bloc’s rules, not to a new arrival charge.
Will my Ryanair flight from Belgium be cancelled this winter?
Not necessarily. Removing one million seats across a winter programme usually means trimmed frequencies and consolidated routes rather than wholesale cancellations. Verify your specific booking with the airline before making nonrefundable onward plans.
Should I expect higher fares in 2027?
Ryanair has warned of substantial increases tied to cost pressures, but gave no figure and no route-level detail. Treat it as a directional signal from one carrier, not a market-wide forecast.
