Before the 2030 FIFA World Cup, Ryanair will increase connectivity between Europe and Morocco
The leading airline operating between Africa and Europe, Ryanair, has revealed its largest summer schedule to date, which includes a $1.4 billion investment, to Morocco. 11 new domestic routes have been added as part of this to improve connectivity and aid in Morocco's tourism industry growth.
Extending the reach to Morocco
Ryanair will add 35 new routes in the summer of 2024 to increase the number of destinations it serves from and within Morocco. It will fly more than 1,100 times a week on 175 different routes.
This historic summer schedule is anticipated to carry over 5 million passengers, a 33% increase in traffic, and will improve connectivity between Morocco and several new destinations.
Additionally, the airline plans to invest $200 million in Tangier, which will serve as its fourth base in the nation of North Africa, to station two new aircraft. According to Ryanair, its aircraft investment in Morocco now represents over $1.4 billion, supporting thousands of jobs in the tourism sector in addition to over 500 direct jobs in the aviation industry.
This led to economic expansion in twelve cities, including some of the biggest areas in the Kingdom. Eddie Wilson, the CEO of Ryanair DAC, talked about the investment, saying,
"This is a historic day for the partnership between Ryanair and the Kingdom of Morocco. Ryanair is proud to unveil a $1.4bn major investment in Morocco for Summer ’24, which, with our biggest Summer schedule, delivers more than 5m passengers to/from and within the Kingdom of Morocco."
Fourteen aircraft will be based in Morocco for the LCC: seven will be in Marrakesh, three in Fez, two in Agadir, and two in Tangier. Wilson went on to say that Tangier will gain over 60 well-paying aviation jobs as a result of the new two-aircraft base.
New routes both domestically and internationally
Ryanair is already one of the top intercontinental carriers in Africa with its service to Morocco. Cirium reports that it has 1,760 flights this month with 337,791 seats available to Morocco.
It is the only carrier with more seats available between Europe and Africa despite only serving one country. Ryanair gains from Morocco's partnerships with the tourism board and from the EU's open skies agreements.
Next summer, it will introduce 35 new routes, including 11 domestic services, to increase connectivity within the country ahead of the 2030 FIFA World Cup.
Ryanair submitted a request to the Moroccan government last month to begin operating domestic flights in 2024. Fatim-Zahra Ammor, Morocco's Minister of Tourism, declared on December 13 that Ryanair would be launching 11 new domestic routes, connecting nine cities in the Kingdom, with government approval. The following are the connections:
- Agadir - Fez, Oujda, Tangier
- Fez - Marrakesh
- Marrakesh - Tangier, Oujda, Errachidia, Tetouan
- Tangier - Oujda, Ouarzazate, Essaouira
The government's initiatives to increase inbound tourism, in conjunction with those of low-cost carrier Air Arabia Maroc and national carrier Royal Air Maroc, are in line with the domestic expansion. Additionally, the airline plans to introduce 24 new international routes, which are listed below:
- Agadir - Birmingham, Bournemouth, Edinburgh
- Beni Mellal - Milan, Barcelona
- Fez - Zaragoza
- Marrakesh - Milan, Faro, Lanzarote, Birmingham, Bristol, Leeds, Murcia, Tenerife Sth, La Rochelle, Stockholm
- Tangier - Barcelona, Lisbon, Carcassonne, Eindhoven, Baden Baden, Memmingen, Manchester, Porto
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