Ryanair cancels plans for Ukraine routes after airport disagreement

Irish budget airline Ryanair has announced it is cancelling an agreement to begin routes in and out of Ukraine after a deal with Kiev airport collapsed.

Ryanair had been scheduled to begin flights to both Kiev and Lviv and had already begun taking bookings to the destinations, but customers have been informed of the cancellations and will be refunded their fares.

In a statement, the airline said a major reason for the cancelled routes was the decision of Kiev airport to protect high fare airlines such as Ukraine International Airlines.

According to Ryanair, 500,000 customers will be affected, as well as 400 airport jobs due to the decision.

David O’Brien, Chief Commercial Officer at Ryanair, said: "On behalf of Ukrainian visitors and consumers, we regret that Kiev Airport has demonstrated that Ukraine is not yet a sufficiently mature or reliable business location to invest valuable Ryanair aircraft capacity.

"Kiev Airport’s failure to honour commitments will result in the loss of over 500,000 customers and 400 airport jobs in the first year alone, which would have provided a significant boost to the Ukrainian economy."

O’Brien added that the airline’s capacity will now be spread to nearby markets in the likes of Germany and Poland.