Ryanair cuts 20 Belgian routes including Charleroi–Nîmes

Ryanair is removing 20 routes from its Belgian winter 2026–27 network, taking 1.1 million seats out of its schedule and relocating six aircraft. Announced on 20 October, the cuts affect both Brussels Airport at Zaventem and Brussels South Charleroi. They also extend beyond Belgium: Charleroi’s connection with Nîmes in southern France is among the affected services.

The carrier blames an increase in Belgium’s federal departure tax. But this is an airline network decision made during an ongoing dispute over taxation, not a government order to close individual routes. For passengers, its most immediate effect is a smaller choice of nonstop flights at the airports serving Brussels.

Dublin set to be the only remaining Ryanair route at Zaventem

At Brussels Airport, Ryanair intends to retain Dublin while withdrawing seven services: Málaga, Barcelona, Rome Fiumicino, Madrid, Porto, Marrakech and Valencia. Other airlines may continue to connect Brussels with some of these cities, but passengers cannot assume that fares, departure times and travel conditions will be comparable.

The thirteen routes listed for withdrawal at Charleroi are Amman, Dubrovnik, Nîmes, Genoa, Katowice, Lublin, Newcastle, Asturias via Oviedo, Poznań, Reggio Calabria, Sarajevo, Trapani and Warsaw Modlin. The destination breakdown was published by Air Journal.

Nîmes illustrates why a winter withdrawal should not automatically be described as the permanent loss of a route. Ryanair’s own fare calendar currently displays no prices for December, January or February, but shows flight options again in March and April 2027. Availability can change, and a displayed fare is not a guarantee that every previously planned service will operate. Travellers needing to reach southern France during the winter months nevertheless face a narrower nonstop choice.

How Belgium’s tax dispute reached the winter timetable

In its 20 October announcement, Ryanair compares a federal departure tax of €2 in January 2025 with a planned €7 charge in January 2027, describing the change as a cumulative 250% increase. It values the six aircraft reassigned to other European markets at $600 million. That is the airline’s estimate of the aircraft investment being moved, not a verified loss of revenue or investment already suffered by the Belgian airports.

The wider dispute has had more than one tax proposal. Earlier in 2026, a separate passenger levy was considered for Charleroi. Following Wallonia’s decision not to impose it, Ryanair said it would preserve its full summer schedule. The October cuts instead concern the winter network and the federal tax trajectory. These are distinct decisions, not two descriptions of the same measure.

Chief executive Michael O’Leary has urged Belgium’s government to abandon the tax rise, warning of damage to tourism, traffic and employment. Those outcomes are the airline’s forecasts. The announced capacity cut is measurable; its ultimate effect on jobs and ticket prices is not yet known.

The European winter airline season begins on 25 October 2026, ahead of the tax level Ryanair cites for January 2027. Individual services may have different final operating dates. Anyone already holding a ticket should check their booking and notices from the airline rather than interpret a network announcement as confirmation that their own flight is cancelled. If a flight is cancelled, refund and rerouting options depend on the journey and applicable passenger-rights rules. AeroSillage’s investigation into Ryanair compensation disputes explains some of the practical difficulties passengers can face when a claim is contested.

Belgium will lose a significant part of Ryanair’s winter offering, but the distinction between a seasonal service pause, a confirmed booking cancellation and a permanent route closure matters. The return of Nîmes fares in the spring calendar makes that distinction especially relevant.