Ryanair has announced it will suspend 80 per cent of its services from midnight tonight, then ground “most, if not all” flights from Tuesday, March 24.
This comes in the wake of extensive travel bans across Europe, where the budget airline predominantly operates.
“Over the past few days, the spread of the Covid-19 virus has led most EU governments to impose severe travel bans and restrictions, which have had a negative impact on the schedule of all Ryanair Airlines, causing widespread cancellations and travel disruptions across the network,” the airline said in an official statement on Twitter.
“Our flight schedules have been hugely disrupted by these government restrictions and will be subject to further cuts.”
All affected customers will receive an email to advise them of their options. The airline has requested that customers do not attempt to contact its call centres, which are currently overloaded with enquiries.
From Tuesday, March 24, the airline anticipates that most, if not all, its flights will be grounded, except for a small number of services “to maintain essential connectivity”.
These will probably be between the United Kingdom and Ireland. Details of these restricted operations can be found on the Travel Updates page of Ryanair.com.
The airline says it will remain in close contact with the foreign ministries of all European Union governments regarding the repatriation of EU citizens and may operate rescue flights to support this effort, if required.
“Ryanair sincerely regrets all disruptions caused by this unprecedented Covid-19 crisis. The safety and well-being of our customers is our main priority,” it said.
