The CEO of the ONMT announced the signing of a “historic” agreement with Ryanair, the first European airline which will double from the winter 2021 the number of seats for Agadir compared to the year 2019. Very optimistic about the recovery of his sector, Eddy Wilson told Médias24 that Ryanair aimed to continue growing in Morocco until reaching 10 million passengers from 2026 compared to 6 million before the crisis.
After the reopening of the borders, the explosion of international air traffic to Morocco certainly encouraged the president of the Ryanair company to travel in person to the capital of the tourist region of Souss to announce this Thursday, July 1, 2021, the creation of a 3th air base at Agadir airport.
A 3th air base in Agadir which will serve 10 European countries
This new base will be added to those in Fez and Marrakech. It will open next November at Agadir airport and will be permanently equipped with two aircraft and will create 60 direct jobs. The announced investment will be $200 million.
This new international hub will strengthen air connectivity from Agadir to 7 European countries (Ireland, France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Germany, Poland) via 16 new lines plus 9 to Belgium, Great Britain and Austria, i.e. 10 markets for 25 routes and 25 flights per week.
A capacity of 229,000 seats from November 2021 compared to 108,000 before the health crisis
Saying very proud of an opening which will make the region a leading winter destination, the CEO (Chief Executive Officer) added that Ryanair will offer 229,000 seats from winter 2021 with attractive prices at the launch of the offer, which will place Agadir-Taghazout in the recovery at the time of the seasonal peak.
A capacity which will represent more than double that of winter 2019, i.e. 108,000 seats before the start of the pandemic, and which should continue to grow to reach 570,000 seats by 2024.
“A partnership which marks the global comeback of Agadir”
Ryanair will also use its new Agadir air base to facilitate access to other winter destinations such as Tenerife, Malaga, Alicante and city breaks from Rome, Dublin, Paris, Porto, Barcelona.
Visibly delighted with this “historic” partnership which will make it possible to relaunch arrivals of foreign tourists from November, Adel El Fakir, CEO of the ONMT, declared that the confidence of the CEO of the 1st private airline in Europe marks a strong return of Agadir among the most popular winter destinations in the world, while supporting the effective opening of the resort Taghazout.
“Ryanair will return to its 2019 Moroccan level of activity from summer 2022”
At the end of the joint presentation by the two partners, Médias24 asked the CEO of Ryanair about the medium-term objectives of his company, who first recalled that it transported 6 million passengers to Morocco before the start of the pandemic which brought air traffic to a halt.
“The current recovery shows that people more than ever want to travel internationally and in particular to Morocco, which is a very popular tourist destination around the world. This is why we expect to return to our 2019 Moroccan level of activity from summer 2022.
“10 million passengers in 5 years, 4 more than in 2019”
“Knowing that Europeans have remained locked up in their countries for too long and that the level of vaccination is progressing well in Morocco’s main source markets, international tourism should restart next September and continue to grow significantly in the years to come.
“With the health crisis drawing to a close and a growing customer base eager to travel to a destination like Morocco, there is no reason why Ryanair should not continue its growth until reaching 10 million passengers in 2026,” concludes Wilson, very optimistic about the ongoing air recovery.
source: medias24.com
