The low cost airline Ryanair is closing down its base in Valencia after the Consell, the Valencian government, rejected requests for financial aid to promote growth.
Ryanair were requesting a €1 million grant for advertising, but the Consell told them there was no money available for collaboration purposes. Rival airline Air Nostrum, however, are apparently receiving financial assistance to the tune of €12 million.
Ryanair operates 70 flights a week out of Valencia, transporting around 750,000 passengers per year to 10 destinations in Europe, two of them in the UK. The closure of the base at Valencia airport will mean the loss of 750 jobs in the region. The company’s investment in the airport, estimated at $140 million, will be transferred elsewhere.
The closure will take effect on November 4th and passengers with reservations for flights after this date will be given a full refund.
The airline is not ruling out a possible return to Valencia if the situation changes.