EasyJet and Ryanair expand in France

The new base at Nantes will be EasyJet’s seventh in France, which the airline says is its second largest market after the UK.

Ryanair said its new sites at Bordeaux and Marseille are the “first phase of developments” after earlier saying it was “in talks with several regional airports”.

Ryanair’s decision follows its win in the French appeal court over claims it broke employment law by employing 127 staff at Marseille on Irish labour contracts – and its decision to pay the French government €525,000 to free a plane impounded at Bordeaux over illegal subsidies.

Employees at Bordeaux and Marseille will be on French contracts and it is investing €200million in each, with two Boeing 737-800 jets apiece, and 16 routes from Bordeaux and 11 from Marseille. Both have twice-a-week Manchester flights.

Ryanair chief commercial officer David O’Brien said: “Our growth will create 120 jobs and deliver 1.1million customers a year at Bordeaux and 2.4million at Marseille.”

For EasyJet, its decision to base three A320 aircraft at Nantes will create 100 jobs on French contracts and open up new routes to Bastia, Bilbao, Copenhagen, Dubrovnik, Rome, Granada, Marrakech and Tenerife this summer. A spokesman said: “We’ve had a long relationship with Nantes, starting 10 years ago, and by opening the base we will reinforce our local presence and accelerate development, which means more flights at better times – and 400,000 extra passengers in 2019.”

EasyJet said France was its second largest market after the UK despite low-cost carriers having only 30% of the market, compared to 47% for the rest of Europe.

On-going train strikes in 2018 and the disputes at Air France boosted EasyJet’s French income by €20million.

Asked about a no-deal Brexit, the airline said it was confident flights would continue as the UK and EU had said an agreement would be signed. “We have taken steps already, with HQs in Austria, Switzerland and the UK,” it said.