Ryanair has published a new “League of Delays” table highlighting the EU countries where air traffic control (ATC) issues have caused the most disruption to its flights so far this year.
The low-cost airline said the data, covering the period from January 1 to May 26, 2025, shows a sharp rise in delays, despite there being 5% fewer flights compared to pre-pandemic levels.
In a statement on Tuesday, Ryanair blamed “record” ATC delays on poor management and widespread staffing shortages across Europe’s air traffic control services.
The company singled out early morning departures as being particularly affected, saying delays during the first wave of flights often cause knock-on disruption throughout the day.
Ryanair also criticised a significant rise in ATC-related charges, claiming that fees imposed on airlines and passengers have increased by 35% since the COVID-19 pandemic, which is double the rate of inflation.
The airline’s CEO, Michael O’Leary, accused EU transport ministers of failing to address chronic understaffing issues, which he says are now undermining flight reliability across the continent.
“Our ATC ‘League of Delays’ exposes Europe’s worst-performing air traffic control systems from January to May 2025,” O’Leary said.
“We are calling on national transport ministers to finally step up and fix these unnecessary and avoidable delays, which continue to impact millions of passengers.”
He argued that ATC agencies are given airline schedules nearly a year in advance and should be fully staffed to manage the expected traffic, particularly in the mornings.
“Fixing Europe’s ATC staffing shortages, along with safeguarding overflights during national ATC strikes, would eliminate 90% of delays across the EU,” O’Leary added.
Ryanair is urging customers to voice their complaints directly to their respective transport ministers via the airline’s “Air Traffic Control Ruined Your Flight” campaign page.