21 February 2025

Interview with Fabrizio Francioni

Head of Communication Italy at Ryanair

As Head of Communication, what are the main responsibilities and areas of expertise you cover on a daily basis?

"As Head of Communication Italy, the main day-to-day responsibilities include the management and supervision of all communication activities, media relations and, more generally, external relations for the Italian market. This involves creating communication strategies that support Ryanair's business model, in a way that is consistent with the company's mission and values. In summary, as Head of Communication, the main objective is to ensure that Ryanair's communication is always clear, effective and aligned with the company's strategic objectives, so as to strengthen the brand and consolidate reputation and relationships with all stakeholders".

Fabrizio Francioni, Head of Communications Italy di Ryanair Copyright © Ryanair

Ryanair recently announced a lack of growth in Italy, especially in the large cities of Rome and Milan, for summer 2025. Can you explain why?

"Ryanair, like many other airlines, faces an ever-changing landscape, with multiple factors that can influence its growth in the markets where it operates.

Unfortunately, Ryanair will not be able to add significant growth to Milan this summer, due to the persistence of the municipal surcharge at Italian airports and, ultimately, the regressive decision of the Italian Government to further increase the municipal surcharge by €0.50 per passenger at the largest airports from 1 April 2025.

In Rome, Ryanair will remove one of the planes based (-$100 million investment) at Fiumicino for summer 2025 and will not record any traffic growth at Ciampino. This means no growth for Rome, despite the celebrations for the Jubilee year, also due to the restrictive limit imposed on flights to Ciampino (65 flights per day), the increase in airport fares. The municipal surcharge is a brake on growth, a tax that passengers pay today and whose revenues only minimally, about 5%, contribute to the revenues of local authorities.

For this reason, we call on the Government to reverse course and, ultimately, to abolish the municipal surcharge in all Italian airports, in order to preserve the critical capacity throughout the year, the growth of traffic and tourism for Italy and Italians. Ryanair would respond to this with a growth plan for Italy that provides for an increase in traffic up to 80 million passengers per year, support for over 1,500 new jobs, 40 additional aircraft (for an investment of 4 billion dollars) and over 250 new routes through Italian airports.

This does not mean that Ryanair does not have expansion plans in Italy, but investments can only be allocated in the most attractive and growth-oriented territorial contexts".

Which are the Italian airports that will see you as protagonists in 2025?

"Abruzzo, Calabria and Friuli Venezia Giulia are the regions that today can count on a strategic competitive advantage over other territories. These regions have in fact abolished the municipal surcharge and today benefit from Ryanair's growth in terms of new routes, new based aircraft, more connectivity and, therefore, support for the development of local economies and new direct and related jobs.

For Abruzzo Airport , 5 new routes and an extra based aircraft have just been announced starting from summer 2025, which is equivalent to an additional $100 million in investments.

In Calabria, where we also recently announced the construction of two new hangars at Lamezia airport, for a total investment of 15 million euros and support for over 300 new jobs, summer 2025 will see 13 new routes between the airports of Lamezia, Reggio Calabria and Crotone. And Trieste airport will also see significant growth".

Aeromobile di Ryanair Copyright © Ryanair

What measures is Ryanair taking to make its operations more sustainable in Italy and Europe? How is your current situation regarding new aircraft and SAF sustainable fuel?

"Ryanair is strongly committed to making its operations increasingly sustainable, and this commitment is particularly relevant in Italy and at European level, where sustainability is a growing priority for governments, consumers and businesses.

An important commitment concerns the progressive renewal of the fleet. Ryanair has embarked on a fleet renewal strategy, with the purchase of Boeing 737 MAX aircraft. There are 340 B737s on order, among the most modern and efficient available on the market, which offer a significant reduction in fuel consumption, compared to previous models, and therefore a reduction in CO2 emissions of about 16% but also a reduction in noise emissions of 40%, while increasing the capacity in terms of passengers transported by 4%.

Overall, our ambitious decarbonisation targets are underpinned not only by the entry of new fuel-efficient aircraft into the fleet, but also by the increasing use of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). This commitment, which aims to reduce carbon emissions by 27% by 2031, has also recently been validated by the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi)".

In addition to the new generation aircraft, are there also investments and services planned to improve the passenger experience, both on board and on the ground?

"Ryanair is always looking for ways to make travel more convenient, faster and more efficient for its customers, while maintaining a commitment to a low-cost business model. For example, our app continues to evolve, offering additional features to simplify the travel experience. Passengers can easily manage their trip, receive real-time notifications, book extra services, and even track boarding.

We are also investing in technologies to reduce waiting times on the ground. With automated check-in, digital boarding and the use of advanced passenger flow management systems, the goal is to make the airport experience faster and more comfortable."

Interview by Angela Trivigno

Avion Tourism Magazine