Ryanair adds routes for Liverpool Airport

Ryanair will add a sixth plane to their fleet at Liverpool Airport, as the airline launches flights to Marrakesh and Tirana for summer 2026.

They will also add more services to popular existing destinations such as Alicante, Barcelona, Faro, Ibiza and Krakow.

It follows recent news that easyJet will introduce two new European routes from Liverpool.

John Irving, chief executive at Liverpool John Lennon Airport, told BBC Radio Merseyside: "We want to grow, we want to connect people to lots more places, but we need our airline partners to do that.

He said: "So the last couple of weeks have been a really good point in Liverpool Airport's history."

Mr Irving said a sixth aircraft from Ryanair was "a real sign of commitment", which would add an extra 250,000 seats on sale after one of Liverpool Airport's busiest years.

Despite struggles with increasing living costs, Mr Irving said: "People do want to travel still and they might not travel as often or for as long, but we want to be the best choice in north-west England as an airport to use."

Ryanair is currently the UK's biggest airline for 2025 in terms of passenger numbers, expecting to carry 60 million by the end of this year.

Jason McGuinness, the airline's chief commercial officer, said: "We're growing by over 15% next year in Liverpool."

He said that having a sixth aircraft which starts and ends its day in Liverpool would create more cabin crew and pilot jobs.

"That aircraft alone will create in the region of 30 to 40 additional jobs at the airport."

Listen to the best of BBC Radio Merseyside on Sounds and follow BBC Merseyside on Facebook, X, and Instagram. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230.