MADRID: Spain’s leftist government said on Friday it has fined five budget airlines, including Ryanair and EasyJet, 179 million euros ($187 million) for “abusive practices”, such as charging passengers for hand luggage.

The carriers, which included Spanish airlines Volotea and Vueling along with Norwegian Air, were also fined for charging passengers to reserve adjacent seats for children and other dependents and not accepting cash when selling tickets at airports, the consumer rights ministry said.

Irish no-frills carrier Ryanair, which was the first to start charging extra for hand luggage in Nov 2018, was slapped with the biggest fine of 107.8m euros.

Vueling, part of the International Airlines Group which also owns British Airways, was ordered to pay 39.3m euros.

EasyJet was fined 29.1m euros, Norwegian Air 1.6m euros and Barcelona-based Volotea 1.2m euros.

Published in Dawn, November 23th, 2024