Ryanair Eyes Montichiari as European Hub Amid Airport Upgrades

It now seemed like a faded hypothesis. But in negotiations, anything and everything can happen. The British say “business,” a more noble and fascinating term, but the substance remains unchanged. No often turns into “ni,” and maybe then it will be yes. Words can also be wasted, if significant figures are at stake. From the press conference organized to announce the new routes to Italy from Ryanair at Milan – at number 79 of Corso Buenos Aires, in an ambiance that smells of tea like the Wall Street Institute – the people of Brescia travelers should, in theory, expect nothing groundbreaking.

Ryanair’s News and Ambitions

Something like a third daily flight from Montichiari to London. Instead, for “D’Annunzio,” a real turnaround seems likely: by April, it could become Ryanair’s European base. The fourth hub, after London, Dublin, and Glasgow. The decision will be officially announced next Wednesday.

“We are still in negotiations,” say in unison Ben Berger, Director of Development for Ryanair in Italy, and his right-hand Sinead Finn. However, they also let slip that “there are good possibilities for Montichiari.” The seemingly closed deal has suddenly reopened.

Since 1909, the land of aircraft, Montichiari has an appealing profile for a large, ambitious airline. Ryanair, “high quality at low fares,” founded in 1985 despite flag carriers and active in Italy for 33 months (more than one million seats per year), offers its air travel (including car, hotel bookings, and insurance) on the website www.ryanair.com.

Now, 50 percent of bookings to London are made online. Montichiari can thus hope to have a close link with Frankfurt and Paris, Salzburg and Brussels, as internal flights within a hub are the norm.

The Airport’s Evaluation and Future Outlook

Why Montichiari? First of all, competition is low and traffic is sparse, so there’s almost open space to undertake and take risks. Slots and parking are available, radio assistance is notable, and the area is a hub of exportable labor.

But is “D’Annunzio” up to the task? Is an airport, that just a week ago malfunctioned due to a fire brigade pump failure, suitable for this role? “Absolutely,” says Franco Bettoni, President of the Camera di Commercio. “It’s absurd to cite the fire pump incident as an example: technical failures can happen; I have personally witnessed a hundred unpleasant unforeseen events at the largest and most prestigious airports worldwide. Montichiari meets the standard, and I hope Ryanair will resolve its last reservations.”

“D’Annunzio” has great qualities, demonstrated in a very short time. The tourism economy has already benefitted from Ryanair’s arrival, as has the image of our province. Garda operators are happy to host English tourists.

If Montichiari becomes a hub, it could make the hoped-for leap in quality.”

If the Montichiari airport becomes a base, Ryanair will seek to grow in Brescia: from 200,000 to one million passengers per year. “No problem,” assures Bettoni. “Up to 500,000 is already within reach. Do they want to reach one million travelers? It’s possible. It will only require an investment of 7-8 billion.”

“We will closely monitor this development together with the officials from Catullo,” announces Vigilio Bettinsoli, Transport Councillor in Broletto. “Montichiari has European potential and is absolutely reliable. An issue like the fire brigade pump incident will not happen again if, as it appears, the government will increase the number of firefighters.”

And with Ryanair, “D’Annunzio” could conquer Europe. Yesterday, in Milan, Ryanair announced its new destinations, bringing to ten the number of Italian routes (including Montichiari, Pisa, Treviso, and Rimini) and to 47 the number of European airports served.

These include Trieste and Pescara. Abruzzo and Friuli Venezia Giulia now enter the network at a cost of 299,000 lire: round trip from Pescara and Trieste to London (taxes excluded), “with a savings,” say Berger and Finn, “of 80 percent compared to Alitalia fares and the certainty of hosting dozens of thousands of wealthy British tourists each year.”

But attractive offers are already not lacking at Montichiari. The weekly offer (valid until midnight today: booking must be made via the website) offers a trip to London for 49,000 lire. On weekends, the price rises to 139,000.

Tomorrow, the offers for the upcoming week will be announced.