• Ryanair Boeing 737
    Ryanair
    IATA/ICAO Code:
    FR/RYR
    Airline Type:
    Low-Cost Carrier
    Hub(s):
    Dublin Airport, London Stansted Airport, Milan Bergamo Airport
    Year Founded:
    1985
    Airline Group:
    Ryanair Group
    CEO:
    Eddie Wilson
    Country:
    Ireland

According to the latest schedule upload, Ryanair will operate mainland domestic UK flights again. While not yet bookable, it plans to begin London Stansted to Edinburgh this winter with typically 2x daily flights but up to 3x daily. Ryanair last operated the airport pair between October 2014 and October 2019, then a handful of times in December 2020.

If it does indeed return, it'll be helped by the air passenger duty being halved in April 2023 to £6.50 one-way. And easyJet – the sole operator on Stansted to Edinburgh – has half as many flights this coming winter versus 2019, reflecting that it closed its Stansted base and perhaps reduced business demand.

What is happening?

Ryanair already operates one domestic UK route: Manchester to Derry, in Northern Ireland, served 4x weekly. What it doesn't have are mainland UK flights. That seems set to change, with London Stansted to Edinburgh – operated by Ryanair UK – scheduled to take off on October 30th, the first day airlines change to winter schedules.

The first week's plan is as follows, but note that the situation may change again. The timings and schedule inconsistency means it won't target Edinburgh or London day trips, but this is rarely the focus for the ULCC. All flights will use Stansted-based B737-800s.

London Stansted to Edinburgh

  1. Mondays: 12:40-13:50 and 20:05-21:15
  2. Tuesdays: 06:25-07:35 and 12:35-13:45
  3. Wednesdays: 14:20-15:30 and 20:00-21:10
  4. Thursdays: 15:40-16:50
  5. Fridays: 12:10-13:20 and 15:55-17:05
  6. Saturdays: 10:50-12:00, 13:20-14:30, and 15:40-16:50
  7. Sundays: 11:05-12:15 and 19:45-20:55
Ryanair STN-EDI
This is how changes appear on Cirium, before delving into the specifics. Image: Cirium.

Edinburgh to London Stansted

  1. Mondays: 14:15-15:25 and 21:40-22:50
  2. Tuesdays: 08:00-09:10 and 14:10-15:20
  3. Wednesdays: 15:55-17:05 and 21:35-22:45
  4. Thursdays: 17:15-18:25
  5. Fridays: 13:45-14:55 and 17:30-18:40
  6. Saturdays: 12:25-13:35, 14:55-16:05, and 17:15-18:25
  7. Sundays: 12:40-13:50 and 21:20-22:30
Ryanair's domestic UK market
The peak year (2007) corresponds to Ryanair opening its Belfast City base. Source of data: Cirium.

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A look at Ryanair domestic's flights

Over the years, Ryanair has operated multiple UK domestic routes. I remember flying the carrier from Newquay, Blackpool, and Glasgow Prestwick to Stansted years ago, including on noisy and exciting B737-200s, once Ryanair's lifeblood type, and on ex-Buzz B737-300s. Other long-gone and little-discussed intra-UK routes include:

  1. Liverpool to Aberdeen: served by Ryanair from October 2006-November 2007
  2. Liverpool to Inverness: October 2006-November 2007
  3. Bournemouth to Edinburgh: September 2008-March 2010
  4. Bournemouth to Prestwick: for years until July 2009
  5. East Midlands to Inverness: February 2007-July 2009
Ryanair's domestic UK flight routes
Ryanair's domestic UK network since 2004. Image: GCMap.

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Of course, Northern Ireland was key

As you'd expect, Ryanair's UK domestic flights have often revolved around Northern Ireland, helped by difficult and time-consuming surface transport that makes flying more obvious. Cirium shows that Ryanair had 23.1 million domestic seats for sale between 2004-2022, 55% of which were to/from Northern Ireland.

Key was the first iteration of its Belfast City base (operated 2007-2010) and a base at Belfast International (2016-2021). Over the years, Belfast City has had five domestic routes (Bristol, East Midlands, Liverpool, Prestwick, Stansted) and International three (Gatwick, Manchester, Stansted). I flew East Midlands-Belfast a few times; it had up to 3x daily flights.

With ten routes in total, Derry has had the greatest UK network (Birmingham, Bristol, East Midlands, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Liverpool, London Luton, Manchester, Prestwick, Stansted). And now, in 2022, only one – Manchester – remains with Ryanair.

What domestic UK routes have you flown with Ryanair? Share them in the comments.