Currently serving around 163 airports across its network with a fleet of 347 aircraft and an additional nine aircraft expected to be added to its fleet this year, easyJet is on a strong trajectory of growth in 2025 and beyond.
“We were fortunate to secure ITA’s remedy slots in Milan, where we plan to base five aircraft and Rome Fiumicino with three aircraft. Additionally, we’re expanding our presence in the UK, opening a new base at Southend Airport this summer. Our easyJet Holidays division also experienced impressive growth of 35% last year,” said Agi Smith, Head of Airport Development at easyJet during a fireside chat at this year’s Connect Aviation forum.
easyJet Holidays
Launched just before Covid hit in 2019, easyJet Holidays offers flight and hotel packages. Last year, it generated a profit of euros 190 million for the business, while further growth of 25% is projected for 2025 as the airline expands its holiday package offerings across Europe and beyond.
“Bed stock is a critical factor when considering new airports and hotel partners. We want to avoid a situation where a destination becomes too expensive due to a shortage of accommodation,” Smith noted. The airline itself is also looking to expand its destination network, with Smith adding, “We would never rule out any destination, even Ireland” referencing the home base of rival Ryanair. “We have also launched some interesting new destinations such as Cape Verde and Tbilisi in Georgia, which we will begin flying to this summer.”
Mid-sector growth
Non-EU markets saw a 40% growth last year with North Africa emerging as a popular region for the low-fare carrier. The airline recently introduced flights to Rabat and expanded its offerings in Tunisia. It is also one of the largest carriers operating to and from Egypt.
”The majority of our growth is on city pairs with around 80 percent of our slot holdings at level two and three slot constrained airports,” Smith explained.
Acknowledging the financial pressures airlines and airports have faced post-COVID, Smith noted that while traffic has recovered, and in many cases is surpassing 2019 levels, “some airports are struggling to meet capacity demand.” In response to this, easyJet is exploring ways to ease those constraints by optimising existing infrastructure and increasing efficiency.
“It’s about expanding in a smart and low-cost way. Innovations in technology, such as automated bag drop and biometrics are key,” she said. “Data sharing is also a priority. Both easyJet and our airport partners hold valuable data, so it’s about sharing it more efficiently to improve operations.”
Joining the easyJet network
For airports seeking to join easyJet’s network, Smith emphasised the importance of presenting a compelling business case.
“Airports need to demonstrate a solid understanding of our business model, fleet and operations. If we take the risk of allocating capacity, we want to know what incentives the airport can ofer and how they plan to involve other stakeholders, understand what the airport is willing to offer in terms of incentives and how they plan to bring other stakeholders into play as well.”
Smith also underlined that amid ongoing airspace challenges, airports need to invest in resilience. “We build resilience into our system but we need our airports to do the same, to make sure they have the right infrastructure and the right level of staff to maintain on-time performance.”
Passenger journey
The customer experience is also key, said Smith. “Around 30% of our customers travel with checked-in baggage, with the majority just taking cabin baggage, so once our passengers arrive at the airport, they’re looking for ease and a seamless journey. Having that consistent level of service across our network, in terms of automated services such as check-in and bag drop is something we’re trying to push.”
With a projected growth rate of an average 5 percent per year over the next five years, Smith emphasised there is still plenty of opportunity within existing markets across Europe. “There is some limitation with our aircraft range, so we don’t have plans to consider long-haul flying anytime soon. However we are opening some new routes to destinations in Egypt where we have crew now staying over for a night on routes that are more than five and a half hours long. This has enabled us to increase our reach in that mid-sector, but otherwise we still feel there is plenty of opportunity to grow within Europe.”
Image source: Agi Smith, easyJet head of airport development, at Connect Aviation 2025.
