RYANAIR is planning to axe up to 1,000 flights between Ireland and the UK in August and September.
The airline claims this is in direct response to what it claims are "defective quarantine restrictions".
It's estimated that this will affect over 150,000 passengers who had planned trips across the Irish Sea this summer.
Ryanair is currently operating around 1,000 flights per day, compared to about 2,400 flights per day before the pandemic began.
Ireland has in place a 14-day restricted movement (or quarantine) period for anyone travelling into the country from abroad.
This means they're not allowed to use public transport, visit houses other than the one they're staying in, or go shopping unless it's absolutely necessary. Passengers must also fill out forms indicating which address they'll be staying at for the during of the quarantine so that they can be checked up on.
The airline has publicly hit out against government restrictions on air travel, as well as mandatory quarantining which actively discourages people travelling in and out of the country, saying that the air travel industry is taking a massive hit, and so too will Ireland's economy.
"Air travel between Ireland and the UK is being badly damaged by this ineffective quarantine," said a Ryanair spokesperson.
"Ryanair will significantly reduce its flights between Ireland and the UK in August and September to reflect this suppressed demand.
"This unique policy by Ireland, insisting on blanket quarantines with our European neighbours (most of whom have lower Covid rates than Ireland), is damaging the recovery of Ireland's economy and our tourism industry, causing long-term damage to jobs in Ireland's greatest employment sector, with business travellers in particular being told that Ireland is closed for business," they added.
"If Micheal Martin doesn not quarantine for 14 days after visiting Brussels this week, then why should any other Irish or EU citizen be treated differently?"
See More: Cancelled Flights, Quarantine, Ryanair
