EasyJet is cutting up to 700,000 seats from its winter flight capacity, but Liverpool John Lennon Airport will see only a minor impact, the airline said after reviewing its schedule amid higher fuel costs.
The latest reduction brings EasyJet's total winter capacity cuts to between 1.3 million and 1.4 million seats, following an earlier reduction of about 700,000 seats.
The airline initially made more than 25 million seats available across nearly 138,000 flights scheduled between October 19 and January 31.
The latest cuts are estimated to represent about 3,300 to 3,900 one-way flights.
Fuel Costs Drive Industry Capacity Adjustments
EasyJet Chief Executive Kenton Jarvis said the industry was adjusting capacity as fuel prices remained elevated.
"People are taking capacity out, we see that across all competitors," Jarvis said.
Jarvis described the capacity changes as a response to market conditions, with airlines facing pressure from fuel costs.
He also pointed to unexpectedly high fuel costs following the conflict involving Iran and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, although prices had started to fall.
"I honestly think it's been quite a surprise for the industry that fuel has stayed as high as it is," Jarvis said.
Liverpool Network Largely Unaffected
EasyJet said the Liverpool route network would be largely unaffected by the winter schedule changes.
A spokesperson said less than 0.2% of EasyJet's winter flying programme from Liverpool would be affected.
The airline said changes are normally made in advance and customers can move to alternative flights when needed.
"Like all airlines, we review our schedule on an ongoing basis and sometimes make some changes.
The changes to our winter flying represent a tiny proportion of our flying programme.
We make any changes in advance and typically choose multi-daily frequency flights so customers can easily move to an alternative flight," the spokesperson said.
The capacity reductions are not confirmed cancellations for specific routes, and EasyJet has not disclosed which services will be affected or how many withdrawn seats had already been booked.
Under UK261 rules, passengers notified at least 14 days before departure are not entitled to fixed compensation but can choose a refund or rerouting.
Compensation eligibility depends on notice periods, replacement flight details, and cancellation reasons.
