Edgar Filing: RYANAIR HOLDINGS PLC

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 6-K

Report of Foreign Private Issuer

Pursuant to Rule 13a-16 or 15d-16
of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

For the month of July, 2008

RYANAIR HOLDINGS PLC
(Translation of registrant's name into English)

c/o Ryanair Ltd Corporate Head Office
Dublin Airport
County Dublin Ireland
(Address of principal executive offices)

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant files or will file annual
reports under cover Form 20-F or Form 40-F.

Form 20-F..X.. Form 40-F.....

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant by furnishing the information
contained in this Form is also thereby furnishing the information to the
Commission pursuant to Rule 12g3-2(b) under the Securities Exchange
Act of 1934.

Yes ..... No ..X..

If "Yes" is marked, indicate below the file number assigned to the registrant
in connection with Rule 12g3-2(b): 82- ________

RYANAIR UNVEILS

14%

CAPACITY REDUCTIONS AT

LONDON

STANSTED THIS WINTER ('08/'09)

Ryanair,

London

Stansted

Airport

's largest airline today (Thursday 17

^th

July, 2008) announced substantial capacity cutbacks at Stansted for its Winter Schedule ('08/09). Ryanair, which last Winter had 36 aircraft based at Stansted, will this Winter reduce that number to 28 aircraft (a 25% reduction), and an approximate 14% reduction in the number of weekly flights from over 1,850 per week last year to just under 1,600 this year. Ryanair estimates that its traffic at London Stansted will decline this Winter by some 900,000 passengers compared to last Winter's schedule.

Ryanair's decision to cut back capacity at Stansted is for the following reasons:

London Stansted is the most expensive of Ryanair's 28 bases.
The

BAA

Airport

monopoly has again increased airport charges by 15% this year, on top of a 100% increase last year.
The total failure of the inadequate CAA regulatory regime to control these unjustified cost increases or to persuade BAA Stansted to meet the needs of its low fare airline users.
The fact that oil prices have risen to $140 a barrel.

Ryanair confirmed that it will lose less money this Winter by sitting these 8 aircraft on the ground, rather than flying them at an expensive airport like BAA Stansted, during the Winter when fares are extremely low, but oil prices remain stubbornly high. Ryanair confirmed that it had written to BAA Stansted in recent weeks offering to operate these aircraft/flights this Winter in return for a substantial discount on airport charges applicable to these flights for the Winter season only. Like most monopolies, the BAA dismissed Ryanair's reasonable requests out of hand. The BAA would rather impose high airport charges and have fewer passengers, rather than working with airline customers to lower costs and keep people flying during a Winter of crisis in the airline industry.

Announcing these cutbacks in

London

this morning, Ryanair's C

, Michael O'Leary said:

"These Winter

chedule cutbacks, which are significantly greater than those of last

inter, show just how damaging the

BAA

Airport

monopoly has become to

consumers and the best

interests of

London

and

tourism and the economy generally. Like most monopolies, the BAA continues to increase costs at

three times

the rate of inflation, while delivering

miserable

service and inadequate facilities. Passengers continue to suffer long queues at security and passport control

and frequent baggage belt failures

at Stansted because the BAA refuses to staff

or operate

these facilities

adequately

"These cutbacks

reaffirm

the abject failure of Harry Bush and his

inadequate

regulatory team in the CAA who have repeatedly failed to

restrain the BAA's high charges

, price increases

or to encourage them to meet the reasonable requirements of Stansted users

develop

ing

the efficient facilities we need and are willing to pay for.

When

a regulated monopoly makes it more profitable for airlines to sit aircraft on the ground rather than fly them through the winter

, then obviously the CAA's laughable regulatory regime has failed

. The BAA Stansted's rejection of Ryanair discount plan for this Winter

proves

yet again

why

the BAA monopoly should be broken up and replace

with three competing London airports whose

primary

focus w

ill

be on stimulating traffic and developing low cost efficient facilities

which their customer airlines want and are willing to pay for.

"We hope that the Competition Commission report will in due course support Ryanair's call for the break up of the

high cost

BAA monopoly, and replace the inadequate and failed CAA regulatory regime with competing airports and

better still

competing terminals at the main London airports.

Monopoly airports and the CAA's regulatory regime have delivered high prices and awful facilities. It is time we allowed competition to deliver where monopolies have failed".

An example of these cutbacks is set out below:

LONDON

STANSTED WINTER '08/'09 CUTBACKS

	Winter ' 07/ ' 08	Winter ' 08/ ' 09
Base Aircraft	36	28	(-22%)
Weekly Flights	1,860	1,590	(-1 4 %)
Samples: Dublin	58	50	(-14%)
Glasgow	29	20	(-31%)
Rome CIA	35	28	(-20%)

In addition Ryanair is also announcing 6 new routes this Winter from Stansted to Winter sun destinations including: Fuerteventura (Canaries), Ibiza, Tenerife,

Malaga

, as well as

Katowice

(

Poland

) and

Basel

Switzerland

. These new routes are included in the above schedule, as part of the overall capacity reduction.

Destination	Weekly Frequency	Start Date
Malaga	3	28 ^th Oct'08
Fuerteventura	3	28 ^th Oct'08
Tenerife South	3	28 ^th Oct'08
Ibiza	3	28 ^th Oct'08
Katowice	7	27 ^th Oct'08
Basel	3	21 ^st Dec'08

Ends.

Thursday, 17

^th

July 2008

For further information

please contact:

Stephen McNamara

Pauline

McAlester

Ryanair Ltd

Murray

Consultants

Tel: +353-1-8121212

Tel. +353-1-4980300

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, hereunto duly authorized.

RYANAIR HOLDINGS PLC

Date: 17 July 2008

By:___/s/ James Callaghan____

James Callaghan
Company Secretary & Finance Director