Ryanair embroiled in geopolitical dispute over flights serving Western Sahara

Ryanair has unwittingly found itself embroiled in a geopolitical war of words over its flights that operate from Madrid in Spain and the island of Lanzarote to the disputed territory of Western Sahara in Africa. The low-cost airline, along with Transavia France from Paris, operates services to the airport in Dakhla, Western Sahara – a former Spanish colony largely controlled by Morocco but claimed to be an independent state for decades by the Algeria-backed Polisario Front.

Ryanair started flying from the Spanish airports to Dakhla Airpprt (VIL) in occupied Western Sahara in January 2025, connecting the town with the Spanish capital of Madrid and the Spanish island of Lanzarote. “Dakhla will become the thirteenth airport in Ryanair’s Moroccan network, further strengthening the airline’s investment in the Kingdom,” said Ryanair CEO Eddie Wilson, stated when announcing the routes to Dakhla in November 2024.

“We are excited to strengthen Morocco’s connectivity and Ryanair’s investment in the Kingdom, boosting tourism and economic growth in this region of Morocco, supported by Ryanair’s unbeatable fares”, The Ryanair boss also stressed his gratitude to the Moroccan head of government “for their support and vision in securing this major investment in Morocco,” he added.

Additionally, posts on the company’s social media accounts published on November 14, 2025, even showed Ryanair representatives posing with a sign displaying the word ‘Dakhla’ while standing next to a Moroccan flag.

GCmap.comAs reported by Fortune, the issue that has arisen is that the territory of Western Sahara is seen by many, including the Polisario Front, not part of Morocco but existing as an independent state that remains under foreign Moroccan occupation. Morocco controls around 80% of Western Sahara, where the United Nations has performed peacekeeping duties since 1991 in what it considers a “non-self-governing territory”.

The Polisario Front, which controls the remaining 20% percent of the territory, has threatened legal action if European carriers continue serving the airport at Dakhla, stating that they do not have the necessary traffic rights to do so and are effectively operating the flights illegally. Any agreement regarding the territory must be approved by all parties involved, and as the Front had not been consulted before the flight commenced, the airlines “are operating outside international law”, said a Polisario Front spokesperson.

The Polisario Front’s representative to the United Nations in Geneva, Oubi Bouchraya, told the AFP news agency that legal action against the airlines operating to Dakhla was a possibility. Moroccan authorities want to “impose a fait accompli of the occupation of Western Sahara by involving economic actors”, Bouchraya added.

Vytautas Kielaitis / ShutterstockA question of legality

Both airlines began operating their respective services to Dakhla at the start of 2025 in response to incentives being offered to open up the region by Moroccan tourism authorities.

“The latest connections launched have made it possible to double the international capacity of Dakhla airport, with around 47,000 seats available in 2024,” Moroccan Tourism Minister Fatim-Zahra Ammor told AFP.

In 2018, the EU Court of Justice ruled that the EU-Moroccan aviation agreement did not apply to Western Sahara as the territory does not form part of Morocco. Then, in December 2024, the European Commission reconfirmed this stance, advising the two airlines that the EU-Morocco aviation agreement “does not apply to routes connecting the territory of an EU member state to the territory of Western Sahara.”

Bene RiobóWhile the United Nations has been tasked with preparing a self-determination referendum for the territory, Morocco has refused to allow a vote in which independence for Western Sahara is an option and the matter has been left in deadlock since.

Ryanair says its operations on the route “comply with all applicable aviation regulations”, while Transavia insists its flights have been “validated by the relevant authorities”. Yet, the carriers’ operating licenses only authorize them to serve Morocco, raising further questions over the status of Western Sahara as an independent state.  

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