Ryanair announced on Wednesday, April 22, that from Tuesday, November 10, check-in and bag drop services at all airports will close 60 minutes before scheduled departure, up from the current 40 minutes. The airline said the change is intended to give passengers more time to pass through airport security and passport control, reducing the small number of cases where travelers miss flights due to congestion in airport queues.
The adjustment comes as Ryanair expands its network of self-service bag-drop kiosks. The airline said more than 95 percent of its airports will have these kiosks in place by October. The systems are integrated with the Ryanair app, allowing passengers to check in bags and print bag tags themselves, with the aim of speeding up the bag-drop process and reducing waiting times.
According to Ryanair, about 20 percent of its passengers check in luggage. These travelers will receive additional time under the new rule to clear security and passport control and reach their departure gates before boarding begins. The remaining 80 percent of passengers, who do not check bags, will not be affected. They continue to check in online before arriving at the airport and proceed directly to security and then to their gate.
Ryanair Chief Marketing Officer Dara Brady said the updated cutoff time is intended to improve punctuality and ease congestion during peak travel periods, when airport queues can be longer.
Brady said the shift to a 60-minute cutoff will help passengers who check bags reach their gates on time and benefit from the expanded use of self-service kiosks, which are expected to reduce queue times at airport desks.
