Belgium's Walloon region said today two other low-cost airlines would join Ryanair at state-owned Charleroi airport.
Ryanair was ordered by the European Commission earlier this week to repay €4.5 million in Belgian subsidies over its use of Charleroi, a decision CEO Mr Michael O'Leary condemned as a disaster for budget travel and traffic-starved regional airports.
But Wallonia's Economics Minister, Mr Serge Kubla, said a Polish and an Italian airline had decided to start flying from the airport, 25 miles south of Brussels. Mr Kubla did not identify the airlines.
Ryanair accounts for most traffic at Charleroi and is the only low-cost airline operating there.
But Mr Kubla has repeatedly stated that Charleroi was not "Ryanair airport" and that other airlines could benefit from the same conditions if they generated similar traffic.
