Ryanair

[nicho]

Hurric and others, you're living in a fantasy land. You can't really believe that the entirety of air travel safety is encapsulated in an aircraft maintenance schedule. Safe air travel is not a commodity that can be manufactured in vast quanitites and sold on the cheap by exploiting economies of scale. Safety has a price and it's not being met by the fares of low cost airlines. The sums simply do not add up.

You may think this is alarmist nonsense but you may also have thought, two years ago, that warnings of financial crisis were alarmist. There are some striking parallels: external regulation replaced by self-regulation; aggressive marketing; 'too good to be true' deals; quantity not quality attitudes; prudence and caution distorted by self-interest; and so on.

You may dismiss me as a crackpot but my views have been shaped by others who have vast experience and knowledge. Take the following contribution, from a retired airline pilot with particular background in air transport safety:



There's plenty more like that (although this is one of the most thoughtful contributors) from current and former airline pilots.

Bottom line - if we (the flying public) are not paying the price of sustaining the safety standards that air travel has built over decades, then those standards will surely fall, sooner or later. I don't believe that price is being paid. We're living off the fat built up during decades of incremental safety gains, but it won't last forever.

However, it's the likes of Virgin and BA that are losing packets, not Ryanair, who still continue to make good profits. So who's safety is more likely to be compromised?

It was only a short while ago that BA were criticised over their maintenance standards - the likes of Ryanair simply cannot afford to cut corners. Just one accident due to short cuts in maintenance will kill them off.

 

[nicho]

I tried Globespan which were actually £90 more expensive the the same thing so RA still cheaper. I would probably pay the extra for Globespan, who are not brilliant, but compared to RA they are.

You say that Globespan are better than Ryanair, yet it was the former that were recently banned from flying into America for poor maintenance standards - enjoy your flight!!

Jeez!! I'm still defending Ryanair.........

 

[nicho]

Apropos my last post, this is worth reading:

Capt Sullenberger's statement to the US Congress Transportation Committee

I can't be bothered to read it all again, but if my memory serves me correctly (which these days it often doesn't, so I stand to be corrected!), his beef was with poor pay and long hours. Also, the fact that he had to increasingly fly with low hours, inexperienced co-pilots that are being introdued to complex aircraft too soon (not the case with the FO in the Hudson forced landing though).

Ryanair pay their flight crews very well, though they do expect their £ of flesh for it.

 

[icepatrol]

orrible

i have to use them every fri night and return on mondays....a horrible experiance. cramped and noisey.....sell sell sell. lights blasting out and the constant anouncements on the tannoy. most flights late, yuk....
then had the chance to try easyjet.......wow...what a difference. quiet, polite and loads more seat room. oh and errrrrrrr....on time.
never again o`leary.

 

[oceanfroggie]

This thread proves they are supreme at generating free publicity (ie column inches and web chatter)

Enough

 

[nicho]

then had the chance to try easyjet.......wow...what a difference. quiet, polite and loads more seat room. oh and errrrrrrr....on time.

I can concur with that. Last year we flew with BMI Baby into Bordeaux to visit friends. Upon arrival, our mobiles went on to find about a dozen missed calls - sadly my mother in law had died very unexpectly. The only quick flight back was with Easyjet, leaving in a couple of hours. We went to their desk and explained the situation - tickets were immediately produced, we were taken straight to the front of the check in queue, and thereafter into a private lounge.

We boarded first and sat in the reserved front row seats, and a pre warned hostie had a cup of tea waiting for us. All through the flight, the cabin crew kept coming up to hug my obviously distressed wife. Absolutely fantastic service given by everyone concerned, on the ground, and in the air.

I'm not saying that another airline would not have done the same (even Ryanair), but that flight will stay in our memory for more than the obvious reason.

 

[hector]

A man sitting in the airport bar in departures at a busy airport.A beautiful woman walks in and sits down at the table next to him. He decides because she's got a uniform on,she's probably an off-duty flight attendant.
So he decides to have a go at picking her up by identifying the airline she flies for,thereby impressing her greatly.
He leans across to her and says the Delta airlines motto' we love to fly and it shows'.The woman looks at him blankly.He sits back and thinks up another line.
He leans forward again and delivers the air France motto 'winning the hearts of the world'. Again she just stares at him with a slightly puzzled look on her face.
Undeterred,he tries again, this time Malaysian Airlines motto 'going beyond expectations'.
The woman looks at him sternly and says 'what the f**k do you want?'
'Ah' he says, sitting back with a smile on his face. Ryanair'.

 

[Hurricane]

Hurric and others, you're living in a fantasy land. You can't really believe that the entirety of air travel safety is encapsulated in an aircraft maintenance schedule. Safe air travel is not a commodity that can be manufactured in vast quanitites and sold on the cheap by exploiting economies of scale. Safety has a price and it's not being met by the fares of low cost airlines. The sums simply do not add up.

You may think this is alarmist nonsense but you may also have thought, two years ago, that warnings of financial crisis were alarmist. There are some striking parallels: external regulation replaced by self-regulation; aggressive marketing; 'too good to be true' deals; quantity not quality attitudes; prudence and caution distorted by self-interest; and so on.

You may dismiss me as a crackpot but my views have been shaped by others who have vast experience and knowledge. Take the following contribution, from a retired airline pilot with particular background in air transport safety:



There's plenty more like that (although this is one of the most thoughtful contributors) from current and former airline pilots.

Bottom line - if we (the flying public) are not paying the price of sustaining the safety standards that air travel has built over decades, then those standards will surely fall, sooner or later. I don't believe that price is being paid. We're living off the fat built up during decades of incremental safety gains, but it won't last forever.

OK then - maybe I wont fly out to the sun this week.
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Yea - right!

 

[Labhaoise]

I have a mate that is a ryanair Pilot base ex Dublin and at present due to the cut backs in the number of flights this winter will not be required as offen for duty. During this time he has been encouraged not only to brush up on his required amount of training he is also been encourgaed to specialise his flight training as an instructor within the company. Sounds like a sensible use of downtime and a seriousness towards safety and traniing within a airline company.

Yes RA do provide cheap flights for little or nothing, i believe though only a small percentage of available seats on each flight that avail of these prices. Seats that may other wise not get filled. People that when they are captive on a flight for an hour or 2 may part a couple of pound or may even make a mistake with weight limits for luggage and get nailed a few quid.

No cheap flights when booking for next day which is in many cases are dearer than other carriers

RA just are creative in dreaming up ways of extracting the cash. The human error here is not the safety that a low cost carrier like RA might incurr, more like the customer not being able to abide by the rules and get fined so to speak for there lack of ability to read the small print when booking a ticket. Its all there if you wish to look through the web page.

Every business dreams of how to make the margins grow ,RA has discovered how.

 

[John100156]

Having used Ryanair more than 20 times in the past 18 months, I have found them to be perfect for my needs.

I have experienced very good service on all Luton/Reus flights, perfect on-time record, very easy on-line booking and check-in procedures, there are no hidden costs they are clearly identified, and I have booked with both checked-in and more often only with hold luggage. Priority boarding is cheap and very well organised both ends. The cost of the numerous flights I have booked, have been very cheap indeed and excellent value for money.

My one and only complaint: There will be a break this winter in Luton/Reus flights!

Long live Ryanair and all who sail in her.......

 

[Markus]

Choosing Ryanair
Also Ryanair can have and had Slot or ATC delays!
Would you work for 4,50 Eoros per hour and if you don't have to work in the aircraft-cleaning toilets and finily disregarding all working times?
Everybody is happy with the picetag from Ryanair, but the same people looking for they own incoming and working time!
Markus
(Airlines Business Union Germany)