Ryanair - What's Really Happening?

[10ClarionSt]

Is all of this just a prelude to Ryanair going out of business? Seems a strange way to run a business doesn't it? But then again, I've never run a business.

[mikey4444]

Its my belief that we are seeing the gradual demise of Ryanair.

As every day dawns, more scandal is coming out, the latest being that the airline is deliberately misleading its 100,000's of disappointed customers, by misinforming of the statuary rights.

[ivor4781]

i feel sorry for ryanair's customers but also sorry for it employees from cleaners to pilots. seems like o'learys is a bit of a dictator, glad hes got some comeuppance, what an obnoxious man

[mikey4444]

As each day passes, Ryanair is looking more and more like a shyster organisation.

Of course, that couldn't be possible with someone like O'Leary in charge, could it ?

[Hopkirk]

I think that before long the shareholders will ditch O'Leary and put a professional in charge.
Ryanair will weather the storm and continue.
They have been abusing their customers for years, but have continued growing and being profitable.

[New Judge]

Indeed they have. They are the largest and most profitable airline in Europe and have a market capitalisation of some £18bn – more than four times that of their rivals Easyjet. Their share price (unsurprisingly) has taken a knock this last month but is still up 30% on the year.

They will weather this storm. It smacks of complete ineptitude but they will still attract customers. People book flights with them in their droves despite knowing that they will be treated with contempt by O’Leary and his team. Why is that? Because they are cheap and as we all know, if you pays peanuts you gets monkeys (and it's no good moaning about it afterwards).

[jno]

Ryanair are mostly fine. They started out as con artists, not telling you where they were flying you to, but the EU forced them into line and they haven't done much wrong since.

Until now, of course, when they've lost the plot badly. None the less, it doesn't look as if profits will be badly hit so shareholders don't seem to care.

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2017/sep/28/ryanair-crisis-michael-oleary-flight-cancellations-city-scrutiny

[douglas9401]

I've flown with Ryanair many times and have yet to be treated or see anyone else treated with contempt.

The staff don't hang about chatting and complimenting you on your choice of attire for the trip, they just get on with their job, getting you seated and selling you food n drink.

[mikey4444]

I understand what you are saying NJ, but if I were one of the hundreds of thousands of people that have had, and will have, their travel completely ruined by the flight being cancelled and left seriously out of pocket, I am not sure I would throw any more good money after bad at them any more.

There is this to consider....."Ryanair has been told to correct its compensation policy for passengers by Friday afternoon after thousands of its flights were cancelled"

They have been deliberately given false information to 100,000's of their passengers. Hardly the work of a Company that doesn't deserve the shyster handle, is it ?

[mikey4444]

Good for you Dougie, but that can't happen now to 100,000's of its passengers, if their flight has been cancelled, can it ?

[jno]

Douglas - dont forget, selling you lottery tickets.

Of course, some would say it's now a lottery whether your flight even takes off.

[douglas9401]

No Mikey, not in the short term, but for the rest or as I like to call them, the vast majority, it'll all be the same as usual.

[ivor4781]

New Judge
the same cant be said for easy jet/ flybe/ Norwegian air or air Berlin though,they have a very good reputation

[sapelesam]

I've never had the pleasure of flying Ryanair, but I've worked for large organisations where someone like O'Leary would have gone weeks ago. Maybe being one of their largest shareholders makes him immune to the sack.

[wolf63]

What about their new pricing policy?

https://scontent-lht6-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/22007650_1870055253009729_6017838443738882936_n.jpg?oh=ae45e8329ff417ac07c5bec1ada7839b&oe=5A531DEA

[New Judge]

"...the same cant be said for easy jet/ flybe/ Norwegian air or air Berlin though,they have a very good reputation"

I've not had the pleasure of travelling by Ryanair or Air Berlin. I have of the other two you mention. I might, just might, consider Easyjet at a push but my experience of them is not what I'd call good. The last time I used them I was travelling with Mrs NJ on a flight that was perhaps a third full. Mrs NJ had her arm in a sling having sustained a bad fracture a couple of weeks before travelling. After taking off we shifted to an empty row to give her a bit more room. We were told that wasn't allowed. We had to return to our original seats where we were on the wrong side of the aircraft for her to be comfortable. I would not travel with Norwegian Air for a pension. I've done so twice. The first time I gave them the benefit of the doubt and thought perhaps my experience was not typical. The second demonstrated that I was wrong. Despite having an airbridge attached to the aircraft at our stand in Gatwick half the passengers had to descend from the lounge to the apron, walk to the rear of the aircraft (not under the wing, natch, and at 6am in the pouring rain) and board via the back steps. This, we were told, was to facilitate "speedy boarding". We then sat strapped in for 45 mins for a reason or reasons unknown before pushing back. It did, however, give me plenty of time to examine how filthy the cabin was (on the first flight of the day). I realised why this was when I later learned that Norwegian do not pay for cleaners but instead get the cabin crew to have a quick dust round between flights.

I cannot comment on Ryanair and this debacle is clearly a complete shambles. But I think I'd give them a go before I used Norwegian again.

[Hopkirk]

NJ, Ryanair also don't use an airbridge even if available. This is partly because they would have to pay for it, and the speedier boarding reason.

They are the only airline who have ever used satellite 3 at Stansted. The initial fixed part of the airbridges are there, but as Ryanair will not use them the movable parts have never been added. It could be a monsoon, but you have to walk across the apron.

[Bazile]

NJ - I'm surprised that you travel with the ordinary joes .

I would have thought that a man of your means would have his own private jet .

Or are you saving your cash to pass unto the kids ? :-)

[douglas9401]

We also have to bear in mind that it can be cheaper to fly Ryanair return from Edinburgh to Alicante than to get a return rail ticket from Edinburgh to Inverness.
Actual travel time is quicker too.
There has to be a downside for that kind of cheap.

[cassa333]

I have never flown budget (near as but not quite) but they must be doing something right to be one of the biggest but one does wonder at their attitude to staff.

Of what I read the pilots have jumped ship (or wing in this case) and gone to a rival because they are not treated very well.

There is a thought that the customer is king but if you don't have the staff to look after the king.....

[mikey4444]

I think we are in danger here of criticising Ryanair's service. I am sure that if nothing goes wrong, its flights are much the same as any other low cost airline.

I have only ever used one low cost airline before, and that was on a Easyjet flight, from Bristol to Rome, and I couldn't really complain about anything. It was cheaper than a scheduled flight, and miles better than travelling to Heathrow from Swansea.

But in regards to the present Ryanair debacle, its the very fact that they have cancelled 10,000's of fights, and not compensated people properly that is the problem. Those flights, had they gone ahead may very well have been lovely, and cheap as well. But to cancel flights, at such short notice, is just not acceptable.

They had until this afternoon, to stop misleading people over compensation, and according to this latest BBC link, O'Leary has caved in, and updated its website to explain how it will re-route customers ::::

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-41445663