Budget Travel - Ryanair - Pax delayed for 4 days!!!

Hi
Here is a link to a story about Ryanair cancelling a flight. Not very good at all.

http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/hi/news/5046130.html

One of the main reasons I dont fly with Ryanair. My work mates dont use them now unless they are really pushed. The amount of times they have had trouble is unreal.

Also getting ripped off over the 15kg baggage allowance, it will cost you £4.50 per kg over it.

Also people should be aware that LO-COST airlines are not always as lo-cost as it might seem.

What I look for is

1. Flight costs
2. Travel costs to airport
3. Travel costs from arrival airport to hotel etc
4. Cost of taking baggage
5. Food costs
6. Total travel time.

So the so called "cheapo" fares might not be that good once you add the things above.

Well thats my 2p worth.

regards

Hi
Here is a link to a story about Ryanair cancelling a flight. Not very good at all.

http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/hi/news/5046130.html

One of the main reasons I dont fly with Ryanair. My work mates dont use them now unless they are really pushed. The amount of times they have had trouble is unreal.

Also getting ripped off over the 15kg baggage allowance, it will cost you £4.50 per kg over it.

Also people should be aware that LO-COST airlines are not always as lo-cost as it might seem.

What I look for is

1. Flight costs
2. Travel costs to airport
3. Travel costs from arrival airport to hotel etc
4. Cost of taking baggage
5. Food costs
6. Total travel time.

So the so called "cheapo" fares might not be that good once you add the things above.

Well thats my 2p worth.

regards

Granted this is NOT good news :td: :td: :td: . This in itself is enough reason to write this post and urge other FTers to be cautious.

However, you are muddying the water with other claims.

2. For STN this is the same as any other carrier.

3. Travel costs from airport are usually very competitive with Ryanair - there is almost always a bus service at the other location with extremely reasonable rates.

4. There is no difference between Ryanair's luggage policies and other companies such as EI. Ryanair give you an allowance of 15kgs hold plus 10 kgs cabin. Other airlines give you 20kgs hold and 5 or 6 kgs cabin. The extra is tiny compared to 'real' airline's excess fares.

5. Very few airlines in Europe give you complimentary food nowadays - if an extra 5 Euros concerns you, pack your own. Unlike BMI, Ryanair have no problems with you bringing your own food.

I find that travelling with LCCs is almost always way less than half the cost of travelling with a more conventional airline - even with all the factors you have described taken into account.

And also....
I have been bumped off in the past with no compensation or offer of hotels by both Iberia and Alitalia. If these airlines behave better now, it's only because LCCs have forced them to improve.

Radioman made some valid points there, although I think LapLap is right in that the difference to most of the European network carriers is not all that great anymore.

I think what you need when flying with FR is;
(i) a very cheap price to even consider buying a ticket
(ii) patience + good sense of humour
(iii) a contingency plan in case things go wrong

Granted this is NOT good news :td: :td: :td: . This in itself is enough reason to write this post and urge other FTers to be cautious.

However, you are muddying the water with other claims.

2. For STN this is the same as any other carrier.

3. Travel costs from airport are usually very competitive with Ryanair - there is almost always a bus service at the other location with extremely reasonable rates.

4. There is no difference between Ryanair's luggage policies and other companies such as EI. Ryanair give you an allowance of 15kgs hold plus 10 kgs cabin. Other airlines give you 20kgs hold and 5 or 6 kgs cabin. The extra is tiny compared to 'real' airline's excess fares.

5. Very few airlines in Europe give you complimentary food nowadays - if an extra 5 Euros concerns you, pack your own. Unlike BMI, Ryanair have no problems with you bringing your own food.

I find that travelling with LCCs is almost always way less than half the cost of travelling with a more conventional airline - even with all the factors you have described taken into account.

And also....
I have been bumped off in the past with no compensation or offer of hotels by both Iberia and Alitalia. If these airlines behave better now, it's only because LCCs have forced them to improve.


Hi
Sorry but I dont think that I am muddying the water at all with my post and comments.

You say travel costs are competative but they are costs which people should look at and the travel time is also something that people should certainly take into consideration. No use in saving a few extra pounds but having to spend a lot of time using public transport. Even worse returning to the airport.

As for luggage polices, I travel a lot on work and due to the nature of what I carry in my case I cant take the contents into the cabin. Usually I have too check in around 20 - 25kg so it starts so that means anything from 22.50 to 44.50. And before you say it, yes I do need to take all the kit.

I have seen so many people having to pay the BAGGAGE TAX, especially families.

As for food on the airlines, its still a cost and I dont really want to be carrying three packed meals and soft drinks. Then again thats another few kgs of weight and possibly a seperate bag.

As for the cost, I always check the various airlines for prices and since I cant book months in advance I have found that if your willing to adjust your times then BA/BMI etc can be very good with prices.

Anyway, I think too many people have been brainwashed into thinking that Lo-costs are always the cheaper and the best.

regards

Not sure I understand why RyanAir would not be responsible for accomodations and meals?
Do UK airline regulations differ that much from the US?

Radioman made some valid points there, although I think LapLap is right in that the difference to most of the European network carriers is not all that great anymore.

I think what you need when flying with FR is;
(i) a very cheap price to even consider buying a ticket
(ii) patience + good sense of humour
(iii) a contingency plan in case things go wrong

Hi
Yep I think your right that you have to do the things listed above. Also please note that you will have to take a pair of sunglasses to protect your eyes from the bright yellow seatbacks that Ryanair have :D

:D

Anyway, I think too many people have been brainwashed into thinking that Lo-costs are always the cheaper and the best.

regards

There's an awful lot of LCC bashing on this forum by people who rarely use them. I doubt ANYBODY here is going to argue that Ryanair is the best at anything :)

The news you posted is indeed awful. Nobody will dispute that, and it would be great to see some discussion about this topic. Especially whether they have violated the new EU laws for air travel.

I'm afraid I really do believe that your other remarks all detract from this. Every one is debatable and affects pax differently. You obviously suffer from the lack of hold baggage, however, most people on FT get by better with an increased cabin allowance. Getting to Prestwick is more time consuming and expensive for you than going to Glasgow. For others, STN or LGW is more convenient than LHR.
I value the choice and opportunites presented by LCC carriers (and the way they have forced more established airlines to improve.)
But there are a lot of negative factors associated with them. It would be nice to explore these carefully and sensibly and not just hurl prejeudices at them.

As I said, the danger here isn't that anybody will be brainwashed into thinking LCCs are the best, but rather that they are much worse than they are (which is no small feat!!!)

And please don't think this is directed at you, my concern is that there are too many people getting carried away on this forum and giving LCCs a worse rap than they deserve. But I do respect your views as valid as you have demonstrated how Ryanair's policies fail you particularly.

My regards back atcha! :D

Not sure I understand why RyanAir would not be responsible for accomodations and meals?
Do UK airline regulations differ that much from the US?

Hi
There is a lot of talk about airlines and what they should do to help pax. There are European laws but there seems to be a major loophole that the airlines are using to their advantage.

Here is the EU information on it all

http://europa.eu.int/comm/transport/air/rights/doc/com_2005_046_en.pdf

The main TV news stations have been covering the story and also the arrival home of some of the 70year old pax. Also lots about it on the radio. Not good PR for Ryanair thats for sure.

regards

:D

There's an awful lot of LCC bashing on this forum by people who rarely use them. I doubt ANYBODY here is going to argue that Ryanair is the best at anything :)



Hi
Thanks for your reply. I used low cost airlines for five years travelling from Glasgow to Luton at least once a month and for what seemed a long period of time near enough every week. So I know what its like.

We still use easyJet for the STN flights and GSM more recently. I also use Air Lingus for flights back from Dublin (BA Loganair out for the points etc).

Even last year I was flying GLA<>STN for a good few months but we switchd to GLA<>LHR with BA due to my work being in Wandsworth and it was really bad trying to travel to STN on a Friday from that side of London.

So you see I have to travel with so called low cost airlines but a lot of us have now drawn a line at using Ryanair unless we have no other choice at all.

regards

Excuse me for adding to the LCC-bashing, but am I the only one who thinks leaving passengers in the lurch for four days is an outrage?

I realize that these people paid low fares and that Ryanair has never given half-a-damn about customer service, but the right thing to do for these people would have been to fly them to STN on one of the twice daily flights and on to PIK from there.

I realize that it is "company policy" is to fly people on the next available flight to the original destination, but they have got to realize that waiting around for four days for the next flight is not an option for many people.

A company which sets policies like this probably can't count on all that much repeat business. And sooner or later, they'll have pissed off the last Mr. & Mrs. Flyonceayear whom they could have duped into flying with them, just like they managed to lose my business years ago.

Yes, I think there are some very good points that have been raised here. LapLap is spot on saying that people have different expectations and needs when travelling by air. I also agree that LCCs are better than their repuation on ft.

Obviously LCCs might not be that good an option for regular business travellers such as Radioman. When you tarvel a lot, then you also require another level of comfort & convenience.

Yes, I think there are some very good points that have been raised here. LapLap is spot on saying that people have different expectations and needs when travelling by air. I also agree that LCCs are better than their repuation on ft.

Obviously LCCs might not be that good an option for regular business travellers such as Radioman. When you tarvel a lot, then you also require another level of comfort & convenience.

It's not so much that I have a problem with LCCs, especially since you can't really tell the difference between the likes of EI, IB and a few other mainline carriers and the good LCCs like Easyjet or Air Berlin.

It's just Ryanair that is the poorest excuse for an airline I have ever seen and deserves to be identified as such.

It's not so much that I have a problem with LCCs, especially since you can't really tell the difference between the likes of EI, IB and a few other mainline carriers and the good LCCs like Easyjet or Air Berlin.

It's just Ryanair that is the poorest excuse for an airline I have ever seen and deserves to be identified as such.

alex0683de, exactly! The differences between FR and other LCCs can actually be quite significant, whereas the division between 'incumbent carriers' and the likes of EZY, AB etc. is rather blurred.

E.g. I was flying MAN-AMS with Jet2 in March when their a/c went tech. They actually got another a/c from an operator called JetX to fly people to AMS as this was the last departure of that day. Jet2 kept people informed quite well and at the end of the day everybody got to AMS. ^

It's not so much that I have a problem with LCCs, especially since you can't really tell the difference between the likes of EI, IB and a few other mainline carriers and the good LCCs like Easyjet or Air Berlin.

It's just Ryanair that is the poorest excuse for an airline I have ever seen and deserves to be identified as such.


Well said that man! ^

Ryanair really pushes travel insurance, precisely to cover such instances. As a passenger you can decide to self-insure, or to buy the reasonably priced insurance (but not the Ryanair insurance if you're not in the UK or Ireland). If this happened to me, I'd blame myself for either not figuring out an alternative transport plan, or for not getting insurance. This sort of thing is just one reason why you should use utmost caution when booking two unrelated tickets with close connections.

Thank you all, and especially to our OP, for supremely sensible and measured responses.

And I’d like to finally respond the way I wanted to initially on seeing the heading to this thread: “Ryanair - Pax delayed for 4 days!!! “

What!!! FOUR days?!?!? That’s a £*@#ing DISGRACE!!!
Any savings afforded by traveling with Ryanair are completely neutered by the potentially horrendous expenses of trying to find accommodation on the drop of a hat (which will probably be available at rack rate only) in GERMANY.
If Ryanair had to pocket the pax’ expenses for themselves, we’d see how quickly a plane to collect them suddenly became available!
Ryanair are laughing at the EU law meant to protect passengers against just such an eventuality. And I don’t even know how much help their insurance policy would afford their pax even if they had paid the surcharge for it.
This kind of situation I regard as extremely serious, and if they can’t even afford to have one of their aircraft on standby for this kind of eventuality, they should consider raising their charges (just a little) to cover it.
There are many people like myself who would be happier paying a little extra if we knew this would purchase peace of mind (i.e. not being stranded in one of the most expensive countries on earth during a bitter cold snap.)
Instead, I’ll be thinking VERY carefully about my future FR flights, I am more reluctant than ever now to travel to places where Ryanair is the only alternative.

But only for this issue and this issue alone – none of the other points raised in the first post apply to me.

...and with that, my plans of flying FR from DUB-CRL just flew out the window...

Now I'm NOT comfortable with just arriving back to DUB the night before my flight back to the states at 12:30pm.

...and with that, my plans of flying FR from DUB-CRL just flew out the window...

Now I'm NOT comfortable with just arriving back to DUB the night before my flight back to the states at 12:30pm.

Arriving back the night before is very sensible in your case (There isn’t an airline on earth I would have trusted to make your connection).

But the case in this thread truly is an extreme example. Adequate travel insurance really is the way to go. Suppose there is a failure the night before, if you are determined, you do have other options to get to Dublin. You aren’t just stuck with the one airline. You’d have to travel on to Brussels or Paris to get to those options, but they are there.

I have travelled with FR close on to a hundred times now (and have booked friends and colleagues onto more flights) and all the problems I have experienced have been minor and surmountable (perhaps I've been lucky). BUT YOU HAVE TO FACTOR A MARGIN AROUND FR FLIGHTS!!!
If you don’t (or can’t) you will encounter problems.

I am pleased you are arriving to DUB the night before, but rather than worry, look into good quality insurance so that you can get back to the US safely... and solvent.

I'm certain you'll be fine!

It would be interesting to see if travel insurance policies will actually cover situations like this one - where an airline is flouting EU law by leaving people stranded for four days. I can imagine insurers rejecting claims saying "claim from the airline".

As for having aircraft on standby to get stranded passengers home - you don't even need to have your own aircraft on standby. There is a whole industry that specialises in hiring out aircraft and crew to airlines whose own aircraft have gone tech. Titan at STN is one of the major players in this market in the UK.

BTW, I'm in LBC at the moment and so far there has been NO coverage at all of this incident in the local press.

Arriving back the night before is very sensible in your case (There isn’t an airline on earth I would have trusted to make your connection).

But the case in this thread truly is an extreme example. Adequate travel insurance really is the way to go. Suppose there is a failure the night before, if you are determined, you do have other options to get to Dublin. You aren’t just stuck with the one airline. You’d have to travel on to Brussels or Paris to get to those options, but they are there.

I have travelled with FR close on to a hundred times now (and have booked friends and colleagues onto more flights) and all the problems I have experienced have been minor and surmountable (perhaps I've been lucky). BUT YOU HAVE TO FACTOR A MARGIN AROUND FR FLIGHTS!!!
If you don’t (or can’t) you will encounter problems.

I am pleased you are arriving to DUB the night before, but rather than worry, look into good quality insurance so that you can get back to the US safely... and solvent.

I'm certain you'll be fine!

Thanks for the words of encouragement, LapLap! Question.. do you have any insurers you'd recommend?

Thanks for the words of encouragement, LapLap! Question.. do you have any insurers you'd recommend?

Not unless you're a UK citizen, sorry (my partner is Japanese and it's hard enough investigating options for him – especially as neither he nor I read or write Japanese!)

I was actually wanting to start a thread in this forum about travelinsurance – It’s the best accessory possible for Budget travellers.

You're welcome to pre-empt me!

As for having aircraft on standby to get stranded passengers home - you don't even need to have your own aircraft on standby. There is a whole industry that specialises in hiring out aircraft and crew to airlines whose own aircraft have gone tech. Titan at STN is one of the major players in this market in the UK.


With these options available there really is no excuse for such poor behaviour. This really is the airline that will do anything to save a buck.

Not unless you're a UK citizen, sorry !

Slightly off-topic, but...:

UK-based insurance packages should normally be available to all UK residents regardless of citizenship. I don't know what the legal situation is with those of non-EU citizenship, but to not make a policy available to an EU citizen resident in the UK would be illegal.

Slightly off-topic, but...:

UK-based insurance packages should normally be available to all UK residents regardless of citizenship. I don't know what the legal situation is with those of non-EU citizenship, but to not make a policy available to an EU citizen resident in the UK would be illegal.

You're right, I was going to go back and change 'citizens' to 'residents', but you beat me to it ^

It is sad, though, that a lot of people are attracted by the LCC's fares when the legacies offer comparable rates from airports that aren't in the middle of nowhere...

It is sad, though, that a lot of people are attracted by the LCC's fares when the legacies offer comparable rates from airports that aren't in the middle of nowhere...

BUT THEY ONLY OFFER COMPARABLE FARES IN ORDER TO ATTRACT BACK THE CUSTOMERS THEY LOST TO THEM IN THE FIRST PLACE!!!!!

If LCCs dissapeared over night, you can bet that prices would go up among the 'regular' operators in the blink of an eye - and I bet they wouldn't bring their catering back either....

We shouldn't be offering sympathy here to people who will book a flight presuming they have got the best deal without doing any research anyway! This kind of sloppiness is against the whole ideal of FlyerTalk! :)

BUT THEY ONLY OFFER COMPARABLE FARES IN ORDER TO ATTRACT BACK THE CUSTOMERS THEY LOST TO THEM IN THE FIRST PLACE!!!!!

If LCCs dissapeared over night, you can bet that prices would go up among the 'regular' operators in the blink of an eye - and I bet they wouldn't bring their catering back either....

We shouldn't be offering sympathy here to people who will book a flight presuming they have got the best deal without doing any research anyway! This kind of sloppiness is against the whole ideal of FlyerTalk! :)

Hi
I agree that the LCC have made the other airlines push their prices down. I would also say that the LCC have brainwashed a lot of people into thinking that they are the cheapest option for all flights.

I know that in Germany recently Ryanair got its butt kicked for advertising seats at low prices but the Germanys wanted to know how many of the seats on the flights were beind sold at the low price.

I think that it would be intersting to see if this is every enforced.

regards

Thank you all, and especially to our OP, for supremely sensible and measured responses.

You know, if all of you insist on being civil and give this forum a reputation for not flaming, I may as well resign as a moderator as my services will not be needed ;)

EmailKid

You know, if all of you insist on being civil and give this forum a reputation for not flaming, I may as well resign as a moderator as my services will not be needed ;)

EmailKid

HUMBUG!!!!!!! :mad: