Ryanair is preparing takeover bid for Alitalia, says Michael O'Leary
Sep 18, 2017, 3:23 am
#16
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I'm not saying Ryanair isn't losing pilots, or can't recruit enough - it's an industry-wide problem, and Alitalia is apparently about to advertise for pilots too - but it's not the only, or main, reason behind Ryanair's rolling cancellations. It's apparently also prompted by the Irish Aviation Authority's requirement that the airlines in their jurisdiction align their holiday calendar to the calendar year (it currently runs April - March) - meaning that leave previously foreseen as being available to take in the first 3 months of 2018 must be taken in this calendar year instead.
Sep 18, 2017, 3:41 am
#17
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I'm not saying Ryanair isn't losing pilots, or can't recruit enough - it's an industry-wide problem, and Alitalia is apparently about to advertise for pilots too - but it's not the only, or main, reason behind Ryanair's rolling cancellations. It's apparently also prompted by the Irish Aviation Authority's requirement that the airlines in their jurisdiction align their holiday calendar to the calendar year (it currently runs April - March) - meaning that leave previously foreseen as being available to take in the first 3 months of 2018 must be taken in this calendar year instead.
They would dearly love Alitalia to cease flying and a bunch of experienced pilots to come knocking on their door.
Sep 18, 2017, 3:51 am
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AZ and FR fleets are incompatible so there could be no immediate crossover of pilots, at least until they get re-trained or re-certified on the new aircraft types.
Sep 18, 2017, 7:09 am
#20
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From a recent Skift interview - and it appears that FR won't be bidding for the longhaul business
Originally Posted by Skift
But Jacobs said Alitalia might not shed all of its legacy attributes, even if Ryanair ran it, because sometimes passengers will pay for a better product.
On some routes, Jacobs said, Ryanair might want to offer different products — one a little better than the other. For example, on a Monday morning, when business travelers often fly, Alitalia might fly a route between major cities, but on a weekend, Ryanair might fly it. Other airlines that own two brands, such as Qantas Group, which owns Qantas and low-cost airline Jetstar, use a similar strategy.
“If you’re running a second brand, you can have differentiated service,” Jacobs said. “But differentiated in an old-school legacy carrier way isn’t always necessarily good. The days of lounges and curtains going back after the eighth row and…croissants and Bloody Marys are probably coming to an end anyway.”
On an operational level, Ryanair has long been proud of its all-Boeing 737-800 fleet, and having only one aircraft type makes it more efficient than competing airlines. But Jacobs said Ryanair can absorb Alitalia’s Airbuses, much like in the United States, where Alaska Airlines, a former all-Boeing operator, acquired Virgin America, which flew Airbuses.
“Yes, it would be a complication, but we think we could do it,” he said. “We wouldn’t see it as a challenge because we we would be also taking over the engineers and the pilots who fly them.”
On some routes, Jacobs said, Ryanair might want to offer different products — one a little better than the other. For example, on a Monday morning, when business travelers often fly, Alitalia might fly a route between major cities, but on a weekend, Ryanair might fly it. Other airlines that own two brands, such as Qantas Group, which owns Qantas and low-cost airline Jetstar, use a similar strategy.
“If you’re running a second brand, you can have differentiated service,” Jacobs said. “But differentiated in an old-school legacy carrier way isn’t always necessarily good. The days of lounges and curtains going back after the eighth row and…croissants and Bloody Marys are probably coming to an end anyway.”
On an operational level, Ryanair has long been proud of its all-Boeing 737-800 fleet, and having only one aircraft type makes it more efficient than competing airlines. But Jacobs said Ryanair can absorb Alitalia’s Airbuses, much like in the United States, where Alaska Airlines, a former all-Boeing operator, acquired Virgin America, which flew Airbuses.
“Yes, it would be a complication, but we think we could do it,” he said. “We wouldn’t see it as a challenge because we we would be also taking over the engineers and the pilots who fly them.”