09 June 2008

Like you needed another reason to not fly Ryanair

Snobby elitist post...

According to ABTN "Ryanair has fitted 15 Dublin-based aircraft with technology to allow in-flight calls and text messages, with trials to start at the end of July.

By the end of the next fiscal year it wants to extend this to 50 aircraft, and across its fleet within a year and half."

So besides virtually no service groundside, no service in the air, stripping planes to the bare minimum with fixed seats, no windowshades, now you would have to put up with gobby tourists waffling on about how "I'm on the plane" or with the incessant "beep beep .......... beep beep" text messaging notification sound. Though given Michael O'Leary said “The charge you pay will be the international roaming charges" and Ryanair customers are tighter than Mbeki and Mugabe, it might be not that bad.

I say you, because I wont fly Ryanair. With Gold Elite Air NZ status I can fly in the back on short European flights with Star Alliance airlines, use business class checkin, have lounge access and business class baggage, and be with an airline that does provide some sort of service on the ground. Beyond that BA isn't half bad, sometimes has good deals in Club Europe (business class) and I am halfway to being Gold Qantas so I can do the same with OneWorld as I can with Star Alliance. Now I'm not saying flights around Europe in economy class are great, they are not that comfortable, have almost always bad food (though free drinks are appreciatd) are often late and uninspiring - but they are step beyond Ryanair's truly cattle class (and many of the people you travel with are too!). However, if you are willing to travel as freight then you'll pay - and it's the same with flying third (economy) class UK-NZ, especially without a stopover.

Fortunately tomorrow I'm flying BA back, and not in fourth, third or second class.

4 comments:

Stephanie said...

Yikes never flown Ryan air but can happily report that I had far better service on the North Korea carrier ;-P

Anonymous said...

I've flown Easyjet and that was just as comfortable as an Air NZ domestic flight...
Ryanair isn't really comparable!

Libertyscott said...

Yes writeups, but when Air NZ cancels a flight it does make an effort.

ex-expat - the North Korean carrier is an experience as I understand it, main thing is you survived to tell the tale!

Anonymous said...

Ryan Air vs EasyJet, I've flown both a lot and there really is no comparison, Easyjet is much much better. Ryan air takes cost cutting to a n insane leve, I was on a half empty flight and they insisted on blocking off about 20 rows and cramming everyone into the remaning space, so You HAD to sit next to someone, people were sat in middle seats !! despite the plan being half empty. !!. This was appently so they had less rows to clean up. Add that Ryan air rarely fly to airports that are usefull, take "Stanstead London " LOL its more like Stanstead Cambridge, and another good one is Franfurk Haan, about 100miles from Frankfurt. When to factor the cost of travel at each end is London to Stansted train ryan air is suddenly no so cheep