Ryanair Flights

Ryanair boss calls on Boeing to improve quality control after mid-flight accident

HernanC — Sat, 13 Jan 2024 16:09:12 +0000

Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary has called on Boeing to improve quality control, warning his airline’s profits will fall and fares will rise because of manufacturing issues plaguing the US group and its rival Airbus. Both manufacturers are striving to make aircraft as fast as they can to meet booming demand amid a global shortage of planes. But an accident on Friday when part of a Boeing 737-9 Max fell off during an Alaska Airlines flight is a new problem for the US company, which was already struggling with deliveries and long-running supply chain issues. “Capacity is heavily challenged . . . air fares, particularly peak summer, are going to be higher because there’s going to be less short-haul capacity around Europe,” O’Leary told the Financial Times. “The real challenge for both Airbus and Boeing is they are both running behind on their plans to increase monthly production. A lot of that is supply chain pressures. I think that both Airbus and Boeing, certainly Boeing, need to significantly improve quality control,” he said. Boeing declined to comment. Tim Clark, president of Dubai-based Emirates, said the accident was a setback for Boeing as it seeks to win back market share after its fleet was grounded in 2019. “They’ve had quality-control problems for a long time now, and this is just another manifestation of that,” he told Bloomberg on Monday. “I think they’re getting their act together now, but this doesn’t help.” Ryanair is one of Boeing’s largest customers and has about 400 aircraft on order. It operates and orders different variants of the 737 Max from the type grounded by US regulators following the Alaska Airlines accident. O’Leary said Ryanair has already been hit by delivery delays on its new aircraft, which is likely to affect profits because it will not be able to carry as many passengers as expected in its next financial year. O’Leary said: “We were supposed to have 27 aircraft delivered prior to Christmas, we finished up getting 11. We’re supposed to have 57 aircraft delivered to us by the end of April, and we think we’d be lucky to get 50 by the end of June. So we’re going to be left five, seven, maybe 10 aircraft short for the peak summer season this year.” He said he expected Ryanair’s full-year passenger numbers for its financial year beginning in April to fall from 205mn to 200mn because of the delivery delays. “It costs us, if you’re talking being down 5mn on 205mn passengers . . . probably two, two and a half per cent of profits,” he said. Ryanair cut some flights this winter and in July revised down its passenger forecasts for its current financial year from 185mn to 183.5mn because of the Boeing delays. O’Leary has previously criticised Boeing’s senior management, saying they were “not up to the job” in 2022 as delivery delays hit. But he said he thought the company had improved its performance, despite its recent problems.

“I think they’re doing a better job now . . . I think they’re working their way through the problems,” he said. “The 737 is fine. But it doesn’t need these kind of short-term reputational issues,” he added. Some airlines flying Airbus planes also face disruption this summer because their engines require early inspection to check for defects. More than a thousand Pratt & Whitney engines need to be removed from Airbus aircraft and inspected, forcing a number of airlines to change their schedules or ground aircraft. In Europe, Ryanair’s rival Wizz Air has been hit particularly hard and has cut its growth targets. Chief executive József Váradi told the FT in November that the airline faced an “unprecedented operational challenge” that could last 18 months. Airbus had a backlog of 8,184 passenger aircraft at the end of 2023, while the figure for Boeing was 5,661, of which 4,515 were variants of the 737 Max, according to provisional figures from aviation data company Cirium.

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Ryanair Wins Court Ruling in La Coruña

HernanC — Sat, 13 Jan 2024 16:02:47 +0000

“Ryanair, Europe’s number 1 airline, has today (January 11) welcomed the ruling of the Court of La Coruña which confirms that airlines, including Ryanair, can determine their own cabin baggage policy and confirms that the regulations from Ryanair, which allows passengers to carry one piece of cabin luggage free of charge and which is essential for the safety and comfort of passengers traveling in limited space, complies with EU legislation.”“This is the last of dozens of court rulings confirming the legality of Ryanair’s hand luggage policy, including those from the courts of Madrid, Valladolid, Santander, Pontevedra, Pamplona, Vitoria, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Málaga , Valencia, Orense, León and Seville.”

“These resolutions are also in line with the “Vueling” ruling of the Court of Justice of the EU, which confirmed that airlines are not obliged to include optional fees for checked baggage in their fare and that the Spanish Law is contradictory and incompatible with the EU Regulation, which guarantees the freedom to charge fees for optional services such as baggage check-in.”

Adding to this was Elena Cabrera, Country Manager of Ryanair:

“We welcome these court rulings which confirm that each airline has the right to determine its own cabin baggage policy.”

“It is essential for the safety, comfort and convenience of passengers and a key component of EU legislation that airlines can set their own cabin baggage regulations.”

“Ryanair’s free cabin baggage policy is generous and sufficient to carry items such as laptops, tablets, mobile phones, books, medicines and valuables, ensuring safety, comfort and convenience on board for all passengers.”

All eyes will be on the reaction from La Coruña following this ruling.

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RyanairRyanair may resume Israel flights, Air France-KLM evaluates commercial optionsRyanair

HernanC — Sat, 14 Oct 2023 20:25:38 +0000

BRUSSELS, Oct 12 (Reuters) – Bookings to Israel have collapsed and it is up to governments to decide if airlines fly there, Michael O’Leary, CEO of European budget carrier Ryanair (RYA.I) said on Thursday, adding the Irish carrier may restart one or two daily flights from Friday.

Israel has vowed to annihilate the Hamas movement that rules the Gaza Strip in retribution for the deadliest attack on civilians in its history when hundreds of Hamas gunmen crossed the barrier and rampaged through Israeli towns on Saturday.

“We flew (to Tel Aviv) on Sunday, we stopped flying on Monday. We’re in touch with the airport, there’s no engineering cover at the moment. That’s being restored today,” O’Leary told reporters at a previously scheduled industry briefing in Brussels.

“So we’re looking to put back at least one or two daily flights from tomorrow, Friday. The airport wants us to restore a daily flight to Vienna and a daily flight to somewhere else … but it’s subject to the security situation.”

Israel has put Palestinian enclave Gaza, home to 2.3 million people, under total siege with no humanitarian exceptions and launched the most powerful bombing campaign in the 75-year history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Air France-KLM (AIRF.PA), said its commercial flights had been cancelled but France had organised special evacuation flights.

“The French have authorised that we fly one flight a day on a special exemption from Paris to Tel Aviv starting today and for our regular schedule … we will not cancel the rest of the month. We are on a 48 hour rolling period,” Air France-KLM CEO Ben Smith said.

Lufthansa (LHAG.DE), and British Airways (BA) parent IAG (ICAG.L), were also monitoring events.

IAG said the group had decided to cancel Israel flights until Oct. 14 to see how the situation unfolds after BA diverted a flight on Wednesday due to security concerns.

The British government on Thursday said it would organise flights to get its citizens out of Israel and ordered families of its diplomats to leave in the wake of the war with Hamas. The first flight is expected to leave Tel Aviv on Thursday.

Similarly, Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr said it was operating special evacuation flights for the German government.

“We have aircraft in the air now as part of a special operation to evacuate Germans from Tel Aviv … but we are not taking the decision yet on reopening our commercial flights, (it’s) subject to the security,” Lufthansa said, adding the German government decides who boards the planes.

Reporting by Joanna Plucinska and Julia Payne Editing by Jason Neely and Mark Potter

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Ryanair – New Maintenance Hangar & Winter 2023/24 Schedule in Nuremberg

HernanC — Sat, 14 Oct 2023 20:17:43 +0000

This week, Ryanair announced that they have opened a new maintenance hangar in Nuremberg as well as their winter 2023/24 schedule.

This article will cover the details surrounding Ryanair’s latest announcement for Nuremberg, Germany and its investment in the German city.

n a bid to help support its ever-growing fleet, Ryanair has opened a new maintenance facility at Nuremberg Airport (NUE) in Germany costing €5 million and is set to create 100 new jobs at the airport.

The new facility is 3,700 m² which will have enough space to cater for two of the carrier’s Boeing 737s side-by-side. It will also help support the Irish carrier’s fleet which is set to grow to over 600 aircraft by 2026 and over 800 aircraft by 2034.

Alongside the new maintenance facility, Ryanair has launched its new winter 2023/2024 schedule for Nuremberg with 14 routes including one new winter-sun destination, Lanzarote. The carrier will also increase frequencies on its routes to Alicante, London, and Tenerife. The carrier’s Chief Operations Officer, Neal McMahon, has said, “We are pleased to announce the opening of our new aircraft maintenance facility at Nuremberg Airport. This new €5 million operation will create 100 highly skilled jobs for the Nuremberg region, including licensed engineers, mechanics and support staff who will support the maintenance of the Ryanair fleet, as we grow to over 2026 aircraft by 600 and 2034 aircraft by 800.”

“We also announced today our 2023/2024 winter flight schedule for Nuremberg, which includes 14 routes, including a new winter sunshine route to Lanzarote. Regrettably, this schedule is only a fraction of what it could have been (-17% compared to winter 2022) due to excessive taxes and security fees in Germany, which the government plans to increase even further from January 2024.”

“This is a completely backward-looking approach for a country that, at 77%, lags far behind other EU countries, most of which have all returned to pre-Covid levels of air traffic.”

“Ryanair calls on the German government to immediately abandon its plan to further increase the already excessive aviation security levy, which will have a negative impact of up to €8.5 billion on the German economy and burden German families and travellers with even higher fares, and instead incentivise low-cost airlines such as Ryanair to boost traffic recovery and economic growth; as Ryanair has done in other EU markets such as Spain, Italy and Poland.”

Ryanair plans to restore Zagreb routes and boost frequencies in 2024

HernanC — Sat, 14 Oct 2023 20:12:02 +0000

Low cost carrier Ryanair is expected to resume operations from Zagreb to Manchester, Podgorica and Sofia next summer, as well as increase frequencies on a number of destinations based on its preliminary plans for 2024. The three abovementioned routes are to be suspended at the end of this month, however, the low cost airline plans to resume flights between the Croatian capital and Manchester on June 1 with a two weekly service each Tuesday and Saturday, to Podgorica, also on June 1, with three weekly rotations on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, as well as to the Bulgarian capital starting June 3, twice per week, on Mondays and Thursdays. Tickets for the three routes are yet to be put on sale as the carrier continues to work on its 2024 summer season timetable. On the other hand, operations to Bratislava, which are to be suspended next week ahead of schedule, are so far not planned for resumption next year.

The return of the trio of routes is in line with Ryanair’s recent announcement that it will operate more destinations out of Zagreb during the summer of 2024 than it did this year. “It’s all about direct connections. We had close to thirty destinations from Zagreb this summer, 27 to be more precise, and we will try to get that to over thirty for summer 2024. We are satisfied with conditions in Zagreb, although any increase in fees affects costs, which we try to minimise”, Ryanair’s Chief Commercial Officer, Jason McGuinness, said recently. The budget airline anticipates handling 1.2 million passengers on its Zagreb flights this year.

Ryanair also plans to boost a select number of its existing Zagreb routes next summer when compared to this year. They include Charleroi, increasing from six weekly to daily, Rome Fiumicino from four to five weekly, Gothenburg from two to three weekly, Malaga from two to four weekly, Malta from four weekly to daily, Weeze from three to four weekly and London Stansted from daily to nine weekly. The frequency additions are expected to take affect from June 1 as well, although changes remain possible as these are still the airline’s preliminary plans for next year. Ryanair’s busiest route out of its Zagreb base is London Stansted, with the airline handling more passengers this year than its competitors Croatia Airlines and British Airways combined on their London Heathrow service.

Ryanair among airlines suspending flights to Israel

HernanC — Mon, 09 Oct 2023 19:38:54 +0000

Ryanair is among a number of major international air carriers that have suspended or scaled back flights to or from Tel Aviv after a surprise attack by Hamas militants on Israel over the weekend, saying they were waiting for safety conditions to improve.

About 50% of scheduled Tel Aviv flights did not operate on Sunday and a third of flights have been cancelled on Monday in Israel, according to Flightradar24, a flight tracking website.

U.S. air carriers United Airlines, Delta and American Airlines suspended direct flights to Israel after the Federal Aviation Administration urged airlines to exercise caution.

Many European airlines have also canceled flights including Ryanair through to Wednesday and Norwegian cancelling its flights from Copenhagen and Stockholm to Tel Aviv this week.

“We have regrettably been forced to cancel flights to/from Tel Aviv Airport between Monday Oct 9 and Wednesday Oct 11 due to operational restrictions beyond Ryanair’s control,” the Irish low cost airline said on its website.

Israel’s national carrier El Al was the exception, adding more flights to bring reservists back from around the world to assist in the country’s biggest mobilization in history.

Fighters from the Islamist group killed 700 Israelis and abducted dozens in Saturday’s attacks, the deadliest such incursion in decades, prompting Israel to retaliate by pounding the Palestinian enclave of Gaza.

Israel’s Kan TV on Monday said the death toll from the Hamas attack had climbed to 800.

Israel’s tourism sector, driven by beach- and party-goers in Tel Aviv and historical tours to sites like Jerusalem, is set to take a major hit as flight cancellations pile up. Tourism makes up 3.6% of total employment, according to OECD data.

Tourism bookings were 18% below pre-pandemic levels and had been rising earlier this year, according to travel data firm ForwardKeys, but took a hit on the back of political turmoil, particularly with American tourists.

Regulators including the FAA, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency and Israel’s aviation authority urged airlines to use caution in the region’s airspace, but stopped short of suspending flights.

Israel’s civil aviation authority asked airlines to “review current security and threat information” amid the conflict, and changed some air traffic routes. It noted that delays were expected and advised airlines to carry extra fuel.

U.S. airlines normally run direct services from major cities including New York, Chicago, Washington and Miami.

United on Monday said its “Tel Aviv flights will remain suspended until conditions allow them to resume” while American has canceled flights through Friday.

Delta said flights this week were canceled and the situation was being monitored.

Among the three U.S. carriers, United has the biggest exposure.

In the quarter through December, Israel accounted for 1.9% of its planned global capacity, according to a Reuters analysis of Cirium’s data. American Airlines has the lowest exposure, with Israel accounting for 0.4% of its global capacity in the same period.

U.S. airline stocks fell sharply Monday, with Delta and American down 5.5% and United off 6%.

In Europe, Air France and Finland’s Finnair suspended direct flights.

Britain’s easyJet halted flights to Tel Aviv on Sunday and Monday, and said it would adjust the timings of flights over the next few days.

Hungarian budget carrier Wizz Air canceled flights to and from Tel Aviv until further notice.

“Wizz Air is the most affected group with its operations accounting for some 9.4% of Israel’s total October capacity and … representing some 2.3% of the carrier’s total schedules,” Irish brokerage Goodbody said.

Lufthansa group, also among the airlines most exposed to Israel according to Goodbody, canceled flights to and from Tel Aviv through Monday.

Portugal’s TAP suspended flights up until Monday and offered refunds or rescheduling at no additional cost.

Virgin Atlantic said it would continue to run some flights but that customers could rebook or request a refund until Oct. 15.

Shares in British airlines fell on Monday as oil prices climbed amid the military conflict in the Middle East. Fuel is one of the biggest costs for carriers. British Airways-owner IAG ICAG.L was down 5%, Wizz Air sank 6% to an almost one-year low and easyJet fell 4.8%.

With its most popular routes flying in and out of Istanbul around 107 times per week, Ben Gurion airport saw a major drop in scheduled versus tracked flights this past weekend, with 350 scheduled for Sunday and 197 tracked, according to FlightRadar data.

Israel’s airports authority said Ben Gurion continued to handle arrivals and departures.

Hainan Airlines, the only Chinese airline to fly between China and Israel, and other airlines flying from Hong Kong and South Korea, canceled flights between Tel Aviv and Shanghai on Monday.

Hainan said it would continue flights linking Beijing and the southern tech hub of Shenzhen with Tel Aviv while waiving fees for cancellations before Oct. 20.

EgyptAir flights between Cairo and Tel Aviv have been suspended indefinitely.

Spanish Court Sides With Ryanair Over Online Travel Agency Case

HernanC — Sun, 08 Oct 2023 20:50:24 +0000

Ryanair, the prolific European low-cost carrier, won in Spain’s Commercial Court of Madrid against online travel agency Kiwi. For Ryanair, the court victory ensures the airline can retain enhanced security check-in procedures for passengers using online travel agents. To Ryanair, having an online travel agency like Kiwi do the booking means that the carrier has to verify the passenger’s identity and ensure notification of proper protocols. Ryanair then, as per its business model, charges an additional fee for having to do this.

As such, Dara Brady, Director of Marketing & Digital for Ryanair, issued the following comment.

“We welcome this Court ruling, which ensures that passengers who have booked via OTAs can continue to use our enhanced-security check-in procedures to check in personally with Ryanair and are notified of important safety, security, and public health protocols and to correct passenger contact details. Ryanair does not have a commercial relationship with Kiwi, and we strongly object to Kiwi selling our flights.”

Brady then encouraged passengers to book directly with Ryanair for the lowest fares and best service.

Ryanair also won litigation in the Civil Court of Milan against Kiwi on August 17. Ryanair issued a statement very similar to the above.

Not the first litigation between Ryanair and “screenscrapers”

The court rulings against Kiki in favor of Ryanair are not the first judicial proceedings regarding Ryanair’s policies towards third-party “screenscraper” sites and special security checks. For instance, in May 2022, Ryanair prevailed against Lastminute.fr. Brady, at the time, said in part,

Ryanair’s direct-to-customers distribution model provides our customers with the best choice, care, and lowest fares while allowing us to ensure that flight safety, security, and public health protocols are complied with. … We will continue our campaign against screenscrapers, many of whose business models depend on mis-selling Ryanair fares at inflated prices (or with hidden markups) to unsuspecting consumers.

Hence the aggressiveness of Ryanair, as it claims,

“We connect over 240 destinations in over 40 countries and offer the lowest fares in Europe.”

That isn’t easy when there’s upselling of Ryanair fares. The airline is clearly concerned about its brand.

KIWI This poses a problem for Ryanair’s business model. Many airlines are acting against skiplaggers. However, European courts are more lenient towards the practice.

Furthermore, earlier this year, the airline lost a nearly 15-year-long legal battle with lastminute.com and BravoNext, in which Swiss courts ruled that lastminute.com and BravoNext could continue to sell Ryanair tickets in Switzerland. Lastminute.com hailed the decision as a significant milestone; however, the Irish low-cost carrier dismissed the ruling as having no significant impact on its operations.

Privacy group NOYB is also litigating.

In late July, the European privacy group None of Your Business (NOYB) filed suit against Ryanair’s additional screening of those using OTAs. NOYB was unhappy that passengers must verify through facial recognition or confirm their identity at the Ryanair airport check-in counter at least two hours before departure. The litigation is continuing.

Ryanair is engaging in litigation and other measures to protect its business model. As the operator shared with Simple Flying in late July about the NOYB litigation,

“Ryanair has no commercial relationship with any OTA nor are they authorised to sell our flights. OTAs scrape Ryanair’s inventory and, in many cases, miss-sell our flights and ancillary services. As a result, and in order to protect customers, any customers who book through an OTA are required to complete a simple customer verification process.”

One should exercise great caution when booking a flight through a third-party website or skiplagging. Airlines have limited grace towards such things to protect their brand.

Ryanair announce three new flight routes from Belfast this winter

HernanC — Sat, 07 Oct 2023 18:03:43 +0000

Ryanair has announced its full Winter 23/24 schedule for Belfast with 16 routes, including three new winter sun services.

Ryanair will operate 11 more routes from Belfast International Airport than before the pandemic, offering Belfast customers even more choice at the lowest fares when booking their Winter breaks.

The airline will add routes to Lanzarote, Porto and Turin as part of the new winter programme.

To support its record schedule, Ryanair will base two aircraft in Belfast, representing a $200m investment and supporting over 980 local jobs.

Since re-opening its Belfast base last March, Ryanair has enjoyed a successful Summer in Belfast and, with its strong winter schedule, will carry over 1.2m passengers to/from Belfast by year-end, driving year-round tourism, particularly in the off-peak Winter season. Ryanair’s Director of Digital & Marketing, Dara Brady, said: “It is great to be in Belfast announcing our largest-ever Winter schedule as we continue to grow in the region. “With 16 routes on offer (11 more than pre-Covid), customers can avail of a wide range of Winter sun or exciting city breaks at Ryanair’s infamously low fares. Our Belfast Winter 23/24 schedule includes our largest-ever connections to the UK, which is a direct result of the UK Govt.’s reduction in APD (Airport Passengers Duty), which is critical in driving and maintaining UK connectivity.

“Any increase in domestic APD charges would be counter-productive, and plans for this increase from Apr ‘24 should be scrapped as they will only damage connectivity.

“Our 3 new routes from Belfast to Lanzarote, Porto, and Turin will offer Belfast customers even more Winter Sun and city break opportunities and our two based aircraft at Belfast provide 60 high-paid jobs and support another 980 jobs in the locality. We are delighted to be able to offer Belfast’s customers/visitors more choice for Winter getaways which shows our commitment to Belfast.”

Ryanair YANAIR adds extra rugby world cup flights for Irish rugby fans.

HernanC — Sat, 07 Oct 2023 13:45:07 +0000

Ryanair, Europe’s No.1 airline, today (02 Oct) announced that it has added extra flights to/from Paris for Irish fans travelling to the Rugby World Cup this month. Ryanair has added 8 additional flights to/from the French capital providing over 1,500 extra seats for the highly anticipated Ireland v Scotland match on 7^th Oct and for the Quarter Finals on 14^th Oct.

These Rugby World Cup extras are available to book now at ryanair.com.

Ryanair’s Head of Communications, Jade Kirwan, said:

“We’ve had record bookings from rugby fans travelling from across Europe for what has already been a spectacular Rugby World Cup. To celebrate Ireland’s success, we are excited to announce that we are adding even more flights between Dublin and Paris for the Scotland game on 7^th Oct, and the Quarter Finals on 14^th Oct. These additional flights are available to book now at ryanair.com.”

Ryanair announces biggest ever winter schedula for Belfast.

HernanC — Sat, 07 Oct 2023 13:39:12 +0000

2 BASED AIRCRAFT ($200M INVEST.) & 16 ROUTES INCLUDING NEW WINTER SUN DESTINATIONS – LANZAROTE, PORTO & TURIN

Ryanair, Europe’s No.1 airline, today (5^th Oct) announced its Winter 23/24 schedule for Belfast with 16 routes, including 3 new winter sun routes to Lanzarote, Porto and Turin. Ryanair will operate 11 more routes to/from Belfast vs. pre-Covid, offering Belfast customers/visitors even more choice at the lowest fares when booking their Winter breaks.

To support its record schedule, Ryanair will base 2 aircraft based in Belfast, representing a $200m investment and supporting over 980 local jobs.

Ryanair’s Belfast Winter 23/24 schedule will deliver:

2 based aircraft
$200m investment in Belfast
16 routes incl. 3 new routes: Lanzarote, Porto & Turin
Supporting over 980 local jobs, incl. 60 highly paid aviation jobs
Belfast traffic to grow to 1.2m passengers p.a.

To celebrate Ryanair’s biggest-ever Winter schedule with 3 new routes, the airline has launched a limited-time seat sale with fares available from just £19.99, which must be booked by 6^th Oct 2023, available only at www.ryanair.com.

Ryanair’s Director of Digital & Marketing, Dara Brady, said:

“It is great to be in Belfast announcing our largest-ever Winter schedule as we continue to grow in the region. With 16 routes on offer (11 more than pre-Covid), customers can avail of a wide range of Winter sun or exciting city breaks at Ryanair’s infamously low fares. Our Belfast Winter 23/24 schedule includes our largest-ever connections to the UK, which is a direct result of the UK Govt.’s reduction in APD (Airport Passengers Duty), which is critical in driving and maintaining UK connectivity. Any increase in domestic APD charges would be counter-productive, and plans for this increase from Apr ‘24 should be scrapped as they will only damage connectivity.

Our 3 new routes from Belfast to Lanzarote, Porto, and Turin will offer Belfast customers even more Winter Sun and city break opportunities and our 2 based aircraft at Belfast provide 60 high-paid jobs and support another 980 jobs in the locality. We are delighted to be able to offer Belfast’s customers/visitors more choice for Winter getaways which shows our commitment to Belfast.”