Whats with this constant Ryanair bashing ?

kevmy · 24-11-2008 04:36PM

Raiser wrote: »

1. Bookings - Aside from certain [unproven?] allegations re. Ryanair dynamically pricing flights on a dizzying exponential escalation as people query availability - It is certainly true that their online booking system does attempt to add sneaky, insidious surcharges onto every conceivable booking angle - no integrity in sight, and needless, cynical sharp practice in my opinion.

2. Boarding Melee - Children learn to queue in the fcuking playground - they learn at an early age because their Mam tells them its civilised and makes life easier for both them and all the other kids - there's two options; order and harmony or elbows and gritted teeth - its not even necessary as it would be just as easy to do it in an organised way [?]

3. Where In the World am I now? -

4. Mid-flight Marrakesh - Buy scratch cards, fags, timeshares in Benidorm, fcuk it O'Leary would have Bear Baiting, Bare Knuckle Topless Boxing and Dog Fighting on-board if he could only manage to hire the handling staff.

5. How Rude! - Henry Ford invented the production line and paid his workers high wages to maintain pride in their work and quality. JC Penney said pile 'em high and sell 'em cheap. Some might say that O'leary says sell 'em cheap and hang them out. No other Airline in my opinion so consistently disrespects its paying customers. Some compare it to a bad Bus Service? I'd disagree and say its more aligned to a winged cattle truck, just without the stun guns, although I'd say they're itching to pilot that scheme......

6. Cheap as chips - "Joe Murphy paid 1 cent to go to London - can't argue there mate" Well you can - this is only economically feasible because Mike O'Connor paid €240 the day before the flight because he was badly stuck, desperate, expensing it via work or plain stupid. Average out the fares for the two passengers and its ~€120 each. You can't have 1 cent flights without somebody paying for the insurance, aircraft leasing, content staff, well rested Pilots etc. etc. Somebody is paying because they feel they have no other choice etc. - its economically axiomatic.

7. P|ss on me for I deserve it. - A lot of folks are happy to get shat on subsequent to contributing more ca$h to a large, solvent, already comfortably established profit-making organisation. The Irish mentality whereby a poor understanding of and low expectations for an acceptable level of quality of service and respect to the consumer translates into people being more and more grateful to be offered less and less. Soon they'll be queuing with nothing more than a toothbrush in one pocket, toothpaste in the other and a banana in their lowly hand for sustenance while secretly being glad that they're allowed to wear their shoes......

8. A career with Ryanair? - I overheard a conversation when I was on the bus not so long ago where a weeping Mother said her son had commenced employment with Ryanair, she repeatedly sobbed that she had urged him to pursue a life of drug-abuse, wife-beating and petty crime instead - just so he'd have some security, cash in his pocket and a modicum of self respect at the end of each day.

Disclaimer: all of the above statements are intended to be received as being merely in jest, or humorous expressions of my opinion in keeping with the general tone of this discussion with no intent to malign Ryanair, its practices and procedures or in any way imply that Ryanair does not exercise the very highest standards in all of its dealings, or any other interaction with consumers/the public. I hold no responsibility for any retelling of overheard conversations and fully accept that such tales may be entirely groundless, misleading and untrue. I offer to withdraw any comment immediately should it happen to offend as it is not my intention to offend any party, group or organisation.

We all know what Ryanair do and tbh if you don't you're an idiot.

We all know what to expect on different airlines and we get what we pay for. I've no problem with Ryanair they do exactly what they say on the tin.

But I do think their is a bias against Ryanair in the media, especially the British media.

The regularly do shows on how Ryanair work pilots right up to the allowable time (excuse me thats their right if it's unsafe the law should be changed), how Ryanair turn around their planes really quickly (again nothing against that if the planes aren't fit to do their job it's certainly not Ryanair's fault) and how poorly they pay the people who work for them (again I assume Ryanair didn't trick these people into working for them).

They also gleefully report on any incident on a Ryanair flight (the bridstrike in Rome and the loss of cabin pressure over France recently). Neither if which turned out to be Ryanair fault. They almost always don't mention Ryanair pretty spotless safety record and the fact that they have one of the youngest and most often serviced fleets in the world.

Ryanair do exactly what they say they will, we all know it, fly them if you want or don't if you want but I don't see the big deal over it.

dfx- · 24-11-2008 04:41PM

kevmy wrote: »

We all know what Ryanair do and tbh if you don't you're an idiot.

Which answers the OP question too.

"We all knowing what they do" as it's usually euphemistically put with a dose of positive spin is exactly why they're bashed.

stovelid · 24-11-2008 04:44PM

Mark200 wrote: »

That they don't see? I know full well about Ryanair's business practices thank you very much.
o

Wasn't clear there. I meant the public don't care about Ryanair business practices that don't directly affect them.

RasTa · 24-11-2008 05:00PM

It's cheaper for me to fly one way to Manchester, Liverpool or any nearby airports for footy matches at the weekend then it is to get a 10min taxi ride home in Dublin.

Viva Ryanair.

Fulton Crown · 24-11-2008 05:42PM

ednwireland wrote: »

flying to see parents at christmas checked ryaniar dery to liverpool £286 for 2 fares
easyjet belfast int to liverpool £95 for two booked in september thtas total price includoing all charges. what annoy's me is ryanair jacking up the prices around bank holidays whilst with other airlines they may jack up the prices as the seats sell out. it could be that the 2 days i picked to travel and days either side ryanair had sold out their cheaper seats but i doubt it. dont like ryanair and will only fly with them if it significantly cheaper to do so

This is example of someone who dosn't "get" the concept of the Ryanair business model - based around supply and demand - lots o people want to fly around Xmas and Bank Holidays so price reflects that - don't be surprised or annoyed - it happens in every sphere of life - Ryanair will fcuk you every way they can - but they will also deliver amazingly good value if you are smart enough to fcuk them

24-11-2008 06:26PM

The credit card fee, so what? I've moaned about it at some stage too but if they started charging 5.01 for flights and had no credit card fee would people be happier? no, they'd find something else to moan about.

People just need to suss Ryanair out and to use them to their advantage. For example, someone complained the other day that if a couple wanted to check in just one bag between them they still had to pay for airport check in for both of them, well, no actually, you could do two separate bookings, one airport check in one online check in. When I pointed this out I was attacked for being "too Ryanair savvy" so, apparently it's Ryanairs fault that people aren't clever enough to think outside the box. I'm not in love with Ryanair by any stretch of the imagination, they do what they do, yeh, I would choose Aer Lingus if the prices were the same, but they rarely are.

Snickers Man · 24-11-2008 06:48PM

kevmy wrote: »

We all know what Ryanair do and tbh if you don't you're an idiot.

This is not entirely true. And the fact that it is GENERALLY true is precisely because there is so much discussion about Ryanair, on TV, on the radio and on sites like this. It's all part of the information society. People passing on what they know for the benefit of all.

Some trolls regard it as whinging but it's actually just information dissemination.

There are still some people who don't know about Ryanair. For example, a friend of mine was coming from Australia to Europe last year and asked me to price out a car ferry journey with a hire car from England to Ireland for two adults and two children. I mailed him back pointing out that as he was flying into London it would be madness to get the boat, why not fly?

He was gobsmacked by how cheap it was. He had never heard of Ryanair and amazingly, neither had his travel agent (in Australia). I sussed out the prices for him but I suffered palpitations trying to impress on him the sort of beast he was dealing with.

For Christ's sake don't check in late. They'd prefer to leave you than bend their rules.

Pack your bags evenly. They really want to charge you excess baggage. Make sure if there's space in one bag that you don't overfill another etc etc

All of which is old hat to seasoned Ryanair travellers here but for those who don't know their rules, you'd hate to see them get caught out.

kevmy wrote: »

But I do think their is a bias against Ryanair in the media, especially the British media.

No there isn't. This is all part of a clever PR strategy by Ryanair. It might sound perverse that a company would encourage the media to produce stories that says they're a shower of bastards but I believe that's just what Ryanair do. They always co-operate fully in news stories about kids left stranded in Stansted because their connecting flight was late or not letting blind people on because there's too many of them.

They use this to reinforce the message that they only do what they say they do and if you expect a higher level of service then you have no comeback.

Sounds mad? If you're a Ryanair fan just think back on your oft-made claim that Ryanair has changed the rules for the air travel industry and then think "Is it really so outlandish that they would change the basic rules of PR schmoozing as well?"

Fulton Crown wrote:

Ryanair will fcuk you every way they can - but they will also deliver amazingly good value if you are smart enough to fcuk them

If there's one takeaway quote that anybody who wants to know about Ryanair should take from this whole discussion, that's it.

vorbis · 24-11-2008 07:33PM

The one thing that galls me about Ryanair is that they supposedly based themselves on Southwest ailrines. Southwest are a budget airline but probably offer the best value here in the states. Its free to change flights, you can cancel any flight and get a credit for future use and you're allowed 2 free bags. Michael O Leary only decided to copy their efficiency model.

rossie1977 · 24-11-2008 08:05PM

vorbis wrote: »

The one thing that galls me about Ryanair is that they supposedly based themselves on Southwest ailrines. Southwest are a budget airline but probably offer the best value here in the states. Its free to change flights, you can cancel any flight and get a credit for future use and you're allowed 2 free bags. Michael O Leary only decided to copy their efficiency model.

i fly southwest in the states all the time and yeah they differ from ryanair but those flights you can change cost alot more money (usually 3 times as much). ryanair haven't brought in southwests "over-booking of flights" yet, if they do expect alot more complaints this side of the pond.

my biggest gripe against ryanair is that they keep all the tax if you cancel a flight (which shouldn't be legal)

24-11-2008 08:18PM

rossie1977 wrote: »

my biggest gripe against ryanair is that they keep all the tax if you cancel a flight (which shouldn't be legal)

well see they don't, and it's not legal, you can claim it back, but they charge a €20 admin fee for doing so, so alot of people wouldn't bother......

rossie1977 · 24-11-2008 08:59PM

Deleted User wrote: »

well see they don't, and it's not legal, you can claim it back, but they charge a €20 admin fee for doing so, so alot of people wouldn't bother......

my brother has tried and they said he wouldn't get anything, despite being due over 50euro in tax back from 3 flights. we wrote, phoned and emailed them, same result

24-11-2008 09:02PM

rossie1977 wrote: »

my brother has tried and they said he wouldn't get anything, despite being due over 50euro in tax back from 3 flights. we wrote, phoned and emailed them, same result

aw crap. I thought they had sorted that all out.

Mark200 · 24-11-2008 09:05PM

rossie1977 wrote: »

my brother has tried and they said he wouldn't get anything, despite being due over 50euro in tax back from 3 flights. we wrote, phoned and emailed them, same result

Go to the small claims court. It's only like €7 (well it was about two years ago, it's probably gone up a bit).

robinph · 25-11-2008 03:32PM

rossie1977 wrote: »

my brother has tried and they said he wouldn't get anything, despite being due over 50euro in tax back from 3 flights. we wrote, phoned and emailed them, same result

Sounds about right, he'd get charged €60 in admin fees and they would give him back the €50. They were quite correct to tell him he'd get nothing back, well he'd give them a tenner actually.

ven0m · 25-11-2008 04:17PM

RyanAir are often praised for 'saving the airline' industry, but it's horse****. They copied the idea from an American airline. All they've done frankly is reduce air travel to a dodgy dingy bus-like affair. The way I see it, my trips to London on Air Lingus now are the same as thy were roughly 10 years ago, except back then - Air Lingus looked after me with a complimentary brekie on the morning flight, a paper & some coffee. Now I've to pay for the pleasure thanks to Micker & SleazyJet.

RyanAir for me once you factor in taxes, charges etc - is really no cheaper than Aer Dingus ....... seriously. I'd rather fly Aer Dingus than RyanAir, & deal with those bloody uncomfortable seats they have, & their smelly aircraft.

I personally know someone who helps turn around RyanAir's planes in Dublin, & says someday something will go horribly wrong because of the pressure they're under to turn planes around, that he wonders sometimes if something will be missed.

Ponster · 25-11-2008 04:32PM

ven0m wrote: »

The way I see it, my trips to London on Air Lingus now are the same as thy were roughly 10 years ago...

Except that 10 years ago it was several times more expensive to fly to London meaning that not everyone could afford to do so. That breakfast and paper was costing you over £100 but as you had no other choice it we never questioned it. Flying was expensive.

This thread is aimed at people like you who seem to get some freaky pleasure in knocking anything Irish and successful.

Don't like 'em then don't fly with them. Simple as.

asdasd · 25-11-2008 04:41PM

Air Lingus looked after me with a complimentary brekie on the morning flight, a paper & some coffee. Now I've to pay for the pleasure thanks to Micker & SleazyJet.

You paid for the pleasure with the extra 200 old Irish pounds you paid Aer Lingus back then. i have to LOL at the

RyanAir for me once you factor in taxes, charges etc - is really no cheaper than Aer Dingus ....... seriously. I'd rather fly Aer Dingus than RyanAir, & deal with those bloody uncomfortable seats they have, & their smelly aircraft.

Aer Dingus is as cheap as RyanAir because they have to compete with RyanAir. They would cost as much as they did in the eighties in relative terms ( about a months average salary) were there no competition. In that case my life would be much worse for me as I live in Englad.

All they've done frankly is reduce air travel to a dodgy dingy bus-like affair.

Whats reduced about that? It is a bus. my flight takes 45 minutes. Why would I even want food in that time?

asdasd · 25-11-2008 04:41PM

double post

ven0m · 25-11-2008 04:47PM

Ponster wrote: »

Except that 10 years ago it was several times more expensive to fly to London meaning that not everyone could afford to do so. That breakfast and paper was costing you over £100 but as you had no other choice it we never questioned it. Flying was expensive.

This thread is aimed at people like you who seem to get some freaky pleasure in knocking anything Irish and successful.

Don't like 'em then don't fly with them. Simple as.

100 quid each way was 130 euros ... how is this any different to now to London heathrow? it's not. I am still paying this on average each way with Aer Dingus. The way I see it, nothing has changed except my nice freebies I have to pay for now, & staff are ruder, & things like the Aer Lingus Young Flyers club was done away with, which was great for young kids on flights.

Flights with Aer Dingus to london are around the same as they were 10 years ago. I travel there that often & have done so for so many years I know this as a fact. I have also flown many times with RyanAir to various UK airports that the Dingus or anyone else wouldn't go to, & this was cos I had no choice.

RyanAir planes are horrid places to be in - that yellow interior for an hour or so to London is a real eyesore. Not to mention the scrums for seats onto planes ..... that's just horrid. When you fly as often as I do, you'll experience all kindsa ****e from various airlines, & I still stand by my favorite being Czech Airlines, who in many years of using them have never ever disappointed & even when I was stuck on runway in a blizzard that came out of nowhere a few years ago were absolutely amazing on how they looked after everyone on the plane.

asdasd · 25-11-2008 04:51PM

100 quid each way was 130 euros ... how is this any different to now to London heathrow? it's not. I am still paying this on average each way with Aer Dingus.

Ignoring the fact getting to England with RyanAir is cheaper let me introduce you to the concept of inflation.

Dob74 · 25-11-2008 04:53PM

Ryanair treat there customers and staff like sh;t. But you cant beat there prices. Wish more Irish businesses would follow suit. Cheap & cheerful is the way to go.

ven0m · 25-11-2008 04:56PM

asdasd wrote: »

Ignoring the fact getting to England with RyanAir is cheaper let me introduce you to the concept of inflation.

I didn't ask for an introduction to sarcasm, so you can have it back.

If I had 130 euros in a wallet 10 years ago, & I took that 130 euros out of that wallet if I found it in a drawer .... guess what - it's still 130 euros in cash.

tool.

Dob74 wrote: »

Ryanair treat there customers and staff like sh;t. But you cant beat there prices. Wish more Irish businesses would follow suit. Cheap & cheerful is the way to go.

I believe the phrase: You get what you pay for is also apt. Pay for a **** service, get one.

ScumLord · 25-11-2008 05:01PM

I've never been disappointed by Ryanair. I've always gone in expecting the worst and have always been pleasantly surprised. Their legroom is as good as any other airline, even better than some.

If you only bring a carry on and do online check-in avoiding all the add ons it is allot cheaper than aerlingus. Aerlingus only competes with their special offers their not regularly as cheap as Ryanair. They do provide a better service though.

Aer Arann is the best budget airline for me now as they fly out of the west of Ireland. Have loads of leg room and if you book correctly it's cheaper than flying out of Dublin.

ven0m · 25-11-2008 05:06PM

ScumLord wrote: »

I've never been disappointed by Ryanair. I've always gone in expecting the worst and have always been pleasantly surprised. Their legroom is as good as any other airline, even better than some.

If you only bring a carry on and do online check-in avoiding all the add ons it is allot cheaper than aerlingus. Aerlingus only competes with their special offers their not regularly as cheap as Ryanair. They do provide a better service though.

Aer Arann is the best budget airline for me now as they fly out of the west of Ireland. Have loads of leg room and if you book correctly it's cheaper than flying out of Dublin.

QTF my man, QFT.

EDIT:

asdasd, apologies for the 'T' word ... apparently someone got super sensitive over it, so I thought I'd 'toughen up' & apologise.

25-11-2008 08:16PM

ven0m wrote: »

QTF my man, QFT.

which is it? QTF or QFT?
and what does it mean?

Sea Devils · 25-11-2008 08:28PM

Deleted User wrote: »

which is it? QTF or QFT?
and what does it mean?

Means Quoted for Truth

latenia · 25-11-2008 08:52PM

My friend was very sick on a Ryanair flight from London this weekend and I've never seen any staff from any airline be so attentive and helpful.

dfx- · 25-11-2008 09:45PM

asdasd wrote: »

Ignoring the fact getting to England with RyanAir is cheaper

And yet Ryanair isn't always the cheapest...

dfx- wrote: »

I'm planning on going to London just after Christmas..

So I've arbitrarily checked the same day and roughly the same times on EI and FR to LHR and Stansted.

At the time I want to go at, Ryanair - €187 return, Aer Lingus - €167 return. Not the cheapest fares for either, but I'm not going when Ryanair or Aer Lingus decide. Ryanair have themost expensive individual seat before taxes at €119. Aer Lingus are 79.99 and 9.99 respectively.

I'll ultimately end up flying bmi though, I'd say.

Nevertheless, viva the legend.

First of all with the Celtic Tiger, we allowed to be shat on because we supposedly had money and now with Stephen, we are allowing ourselves to be shat on because we don't. Only in Ireland etc etc.

OPENROAD · 25-11-2008 09:58PM

ven0m wrote: »

Flights with Aer Dingus to london are around the same as they were 10 years ago. I travel there that often & have done so for so many years I know this as a fact. I have also flown many times with RyanAir to various UK airports that the Dingus or anyone else wouldn't go to, & this was cos I had no choice.

If you fly to London often, why do you go with Aer Lingus?? Why not go with bmi British Midland, same fares,better service and free food and drink when you reach blue plus.

xOxSinéadxOx · 25-11-2008 09:59PM

I love ryanair

Whats with this constant Ryanair bashing ?

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