Ryanair offers a break to heartbroken Munster fans

Who says Micheal O'Leary doesn't have a heart? Sure Ryanair may charge you for everything and play irratating bingo adverts mid-air but it seems Ryanair does have a softer side after all.

Ryanair is offering a losers refund to Munster fans who booked a flight to Scotland to watch the Heineken Cup final on May 23rd. After Leinster's shock crushing of Munster last weekend, it seems certain that many Munster fans were left with travel plans they no longer wanted.

Ryanair is offering up to a €100 refund per return flight (or a full refund of the return airfare if less than €100) to people who booked on to certain match time flights.

A full list of applicable flights is available at http://www.ryanair.com/site/IE/notices.php?notice=gops&code=090506-munster-refund-6may-GB

Just this morning, Ryanair announced that it would not implement a fat tax voted in by customers. Over 16,000 passengers voted in an online poll recently to identify how the airline should charge larger passengers.

Ryanair’s Stephen McNamara said 'over 30,000 Ryanair passengers called for a ‘fat tax’ for very large passengers. However, as all passengers will soon be checking in online we have no way of collecting a ‘fat tax’ without disrupting our un-rivalled punctuality and our 25 minute turnarounds'.

Ryanair offer €1000 reward for best anti-passenger suggestion

Ryanair yesterday announced a €1000 reward for the best 'discretionary charge' suggestion. These type of charges have long been part of the Ryanair model with charges implented for airport check-in, checked baggage, food and drink.

Ryanair CEO, Micheal O'Leary, baffled and appalled passengers in recent weeks when he suggested the company was examining ways to charge passengers for using the onboard bathroom. O'Leary even went as far as to suggest he had been in talks with Boeing to explore whether coin operated slots could be placed on bathroom doors. Some days later, O'Leary conceded that the whole thing had been a publicity stunt.

Speaking at a tourism conference in Malahide on the 6th March O'Leary admitted 'It is not likely to happen, but it makes for interesting and very cheap PR'.

This Europe wide competition invites passengers to submit their most ingenious, wacky and creative ideas to Ryanair via the www.ryanair.com website to be in with a chance of winning a €1,000 cash prize.

Launching the competition , Ryanair’s Stephen McNamara said;
'Ryanair is Europe’s largest low fares airline and we plan to continue to reduce costs and fares by stimulating ancillary revenues'

Despite O'Leary's confession last week McNamara added 'since we confirmed that we are considering a toilet charge we have received a huge number of ancillary revenue suggestions from passengers and we want more. We are asking passengers to submit their ideas with the most creative winning €1,000 cash'

Passengers can submit their ideas by email to competition@ryanair.com before the 30th March 2009.

Full details @ http://www.ryanair.com/site/EN/news.php?yr=09&month=mar&story=pro-en-120309

Ryanair Landings

After an emergency landing at Ciampino airport ended flight FR4102's journey today, it seems a good time for me to comment on landings on Ryanair flights. I flew to London Luton on Friday and was appalled at the abrupt landing. It felt like the equivalent of rounding a corner at 80kmph. To add to the danger the runway was very wet and it was windy. As we approached the runway I suspected the landing would be a little on the unstable side but couldn't have expected that everyone on the plane would need to push against the seat in front on landing. Ironically, as we wondered whether the plane would stop before the end of the runway, an annoucement in true Ryanair style boomed 'Thank you for flying Ryanair, you have been on another on-time flight' (we could have dealt with the 15 second delay required for a smoother landing thanks).

Could have been a once off? Well perhaps, but the return flight landing from Luton was of a similarly speedy fashion!