RyanAir

Michael O'Leary, boss of RyanAir, is without doubt a brilliant publicity machine to rival the ability of Sir Richard Branson in generating free publicity for his airline.  Often his wizard wheezes are just that, designed to keep his business in the public eye as witnessed by recent suggestions that use of inflight toilet facilities will be charged to passengers whom avail themselves of such and that standee passengers may also be a future possibility!

There is, naturally, a negative side to such publicity in that many decry his unique airline business model for being a ripoff or even extortionate, many of these nay sayers have probably never flown nor ever will fly with this unique Irish entrepreneur.  Unfortunately this approach may have a possible negative impact on potential customers believeing that they will be ripped off.

Let's get to the bottom of this and expose what his strategy really is!  RyanAir is not extortionate, O'Leary just has a different and unconventional business model to other airlines. Much of the discussion surrounding him and his business methods is hot air created by people who have never travelled with that carrier, part of his business ploy is to go kite flying on many occasions just to keep the airline in the public eye, free publicity costs nothing!

He does not want any hold baggage as that increases turn round time, it also impacts to some extent on fuel used. Example - at Bergerac airport the turnround time, ie. the time spent actually at the terminal is aimed to be a maximum of 25 minutes, should that target be achieved then RyanAir pay no airport charges - fact. This, obviously, helps keep seat prices low. Before anyone screams foul I should point out that Jane flew from Bergerac to Stansted last week for €35 all in. Now you cannot call that extortionate. Not only was the flight able to depart some five minutes early but arrived UK some twenty minutes early.

RyanAir operates a simple, basic no frills service. Flight time for us to UK is usually around eighty minutes, no longer than many a bus ride in the London area nor a commuter train ride to work, the latter frequently with a good number of passengers standing all the way crammed like sardines. There are no refreshment facilities on either of these, RyanAir does provide refreshments, at a price, for those who are unable to survive less than a couple of hours without any form of sustenance.

For those who want a superior service complete with hot and cold running cabin staff there are other carriers happy to oblige at a cost. Example - Flybe form Bergerac to Southampton minimum fare of £120 one way, almost four times the price of RyanAir for a journey two thirds the distance!

I like Michael O'Leary and his airline because it enables me and many others to travel inexpensively and more often should I so choose. I accept what it is, a basic, inexpensive service without unnecessary frills  which is a darn sight less uncomfortable than many commuter public transport services in the UK!