Scottish police called to calm and feed rioting Ryanair passengers

by Scott Carmichael on

Once again, Irish low cost carrier Ryanair is in the news with a story involving passenger mistreatment. Yesterday, police were called to assist in calming 168 passengers on a Ryanair plane at Prestwick airport in the UK. The plane was bound for Girona, Spain, but had been stuck on the ground for six hours.

With a wait of that length, the passengers were naturally becoming quite annoyed, but to make matters worse, the flight crew were not willing/able to serve any food or drinks. Because of EU tax laws, the bar carts on the plane are sealed until the plane is airborne, which meant passengers would have to sit the wait out without anything to drink.

Since Ryanair is a pay-for-everything airline, passengers are not allowed to bring their own food or drinks on board, and at the six hour mark, this proved to be too much, and some passengers began to riot. When local police arrived, they didn’t arrest anyone, and did the right thing – they went into the airport and purchased water and chocolate for the agitated passengers.

Ryanair apologized for the incident, blaming striking French air traffic controllers for the delay. Still, it may be a good idea to stock an unsealed bar tray on their planes, because keeping passengers locked on board a plane for six hours without anything to eat or drink takes customer service to new lows. Then again, Ryanair does seem to excel in finding those lows whenever they can.

[Image credit: AFP/Getty Images]

Open skies agreement between EU and US signed

by Sean McLachlan on

The United States and the European Union have signed an open skies agreement that makes it easier for airlines to buy one another.

This is the second open skies agreement between the two governments. The first open skies agreement took effect in 2008 and opened up transatlantic routes to all carriers. Previously some routes were limited to specific carriers.

This new agreement will allow foreign owners to have a majority stake in an airline. Until now, European airlines could only own 25% of a US carrier, and US airlines could only own 49.9% of a European airline. The new limits have yet to be set and the move still has to be approved by Congress.

The deal also equalizes rules on emissions, fuel, and noise, and establishes a closer cooperation with the carbon trading scheme. European airlines will also now be able to fly in and out of the U.S. without first landing or taking off in the EU. Expect more services to non-EU destinations by EU airlines in the near future.

Air Berlin’s two-for-one promo

by Alex Robertson Textor on

Air Berlin, the German low-cost carrier that gets typically great reviews for its various old-school perks seldom associated with budget airlines (assigned seating, checked bags carried through to connecting flights, and free snacks, drinks, and newspapers) is promoting a great special offer, today through June 28.

The offer sees the airline selling two-for-one Berlin-Miami and Berlin-Dubai fares. Some of Air Berlin’s beginning fares are already quite reasonable, so the two-for-one offer is nothing to be sneezed at. The lowest fare I was able to find for both Berlin-Dubai and Berlin-Miami flights is €408, a decent deal for a single traveler. For two, €408 for a round trip Berlin-Miami or Berlin-Dubai fare is a downright steal.

Helpfully for American tourists, this offer also applies to journeys originating in Miami. Air Berlin’s deal thus provides a cheap route for South Florida-based travelers to one of Europe’s most exciting cities. The Berlin-Dubai two-for-one offer also provides a great opportunity to inexpensively extend a Europe jaunt to Dubai.

Remarkably, as of right now, there are Berlin-Dubai flights still available at the starting €408 fare for travel during the high-demand weeks around Christmas and New Year’s Eve.

While the two-for-one flights have to be booked by June 28, the travel period covered by the promotion is broad. The two-for-one deal can be booked for travel between November 1 and April 30, 2011.

(Image: Flickr/woody1778a)

Ryanair to open base in Valencia, Spain

by Sean McLachlan on

Budget airline Ryanair has announced that it will open a base in Valencia, Spain, Inside Ireland reports. Service will start in November with a total of 260 flights a week to 20 destinations, including popular spots such as Madrid, Barcelona, London-Stansted, Dublin, Brussels, Frankfurt, Milan, and Rome.

Valencia is a port in eastern Spain that combines beautifully preserved medieval and Renaissance architecture with modern exhibitions and a fun nightlife. Gadling named it one of the 25 greatest cities for drinking wine.

Ryanair is celebrating by offering half a million seats from €10 ($12) for travel on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays on more than 500 routes this September and October. The seats are only available until midnight this Thursday.

Photo courtesy Felivet via Wikimedia commons.

Dutch insurance firm offers world cup finals travel insurance

by Scott Carmichael on

Unlike, say 98% of Americans, the Dutch are completely in love with football- so much in fact, that many of them would rather cancel their summer vacation than risk being stuck at a foreign camping site without a TV.

So, for those travelers, Dutch insurance firm “Europeesche” has introduced the World Cup Finals Cancellation Insurance. For a fee of 1% of the price of the vacation, plus the cost of a regular trip insurance package, Dutch footie fans can cancel their trip if their team makes the World Cup finals.

The insurance even covers the cancellation of partial trips – so if you are on vacation in Turkey, and the Dutch team reaches the finals, the coverage will pay for any days you missed and any expenses for getting you back home as soon as possible to watch the match. Yes – football is that important to them.

[Image from: AFP/Getty Images]