Ryanair threaten to drop Italy

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Ryanair is saying it might ditch Italy … and it’s not just a publicity stunt. The low-cost airline says that new rules on which forms of identification are acceptable for boarding compromise security. The new reg, from Italy’s civil aviation authority, ENAC, makes licenses for driving, fishing and hunting fine for use at the gate, along with government badges and other documents.

This isn’t good enough for Ryanair. Michael O’Leary, the company’s CEO, said in a statement, “We are really sorry for the inconveniences that this decision will cause.” He continued, “It’s completely inappropriate for ENAC to introduce measures that reduce security on Italian domestic flights, compared with the security measures successfully used on all Ryanair flights in the EU and all Ryanair domestic flights in every other EU country.”

In protest – and, ostensibly, for security concerns – Ryanair is keeping its domestic flights among 10 Italian airports grounded from January 23, 2010 until the issue is fixed to O’Leary’s satisfaction.
Meanwhile, ENAC claims that the change is based on a 2000 law and that the other airlines are playing ball. In a statement, the agency said, “No carrier can operate on the national domestic market without respecting the rules.” It added, “Ryanair is the only EU and international operator that demands to fly in Italy without respecting Italian law.”

I feel strange writing this, but I agree with Michael O’Leary. Fully. A hunting license doesn’t strike me as sufficient identification to board a plane. I’m not an alarmist, but a bit of diligence is a good idea.

Ryanair could change forever

by Tom Johansmeyer on

What would Ryanair do without those gusts of hot air from Michael O’Leary? The company has been defined by cheap flights and the streams of absurdities uttered by its chief executive officer. Without O’Leary, Ryanair is nothing more than an uncomfortable seat for the price of a martini. Well, the big guy is planning to step down in two to three years, he said on Saturday. He’s said this before, of course, so we don’t know when his exit will actually occur.

So, how does O’Leary plan to get out? He told RTE radio that he’d love to see Aer Lingus take over his airline. This final, masterful cut seems to be the elusive goal for the CEO. He’s tried it twice and failed both times. But, does he really need it? The innovator has explored standing-room seating, pay to squirt and anything else that’ll make a dime. He even came to the defense of an employee moonlighting as a porn star.

For the finance geeks, O’Leary’s projected retirement date is pretty close to the end of a major capital investment program (in 2011), which is when he said he plans to pay some pretty hefty bonuses to the airline’s management. At that point, he might also ditch his no-dividends policy.

Ryanair threatens to “divorce” Boeing

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Ryanair may start to look for its planes closer to home. Of course, saying it was thinking about a switch from Boeing to Airbus would be far too simple for CEO Michael O’Leary … the genius behind “pay-to-pee” and many, many other stunts. O’Leary needs a bit more style, which is why his new intentions are being called “divorce.”

O’Leary believes that the management shakeup at Boeing has taken the company’s eye off the ball, which could be enough to make him switch teams. According to the Wall Street Journal, Ryanair is one of Boeing’s largest clients and has been working an order for as many as 200 planes … but the negotiations have been going on for more than a year. O’Leary says, “The difficulty has just been in getting someone in Boeing to make a decision. Boeing seem to have a degree of internal turmoil.”

But, O’Leary has pulled this game before, and according to WSJ’s The Source blog, he “is known to speak in the heat of the moment, use colorful language at press conferences to the amusement of journalists, and shoot from the hip.” Yeah, like the time he referred to the idiots in the “blogsphere …”

Want to thin out O’Leary’s wallet? Check out the video below for a few ideas.

Will passengers stand for latest Ryanair stunt?

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Just when you think Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary can’t come up with another way to mess with his passengers, he takes away the seats. The European low-cost carrier’s latest way to cut costs and cram more people on planes is to stick them on stools with seatbelts. According to the Daily Mail, he’s even spoken with Boeing about making this happen.

The nice expression for this, used Ryanair spokesman Stephen McNamara, is “vertical seating.”

But, it’s not a sure thing. The Irish Aviation Authority needs to give him the green light. Something tells me that there has to be a safety issue buried in this. There just has to be. If not, well, let them stand.

The airline estimates that it could increase passengers per flight by 30 percent with the standing room approach and at the same time cut costs by 20 percent. That’s a pretty big gap between revenue and expenses – the sort of financial upside that most airlines have been unable to figure out.

Pay to pee on Ryanair no joke

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Remember when we called Ryanair’s plans to charge for lavatory access a stunt? Yeah, we do, too. Those were simpler days, I guess. It turns out, that stunt concealed an even larger one. CEO Michael O’Leary announced that the airline will begin charging one pound (around $1.65) for access to the special rooms at the front and back of the plane.

I actually see some restraint on the press-whorish CEO’s part. I expected him to break the fee down by bodily function, charging a premium for what results in a bit more time. After all, time is money, and one person’s long stay could cost a few extra bucks because other passengers may not get their turns.

But, the savvy airline leader is hedging his bets … as he did with the fat tax, which is now off the table (O’Leary calls it “impractical”). No start date has been revealed; only a two-year time horizon was given. But, he does say, “We are serious about it.”

There’s only one way to make this better, and O’Leary’s found it. Instead of charging for the existing abundance, he’s planning to tear a few out of each plan, in order to make room for more seats. This works in two ways. First, there are more people on the plane who become potential piss-payers. Also, there are fewer lavs, creating a scarcity of resources.