Ryanair and EasyJet - the world's fastest growing airlines?? [Archive]

Monkey

June 28th, 2004, 05:51 PM

While budget carriers are exploding in Europe, there have been casualties. Not every budget carrier has been successful. Didn't an Irish LCC just went belly up? There are also financial pressures on these airlines to sustain low prices and to compete ferociously with one another.Yes it went bankrupt almost immediately. There are loads of new budget carriers opening all the time and most are little more than couple of 737s with a funky logo and direct booking website. Some don't even offer low fares! Many of these will soon go out of business or be swallowed up by larger rivals. Michael O'Leary (Ryanair chairman) forecasts a bloodbath next year with dozens of European airlines, whether low cost start-ups or dinosaur flag carriers, going under. The major beneficiaries from that will be the larger and better managed low cost airlines such as Ryanair, EasyJet, Air Berlin and German Wings.Budget carriers target short-haul routes where the planes can turn around very quickly. When it comes to transcontinental or transatlantic routes, which are important revenue-earners in a full-service airline's diversified route network - the traditional airlines will still rule the day - with their premium service and premium price.Yes true - hwever short haul traffic is growing faster than long haul. British Airways is one of the few profitable and successful full service airlines in Europe yet even BA makes a loss from its European operations and is gradually retreating from the Europe market in the face of low cost competition. Meanwhile Ryanair continues to make huge profits and both Ryanair and EasyJet grab ever more market share. BA's only reason for sustaining its European routes is to feed into their highly profitable trans-Atlantic routes via their hubs at Heathrow, Gatwick, and Manchester. Essentially BA earns its profits from ferrying business class passengers to the US and Asia - a very different market. The low cost model simply doesn't work on long haul.

huaiwei

June 28th, 2004, 05:58 PM

Ryanair have actually been around for a long time. They almost went bankrupt until Michael O'Leary took over and decided to relaunch the airline as a budget carrier along the lines of Herb Kelleher's Southwest. EasyJet is a more recent start up. I got these figures for you:

EasyJet passenger growth:

http://pic5.picturetrail.com/VOL85/949935/2682391/58210471.jpg

To May 2004 EasyJet's current rolling annual total stands at 22,388,318 - just behind Ryanair. :)
I see....Airasia wasent a budget airline from the ground up either. It was around a few years earlier until someone (the current CEO) came along and turned it into one, so its growth sort of mirrors Ryanair.

Looking at EasyJet's figures, you can see that its growth seems to grow exponentially, based on economies of scale, I would suppose, and the increasing encroachment on the market with the fending off of rivals? It dosent seem to grow as quickly in the early years, so since AirAsia is so new, it might follow the growth patterns later. :D

Monkey

June 28th, 2004, 06:05 PM

I got the figures for both of them now:

EasyJet passenger growth:

http://pic5.picturetrail.com/VOL85/949935/2682391/58210471.jpg

Ryanair passenger growth:

http://www.ryanair.com/investor/paxchart.gif

Current rolling annual totals to May 2004:
EasyJet = 22,388,318
Ryanair = 24,143,070

huaiwei

June 28th, 2004, 06:08 PM

Thanks. Notice the same pattern, eh? :D

I suppose both are more "comparable" because they started turning budget at about the same time.

Monkey

June 28th, 2004, 06:10 PM

I see....Airasia wasent a budget airline from the ground up either. It was around a few years earlier until someone (the current CEO) came along and turned it into one, so its growth sort of mirrors Ryanair.

Looking at EasyJet's figures, you can see that its growth seems to grow exponentially, based on economies of scale, I would suppose, and the increasing encroachment on the market with the fending off of rivals? It dosent seem to grow as quickly in the early years, so since AirAsia is so new, it might follow the growth patterns later. :DEasyJet and Ryanair both took over smaller rivals in 2002 which explains the particularly high growth to 2003. However these airlines had themselves grown very quickly over the same time period. EasyJet took over Go and Ryanair took over Buzz. Go and Buzz were low cost start-ups founded as separate brands by BA and KLM and later spun off as independent businesses (management buy-out).

Monkey

June 28th, 2004, 06:11 PM

Thanks. Notice the same pattern, eh? :D

I suppose both are more "comparable" because they started turning budget at about the same time.EasyJet was founded as a budget airline. However Ryanair had already become a budget airline before EasyJet was founded.

Monkey

June 28th, 2004, 06:13 PM

huaiwei

June 28th, 2004, 06:17 PM

EasyJet and Ryanair both took over smaller rivals in 2002 which explains the particularly high growth to 2003. However these airlines had themselves grown very quickly over the same time period. EasyJet took over Go and Ryanair took over Buzz. Go and Buzz were low cost start-ups founded as separate brands by BA and KLM and later spun off as independent businesses (management buy-out).
Yes I am aware of that. Perhaps the Asia side may be littered with carcasses too over the next few years, and only a few like AirAsia might gobble them up and grow very quickly too? :)

hkskyline

June 28th, 2004, 06:18 PM

Since full-service airlines are not price-competitive on the regional routes, perhaps they can code-share with a budget carrier so both sides make the most profits in their own niche markets. Management will need to decide what kind of balance to achieve - whether to continue sustaining losses by providing direct regional connections for their long-haul customers or move them off their planes to a partner carrier with less service and amenities. Full-service carriers can then retreat from their intercontinental routes and focus on long-haul, while LCCs can attract more customers to feed into international routes.

Ryanair and Easyjet seem to be well-established to maintain their competitive advantage. However, traffic numbers alone are not indicative of their financial position. Ultimately profitability and cash flow will rule the day.

LCCs have encouraged a mode switch in travel. Railway companies should be very concerned that this trend will siphon away a lot of their traffic. Tourism should increase substantially across Europe as it has gotten so much cheaper to fly away for a weekend excursion. Europe's concentrated population and short distances between major cities are perfect for LCCs to thrive.

huaiwei

June 28th, 2004, 06:18 PM

EasyJet was founded as a budget airline. However Ryanair had already become a budget airline before EasyJet was founded.
Yeah, but I am talking about their growth patterns as you can see so clearly in the graphs, whether or not they were founded as budget airlines in the first place.

David-80

June 29th, 2004, 04:54 AM

AirAsia needs to increase their fleets and route frequency in order to match the growth that Ryanair and Southwest created. Will take sometimes if not decade, due of massive competitive market in Asia and most people in Asia intend to fly with normal or LCC airlines that offer meals and drink. :D

btw, I heard Southwest is now a major airlines rite?

cheers

Monkey

June 29th, 2004, 10:49 AM

/\ In terms of numbers yes - Southwest is one of the largest airlines in the world (66 million pax pa). However Southwest's philosophy and modus operandi is 100% no frills. They have fast turnarounds, no overnight stays for staff, only fly short haul, and only use one aircraft type (Boeing 737s).

David-80

June 30th, 2004, 04:23 AM

Thats good marketing though for North American market. Anyway Ryan air boss said they will have share in one singapore budget airline, any idea which airlines is that?

cheers

babystan03

June 30th, 2004, 04:50 AM

^
That would be Tiger Airways.....a joint venture by SIA, Ryanair and Temasek Holdings. :)

samsonyuen

June 30th, 2004, 06:37 PM

I can't wait to move to London to take some cheap fares out of London! A lot of the stats for increase in passengers is due to mergers or acquisitions, such as for the Big 3 Chinese airlines (Air China, China Southern, China Eastern) and easyJet.

hkskyline

June 30th, 2004, 07:17 PM

Chinese carriers are cheap alternatives to fly from Hong Kong. I can book an a package on a Chinese carrier with 3-star hotel to Shanghai for 4 nights at about HK$1999.

Actually, Asia has a lot of "budget carriers" already that offer full-service at bargain basement prices. For China-bound routes, use mainland carriers. For Thailand, go for Orient Thai, Kenya Airways, etc. For Taiwan and Malaysia, use China Airlines. For North America, fly Koreanair.

More info : http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=112434

So whether the LCC success in Europe and North America can be replicated in Asia is yet to be seen.

David-80

July 1st, 2004, 08:19 AM

No offense but sometimes many people unsafe to fly with China airlines because of their safety records, but its proven wrong for quite sometimes, i never heard any major accident in the last 5-6 years from CA.

hkskyline, Many people from taiwan visiting SE asia are usually go with FAT and Uni Air

So whether the LCC success in Europe and North America can be replicated in Asia is yet to be seen.

I am sure AirAsia is can be considered as a success LCC rite?

cheers

hkskyline

July 1st, 2004, 06:04 PM

Chinese carriers used to crash a lot back in the early 1990s, but they have been incident-free in the past few years. Regardless, they still charge more like budget carriers for their conventional service, at least from my knowledge of Hong Kong-bound routes.

Turning the attention away from Asia and to South America, where Brazilian LCC Gol has just launched an IPO in the US. While their fleet size is nowhere as big as Southwest, Ryanair, or Easyjet, their growth rate has been extraordinary :

Friday June 25, 5:11 AM
Gol Airline Shares Increase in IPO Debut

Shares of Brazil's low-cost Gol airline jumped 7 percent on Wall Street and rose 5 percent in Sao Paulo on Thursday after the country's newest and rapidly growing carrier sold a 20 percent stake to the public.

Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes SA raised about $280 million through the initial public offering, and most of the money will help finance part of an expansion that could eventually triple the company's fleet of Boeing 737s, chief executive Constantino de Oliveira said.

Gol had been hoping to raise between $245 million and $277 million, but got more because of heavy demand by investors before the IPO priced late Thursday night.

Shares of the airline rose from $17 to $18.22 on the New York Stock Exchange. On Sao Paulo's Bovespa exchange, Gol shares advanced from 26.57 reals ($8.57) to 28 reals ($9.03). Each American depositary share equals two Brazilian shares.

"The demand was high and that's being reflected in the rising share price," de Oliveira said in a teleconference from New York.

Brazil's other big carriers have struggled since Gol started flying in 2001, introducing Brazilians to online ticket sales and a no-frills experience modeled after JetBlue Airways Corp. and Southwest Airlines Co. in the United States and Europe's Ryanair.

The airline, which started flying with six new Boeing 737s, now has 22 jets and expects to take delivery of three more within months. It could add 43 more 737s by 2010, and de Oliveira said the company will decide by the end of this year whether to expand service to other Latin American countries.

Gol has managed to grow exponentially despite a turbulent Brazilian economy that nearly sent its competitors into collapse. Its planes now carry nearly a quarter of the 30 million Brazilians who fly each year across a country nearly as large as the continental United States.

With some fares only slightly higher than tickets for bus trips that can last for days, Gol _ controlled by a family that also owns one of Brazil's biggest bus companies _ draws frequent business travelers as well as blue-collar passengers who couldn't afford to fly before. Wealthy Brazilians heading to the beach sometimes use Gol to fly in their maids and nannies.

"Our goal is to try to make air travel accessible to Brazilians who have never flown," Oliveira said.

David-80

July 2nd, 2004, 01:34 AM

Its about time, latin America needs more airlines, Argentina only have 1 airline i heard :?

cheers

szehoong

July 3rd, 2004, 02:20 AM

I am sure AirAsia is can be considered as a success LCC rite?

Yea.....the company started flying in early 2002 (estb since 12th Dec 2001 - under new ownership) with only 2 Boeing 737-300. Now it has 21 Boeing 737-300s! (17 planes under AirAsia Berhad, Malaysia & another 4 planes for Thai AirAsia Co., Ltd) :eek: ......and planning to add at least 80 more in the future ;)

I would say it is quite a successful LCC ;)

babystan03

July 3rd, 2004, 09:30 AM

Time is GMT + 8 hours
Posted: 03 July 2004 0235 hrs

Geneva airport ready for no-frills terminal for low-cost airlines

GENEVA : Geneva airport, the second-biggest in Switzerland, said it was ready to go ahead with plans to reopen its old charter terminal as a cheaper alternative for low-cost airlines such as EasyJet.

Geneva International Airport said in a statement it would also drop a planned increase in fees at its existing modern terminal one this year as well as other changes following protests from mainstream carriers.

The move depended on the support of the low-cost airlines that had shown and interest in the project, it added. Airport officials said they still had to sign contracts with Easyjet and Virgin Express.

The no-frills terminal two project, which would involve reduced ground services and comfort, had been opposed by Air France, KLM and Lufthansa.

EasyJet had also put Geneva's Cointrin airport, one of its European hubs, under pressure to reduce charges, hinting at one point that it might pull out altogether unless the low-cost terminal project went through.

The airport has been the centre of intense competition which has helped drive down fares and raise passenger numbers to record levels in recent years, mainly on Europan routes.

Airport officials have said that Easyjet helped to offset the impact of reduced services by troubled national airline Swiss, but also expanded the local market for overall air travel with benefits for other airlines.

Easyjet overtook the domestic carrier in 2003, accounting for 25 percent of air traffic in Geneva compared to 20 percent for Swiss. Last year also saw a record eight million passengers pass through Cointrin Airport.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA), which includes the major carriers but few of the budget airlines, welcomed the revised arrangement proposed by Geneva airport after talks.

"The decision of the Board of the Geneva International Airport not to proceed with plans to raise its passenger charge and to work with IATA to identify cost-reduction opportunities is an important step in the right direction," said IATA director general Giovanni Bisignani.

"We have made it crystal clear that IATA will not accept any situation that sees the cross-subsidization of a redeveloped terminal two with revenues from terminal one," Bisignani added.

- AFP

Copyright © 2004 Agence France Presse. All rights reserved.

Monkey

July 9th, 2004, 02:57 AM

babystan03

July 10th, 2004, 08:22 AM

Business Times - 10 Jul 2004

Ryanair's latest cost-saving idea - no luggage

(LONDON) Having squeezed out just about every cost saving from Internet-only booking, underused airports and easy-to-clean seats, Irish budget airline Ryanair unveiled its latest idea yesterday to keep prices low - banning luggage.

Well, not all luggage. But passengers using the carrier could find themselves turned away if they arrive at the airport carrying a heavy backpack. Ryanair yesterday said it was pondering a plan to end the practice of putting large luggage in the holds of its planes, meaning passengers could take only whatever small bags they can bring onto the plane.

Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary, facing stock market pressure following disappointing results, admitted that other cost-saving measures might have been taken as far as they could. 'Now we must be cleverer,' he told the Financial Times. 'The objective is to get rid of hold baggage altogether.' He said that this could save Ryanair 5 (S$15.8) per person.

A spokesman for Ryanair confirmed that the plan was being considered. - AFP

Copyright © 2004 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. All rights reserved.

Monkey

July 10th, 2004, 01:37 PM

EasyJet will not ban hand luggage but have instead decided to introduce automatic check-in machines to save costs. However they do seem to be pushing for more hand luggage (ie less hold luggage) to cut down on airport costs. They have just unveiled a new very generous hand baggage allowance:
http://www.easyjet.com/en/book/handbaggage.html

Introducing Europe's best hand baggage allowance!

easyJet today announces another pioneering development by introducing Europe's most generous hand baggage allowance. It will be better than that offered by any other airline in Europe - even the Club Class allowances of the dinosaur national airlines!

From Monday 12 July 2004 easyJet is removing the weight restriction on hand baggage for all passengers. The only stipulation is that you must be able to lift your bag safely into the overhead lockers yourself without assistance (or giving yourself a hernia!), so the weight must be within reason.

In order to comply with safety regulations of the UK Civil Aviation Authority, and to reflect the limited space in the overhead storage bins, there will be a size limit, which means that your bag must not be bigger than 55x40x20 cm - but this is 40% bigger than the current allowance! Our fantastic new hand baggage rules will give passengers the freedom to carry more than they can on the Club Class of traditional airlines - but without the extortionate fares!

This new allowance will be particularly attractive to easyJet's many business passengers who already fly with Europe's number one low-cost airline, benefiting from conveniently located city airports (not airstrips miles away), 30 minute check-in times, high-frequency routes, great punctuality, and some of Europe's lowest fares!

hkskyline

July 10th, 2004, 04:23 PM

Do these airlines cater exclusively to passenger traffic and not cargo? If cargo transport is wiped out of the picture, then there should be much more room in the plane's belly to give a nice baggage allowance.

Monkey

July 10th, 2004, 05:26 PM

/\ No they don't carry cargo. They want to cut down on hold baggage simply to reduce airport costs so that they can achieve even lower fares.

Macca-GC

July 10th, 2004, 05:33 PM

No offense but sometimes many people unsafe to fly with China airlines because of their safety records, but its proven wrong for quite sometimes, i never heard any major accident in the last 5-6 years from CA.

What a relief. I would have felt unsafe otherwise. Compare that to QANTAS's record. No crashes--EVER! No deaths--EVER! Their biggest accident was a Bankok Airport where they went of the end of the runway. There was some damage to the plane.

QANTAS was established in 1923. Need I say more?

Macca-GC

July 10th, 2004, 05:47 PM

Can I just say, Australia doesn't do well with more than two carriers. We used to have QANTAS and Ansett. Neither were LCC, except they still tried to beat each other. Then Impuse(A former rural airline) tried to enter the market as a LCC. It got bought out by QANTAS. Then Virgin Blue started up in May 2001. Then, in the fall after September 11, that was the final nail in Ansett's coffin. It went belly-up. Mainly because it's parent company, Air New Zealand took all of the money out of it. Anyway, for 3 years, we have had Virgin Blue Vs QANTAS. Now QANTAS has started a LCC of its own(So that it doesn't have to cut prices anymore). JetStar started in May and from personal experience, I can say it's crap. First of all, they use Avalon Airport in Melbourne. 65 Kilometres out of the city and they're the only airline to use the airport. Virgin Blue is so much better. Cheaper, with wider, longer seats with more leg room. And the planes don't look like they're about to fall apart. Once ailing Coolangatta Airport, now sold to commercial investors, re-named Gold Coast Airport, is now one of the busiest airports in the country and has started international operations. Gold Coast Airport is the only major Australian airport where Virgin Blue has the largest passenger share, currently at 35% nationally and 70% here. With QANTAS cutting back services, this is expected to increase to 80-90% here. I hope Richard Branson starts another non-LCC airline to compete with QANTAS.

hkskyline

July 10th, 2004, 05:52 PM

It makes sense traditional airlines, with their higher cost structures, would retreat from the short-haul market and focus on long-haul, where budget carriers are unable to compete. Naturally they'd want to set up a cheaper LCC for the short-haul routes that will ferry passengers to their long-haul hubs.

huaiwei

July 10th, 2004, 05:53 PM

/\ No they don't carry cargo. They want to cut down on hold baggage simply to reduce airport costs so that they can achieve even lower fares.
Anyway remember valueair in Singapore, which you dismissed as a quasi-budget airline? I have to add that they actually carry cargo too to supplement their income!

babystan03

July 12th, 2004, 04:30 AM

This story was printed from TODAYonline

Budget airlines wooed with no-frill terminals

Monday • July 12, 2004

GENEVA — After offering prestige terminals, business lounges and air-conditioned gangways, airports are now risking a bruising battle with big airlines to offer cheaper terminals.

Air France on Thursday threatened legal action against Geneva International Airport's pioneering decision to move ahead with a low-fee terminal, where passengers can expect minimalist service and a walk onto the wind-swept tarmac.

Budget competitors Easyjet and Virgin Express are lining up to be the first clients for the cheap terminal late next year, which Singapore and Kuala Lumpur are ready to emulate, industry officials said.

"It's a move away from the gold-plated customer service to just give a passenger an electronic ticket and a seat," finance director at the global airport association Airports Council International (ACI), Mr Paul Behnke, said. "We see it coming for the future."

After budget airlines eliminated in-flight food and creature comforts, Geneva's revamped 1949 charter building is promising a similar approach on the ground and a 40-per-cent lower passenger-handling fee.

Terminal 2 will be open to all airlines as a cheaper alternative to the current terminal. Landing and security fees will stay unchanged, though.

Although the terminal is being developed with the help of the top airline body, the International Air Transport Association (Iata), Geneva's move prompted a stern response from mainstream carriers including Air France, Lufthansa and Swiss.

"The decision to lower costs is applied in a discriminatory manner and only on part of the platform," said Air France chief executive for Europe and North Africa, Mr Etienne Rachou.

Iata said its 250 members — which do not include most of the budget airlines — want cuts in ground charges across the board, not only in special dedicated terminals; and claimed airports were earning excessively fat profit margins.

They also demanded the standard passenger service fee should not be used to subsidise the low-cost terminal in Geneva.

"Provided there's no cross subsidisation, it's not for us to be happy or unhappy with it," Iata spokesman Anthony Concil said.

Some of the best customers for ACI's 556 member airports in recent years have been budget airlines that also bring new travellers and expand the whole market.

"Airports need to segment their marketing exactly like the airlines do. A business-class seat will cost more than an economy seat," said Mr Behnke.

"An airport providing a jet bridge and waiting area will charge more than for a passenger walking to an aircraft and climbing the stairs," he added. — AFP

Copyright MediaCorp Press Ltd. All rights reserved.

hkskyline

July 12th, 2004, 05:59 AM

To some extent the European budget carriers are using less popular airports to prevent fighting for slots with the main international carriers while saving landing charges at the same time. For London, Gatwick, Stansted, and Luton are already used by Ryanair or Easyjet.

babystan03

July 13th, 2004, 08:15 AM

Business Times - 13 Jul 2004

Ryanair to add 10 new routes and 1 base

(LONDON) Ryanair Holdings plc, Europe's biggest low-cost airline, will start as many as 10 new routes this winter, including destinations in Eastern Europe, and add one new base in 2005.

'The new EU accession countries have doubled their packages on offer and asked Ryanair to fly to their airports,' chief executive Michael O'Leary said at a press conference in London. 'If we do 10 new destinations next year one or two will be into Eastern Europe.'

Ryanair's passenger count last month gained 24 per cent from a year earlier to 2.27 million travellers after the company added routes, including Dublin to Murcia and Reus in Spain and Nottingham, England. The Dublin-based carrier also opened bases at Rome Ciampino and Barcelona Girona airports in the last year.

The company will increase its fleet by 10 planes to 82 aircraft in the year through March 31, 2005, when it receives 17 new Boeing Co 737-800s and retires seven old planes.

Ryanair may also cut two of its existing 149 routes if load factors, or the proportion of seats filled, does not rise, Mr O'Leary said. Ryanair's June load factor gained 8 percentage points to 87 per cent. The company would not identify the routes that may be cut.

The new routes would be part of the airline's winter schedule. Mr O'Leary would not say where the new base may be. - Bloomberg

Copyright © 2004 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. All rights reserved.

Monkey

July 27th, 2004, 01:45 PM

EasyJet and Ryanair expand into central and eastern Europe!!

EasyJet have just launched new routes to Krakov and Warsaw in Poland which adds to their other destinations in Central Europe (Prague, Budapest, Ljubljana). Prague is a route EasyJet inherited when they bought Go. Budapest and Ljubljana were launched on May 1st 2004 to coincide with the EU's eastwards expansion. Just 2 months later and Poland's two leading cities have been added to the list. This expansion brings Easyjet into direct competition with embryonic low cost airlines from the region itself such as SkyEurope (Hungary/Poland/Austria) Wizzair (Hungarian), and Air Polonia (Polish). Ryanair have also finally opened a route beyind the former Iron Curtain to Riga in Latvia. Ryanair have also opened up nine routes from London Luton. Central/Eastern Europe and London have never been so accessible for each other. :)

Just a travel tip - if you want to get from London to Moscow for very little money then order an Ryanair (MBNA) credit card from the Ryanair website which entitles you to a free return flight anywhere on the Ryanair network. Fly to Riga for free and then take the bus to Moscow or St Petersburg. :)

hkskyline

July 27th, 2004, 04:40 PM

Tuesday July 27, 10:09 PM
Ryanair unveils eight more European routes, three new destinations

LONDON (AFP) - Ryanair announced plans to launch an additional eight routes helping to serve three new destinations, giving the Irish no-frills airline a network of 161 routes across 17 European countries.

Ryanair said seven of its new routes would serve Santander and Zaragoza in northern Spain and Riga, the capital of Latvia, a former Soviet bloc state which in May become one of ten new members to join the European Union.

Ryanair said it would begin operating its new routes between September 20 and December 1.

The budget airline will fly to Riga from Essex's London Stansted airport, Frankfurt Hahn in Germany and Tampere in Finland. Flights to Santander will leave from Stansted, Rome Ciampino and Hahn.

Stansted, which provides Ryanair's main base in Britain, will serve also flights to Zaragoza. In addition, Ryanair will begin operating flights from Rome Ciampino to Eindhoven in the Netherlands.

"With the addition of eight new routes and three new great destinations we can bring even more choice to European consumers," Ryanair's chief executive officer Michael O'Leary said.

"It is notable that for the first time Ryanair's low fares will now be available in northern Spain, and in Latvia," he said, adding that the airline would carry more than 27 million passengers in 2004.

The airline's latest announcement came less than a week after it launched plans for nine new European routes from Luton airport, Bedfordshire.

Ryanair is to add services from Luton to Rome and Venice in Italy, Barcelona Girona, Barcelona Reus and Murcia in Spain, Nimes and Dinard in France, Esbjerg in Denmark, and Stockholm, it announced last Thursday.

Monkey

August 8th, 2004, 01:17 AM

Ryanair and EasyJet have both released amazing figures for June 2004. Ryanair's passenger growth has been 24% since June 2003 and EasyJet's an even more impressive 28%!! Ryanair's load factor (ie percentage bums on seats) has risen to an incredible 87% (up from 79% June last year) and EasyJet's has held steady at an equally impressive 86%. Ryanair boast of having carried more passengers than BA in UK/Europe for the 6th month running and of better punctuality and fewer baggage losses than any other airline in Europe. :)

Rolling 12 month passenger totals to June 2004:
EasyJet = 22,877,710
Ryanair = 24,586,768

Percentage increase in passengers since June 2003:
EasyJet = 28%
Ryanair = 24%

Load factor (ie percentage bums on seats) in June 2004:
EasyJet = 86%
Ryanair = 87%July 2004 figures - more good news for the world's fastest growing airlines: :)

Rolling 12 month passenger totals to July 2004:
EasyJet = 23,404,812
Ryanair = 25,028,520

Percentage increase in passengers since July 2003:
EasyJet = 19%
Ryanair = 22%

Load factor (ie percentage bums on seats) in July 2004:
EasyJet = 84.3%
Ryanair = 90%

Ryanair has also announced a Q1 profit increase of 21%, a net margin of 18%, as traffic grows 28%. From their site:

Ryanair, Europe’s No. 1 low fares airline, today (Tuesday, 3rd August 2004) announced record profits for Q1 ended 30 June 2004 of €53.1m. Passenger volumes grew by a record 28% to 6.6m passengers whilst yields declined by 6% during the quarter and, as a result, total revenues rose by 23% to €302.8m. Unit costs fell by 4% and in turn the net margin after tax remains stable at an industry leading 18%.

Monkey

September 7th, 2004, 05:07 PM

July 2004 figures - more good news for the world's fastest growing airlines: :)

Rolling 12 month passenger totals to July 2004:
EasyJet = 23,404,812
Ryanair = 25,028,520

Percentage increase in passengers since July 2003:
EasyJet = 19%
Ryanair = 22%

Load factor (ie percentage bums on seats) in July 2004:
EasyJet = 84.3%
Ryanair = 90%

Ryanair has also announced a Q1 profit increase of 21%, a net margin of 18%, as traffic grows 28%. From their site:

Ryanair, Europe’s No. 1 low fares airline, today (Tuesday, 3rd August 2004) announced record profits for Q1 ended 30 June 2004 of €53.1m. Passenger volumes grew by a record 28% to 6.6m passengers whilst yields declined by 6% during the quarter and, as a result, total revenues rose by 23% to €302.8m. Unit costs fell by 4% and in turn the net margin after tax remains stable at an industry leading 18%.Rolling 12 month passenger totals to August 2004:
EasyJet = 23,879,509
Ryanair = 25,452,041

Percentage increase in passengers since August 2003:
EasyJet = 19%
Ryanair = 20%

Load factor (ie percentage bums on seats) in August 2004:
EasyJet = 84.4%
Ryanair = 92%

hkskyline

September 13th, 2004, 09:00 PM

Monday August 30, 03:41 PM

EasyJet to cut routes

http://eur.news1.yimg.com/eur.yimg.com/xp/reuters_molt/3162546937.jpg

COPENHAGEN (Reuters) - Low-cost carrier easyJet will cut routes from Copenhagen because of high costs and from Milan for lack of attractive slots but will add services to and from Estonia and Latvia, it says.

EasyJet, which operates out of a low-cost base at Luton near London, said on Monday it was cutting services between Copenhagen and Newcastle and Bristol because the Danish state passenger tax and overall cost at Copenhagen's Kastrup airport made it more profitable to seek growth elsewhere.

"We are closing these routes to show the most expensive airports they need to lower their costs if they want to take part in passenger growth of low-cost carriers," easyJet said in a statement.

Copenhagen Airports, which operates Kastrup, said it was sorry to see the tail end of easyJet's Newcastle and Bristol business -- currently at one flight per destination a day -- but said it was unable to renegotiate contracts without the consent of all of its customers.

EasyJet said services between Tallinn and Berlin would begin at the end of October, between Tallinn and London's Stansted airport in early November and between Riga and Berlin in mid-November.

The firm said that these services, easyJet's first to the Baltic states, were possible thanks to Estonia's and Latvia's entrance into the European Union in May.

The firm also said it will stop flying to Milan's Linate airport from London's Stansted in October, blaming the lack of slots at the airport.

"It is a problem of lack of available slots," said Toby Nicol, the head of corporate communications at easyJet.

"The problem is that we have negotiated (with the airport) and it hasn't worked. The airport should have been closed down years and years ago," he added.

Linate, a small airport close to Milan's city centre, is dwarfed by the city's more modern Malpensa airport.

The cut will take easyJet's London-Milan services from two flights a day to one, Nicol said.

EasyJet and other low-cost carriers such as Dublin-based Ryanair have complained about airport charges as they seek to cut costs due to intense competition and rising fuel costs.

hkskyline

September 21st, 2004, 10:11 PM

Wednesday September 22, 3:35 AM
Ryanair, easyJet prepare for low-cost 'bloodbath'

LONDON (AFP) - Ryanair and easyJet, Europe's two leading low-cost airlines, are on a mission to reinvigorate their businesses in the face of increasingly fierce competition from traditional carriers and new entrants.

The two carriers have helped transform European air travel by offering cheap fares on short-haul routes in Europe, but their success story has soured of late amid cut-throat competition in the no-frills sector.

Ryanair chief executive Michael O'Leary warned the World Low Cost Airlines Congress here Tuesday "there will a bloodbath in Europe this winter" in the budget air sector.

"The bloodbath will reach all the companies," said O'Leary, who has previously predicted that only one or two large low-fares airlines will be left flying the skies of Europe in the medium term.

The Dublin-based carrier has warned investors it expects its revenue per passenger to plunge by 20 percent in the three months to September, the second quarter of its financial year.

Ryanair shares have tumbled by about 45 percent since mid-January.

Meanwhile arch-rival easyJet has seen its share plunge by over 60 percent over the same period, a victim of what its chief executive Ray Webster has described as "unprofitable and unrealistic" pricing by airlines in Europe.

The airlines' margins and profits are under pressure from reductions in fares as well as soaring fuel costs.

Competition in the sector is intensifying. In 2000 there were just five low-cost airlines in Europe. Now there are 49, according to Wolfgang Kurth, president of the European Low Fares Airline Association and chief executive of TUI's no-frills carrier Hapag-Lloyd Express.

Webster told the conference that low-cost airlines could take advantage of short-haul routes likely to be neglected by the larger, established carriers.

"The real growth is to link major catchment zones to main routes. It's a market big airlines will have deserted in the next five or 10 years to focus on the point-to-point, transatlantic or long haul flights," he said.

For O'Leary, "our growth is not determined by who we are competing against. Our growth is determined by which airport where we fly to. Our strategy is to keep prices down."

Though both bosses say they are unfazed by the competition, they have been back to the drawing board in recent weeks to tinker with their business models.

Ryanair has been looking for ways to introduce new services they can use to boost revenues while keeping fares low.

The Irish airline said Tuesday it intends to introduce inflight entertainment on all its flights, but customers will have to pay for the privilege at an introductory price of seven euros per flight.

The company has already squeezed costs by using Internet-only booking and under-used, out-of-town airports, and is even considering banning large luggage.

Meanwhile easyJet, which was set up by British entrepreneur Stelios Haji-Ioannou, who still owns about 40 percent of the airline, has been revamping its fight programme.

Last month the carrier said it was halting flights to Zurich because of "ludicrous" fees at the Swiss airport.

"Innovation is fundamental," said Webster.

"We have to be prepared when the industry will go ex-growth and when we won't be registering 20 percent passenger growth over a month. It will eventually happen. It could be in five or 10 years," he added.

Ryanair shares were 0.96 percent higher at 4.21 euros in Dublin Tuesday while easyJet was down 2.26 percent at 140.75 pence in London.

Monkey

September 22nd, 2004, 02:21 AM

Note the rapid roll out of new routes to cities in the 10 new EU member states: :)

Ryanair destinations:

http://pic5.picturetrail.com/VOL85/949935/4657456/67423856.jpg

EasyJet destinations:

http://pic5.picturetrail.com/VOL85/949935/4657456/67423870.jpg

The London perspective

Ryanair from London Stansted:

http://pic5.picturetrail.com/VOL85/949935/4657456/67423854.jpg

EasyJet from London Luton:

http://pic5.picturetrail.com/VOL85/949935/4657456/67423863.jpg

EasyJet from London Stansted:

http://pic5.picturetrail.com/VOL85/949935/4657456/67423860.jpg

EasyJet from London Gatwick:

http://pic5.picturetrail.com/VOL85/949935/4657456/67423866.jpg

Nephasto

September 22nd, 2004, 11:45 PM

Ryanair is going to fly 2 daily flights to Porto(from Stanstead), from January 2005!!!
:banana: :banana: :banana: :banana:

hkskyline

September 23rd, 2004, 06:14 PM

Thursday September 23, 6:38 PM
EasyJet reports good summer, raises profit forecast

http://us.news2.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/afp/20040923/capt.sge.mcp30.230904151950.photo00.default-384x265.jpg

LONDON (AFP) - The British low-cost airline easyJet reported improved trading conditions during the European summer and raised its full-year profit forecasts.

For the year to end-September 2004 the no frills carrier now expects a pretax profit above 60 million pounds (88 million euros, 108 million dollars), compared with 52 million the previous year.

The move comes despite the continuing volatility in fuel prices.

The airline's previous guidance, a profit warning in June, forecast a pretax profit that "at least" exceeds 52 million pounds.

"EasyJet has enjoyed improved trading during the final quarter of 2004," said chief executive Ray Webster.

"I'm pleased to report that the actions we are taking to strengthen our competitive position have begun to pay off."

Since the beginning of August, easyJet has announced 16 new routes and nine new destinations, cut Zurich and reduced capacity to Copenhagen and Amsterdam as part of an ongoing programme to drive costs lower.

EasyJet's load factors -- passengers as a proportion of the number of seats available -- remained in the 85-90 percent range during the summer.

It forecast year to end-September 2004 passengers above 24.2 million, and revenue growth, including ancillary activities, of around 16 percent.

However, the airline warned that it expected yield, or average fares, to remain under pressure during 2005.

The carrier also announced five new routes from London Gatwick to three new destinations in Ireland and enhanced services from Gatwick to Almeria and Valencia in Spain.

The new Irish destinations to Cork, Knock and Shannon are easyJet's first to the country.

The three Irish services will start next January and the Spanish services next March.

hkskyline

September 26th, 2004, 09:51 PM

Global News Wire - Europe Intelligence Wire
Copyright 2004 Irish Independent
September 24, 2004

RYANAIR BACKS PRICE WAR IN WINTER BLAST

RYANAIR chief executive Michael O'Leary predicted his fares would fall by between 10pc and 20pc this winter, as the competitive "bloodbath" among airlines intensified.

Despite an upbeat assessment of the company's performance at its agm and a commitment to leave "no stone unturned" to prompt an increase in Ryanair's beleaguered share price, the stock tumbled 3.3pc to Euro 4.09.

Analysts said the fall was caused by a substantial 7pc drop in the shares of rival Easyjet which has cut back growth plans.

Airline stocks were also hit by high oil prices of $ 48 per barrel. Ryanair's price hedging runs out in October, exposing the airline to much higher fuel bills.

The beginning of the Ryanair agm was briefly delayed as directors held a board meeting which included a discussion on whether to book to buy oil at current high prices.

Mr O'Leary said the company would not hedge at $ 40 to $ 45 per barrel and would wait until prices fell into "the $ 30s".

He predicted the prices would be "spiky" between now and the US presidential election in November.

But he said historic fuel costs increased in the winter as demand in America rose in the cold weather. However, he added: "There is no point in worrying about an oil price of $ 40 or $ 50 per barrel - our balance sheet is stuffed with cash." Mr O'Leary said shares in Ryanair could begin to recover "when fuel settles down and when there is clarity on the survivors in the European airline industry."

Despite an agm which was packed with shareholders, including one investor who was nursing heavy losses since the company announced a profits warning in January prompting a 30pc share collapse, no one at the meeting asked the directors any questions.

Mr O'Leary told shareholders: "We are continuing to deliver the numbers and we hope the market will catch up with us." Commenting on reports Ryanair pilots are to establish an association to negotiate with the company, he said: "Ryanair is not anti-union. We are pro-employee." He predicted pilots would opt to deal directly with the airline in future despite the move to form a staff association.

Mr O'Leary also stressed the potential benefits of its new in-flight entertainment system, which is expected to generate revenues of Euro 14m in its first year of operation.

He said the new units, a first for the European airline industry, would require an initial investment of $ 12m, or almost $ 50,000 per aircraft.

While the company is planning to charge Euro 7 to watch a film, Mr O'Leary stressed it could increase price at periods of peak demand, such as weekends, or reduce prices in slacker midweek periods.

David MurphyDeputy Business Editor

***********************************************
September 21, 2004
Company Press Release
Big expansion in Spain and first daily services to Portugal

Ryanair, Europe’s No. 1 low fares airline today announced four new low fares routes from London Stansted to Spain and Portugal. The new routes, which will commence on dates between the 2nd November 2004 and the 25th February 2005, will give even greater choice to consumers at Ryanair’s lowest fares. This brings to 78 the number of routes offered by Ryanair from London Stansted and to 12 the total number of airports served in the Iberian Peninsula from London.

From London Stansted Starts Starting fares (excl. taxes)
Valencia 2 Nov £0.99
Almeria 19 Jan £0.99
Porto 19 Jan £3.99
Seville 25 Feb £4.99

Announcing the new routes in London today, Ryanair’s Chief Executive, Michael O’Leary said “We opened our first route to Spain in November 2002 and, with this announcement today, Ryanair will serve more Spanish airports (10) directly from London than any other airline. We are also delighted to launch our first scheduled route from London to Portugal with a twice-daily service to Porto, Portugal’s second largest city. This year Ryanair will carry over 4 million passengers on our routes to Spain and next year we expect to see that figure rise to 5.5 million.

Two of these routes, Valencia and Almeria, have already been announced by Easyjet but, as in the case of Barcelona (Girona), Reus and Santander, where we compete with them, it is only by flying with Ryanair will consumers enjoy the lowest airfares and the best punctuality. Easyjet’s average fare remains more than 60% higher than Ryanair while their on time performance has trailed behind Ryanair’s for over 100 weeks in a row. In total our passengers on these routes will save over £86 million against the same services offered by Easyjet.

These fantastic new Spanish and Portuguese routes are on sale today at www.ryanair.com from an incredible £0.99 (excluding taxes) and at these fantastic prices we urge passengers to book quickly as these seats will be in huge demand.”

hkskyline

October 6th, 2004, 04:25 AM

Europe's Airlines Dreading the Winter

By ALAN COWELL and HEATHER TIMMONS
29 September 2004
The New York Times

LONDON, Sept. 28 -- When European airline executives look across the Atlantic at the industry's woes in the United States, they see a reflection of their own problems, but it is not an identical image. They have some troubles that are all their own.

In recent times, European full-service airlines have confronted the double whammy of a global slowdown before and after Sept. 11, and a relentless challenge by an ever-increasing number of low-cost rivals. In the process some full-service European airlines, like the venerable Swissair and Sabena, have gone out of business. Alitalia is being split in two and is accepting a $490 million rescue package to avoid liquidation. Yet others have merged or are talking of merging.

The low-cost carriers, led by easyJet and Ryanair, have embarked on brutal price wars, just as record high oil prices are cutting into profits. And, underlying the industry's woes is a sense that the era of high fares sustaining profligate operating costs is well and truly over.

The combination of the competitive pressure that low-cost carriers are going to bring to the industry this winter, the current high price of fuel, and the traditionally lower sales during the season ensures that ''a significant number'' of European airlines are going to suffer, said Chris Avery, an analyst with J.P. Morgan in London.

Particularly vulnerable are the dozens of start-up airlines that entered the market over the last few years, hoping to become the next low-cost success story, he said. Many of these airlines ''will not survive through the winter,'' Mr. Avery said.

Perhaps anticipating the fallout, British Airways sold its stake in Qantas this month and said it planned to use the $:425 million ($768.7 million) it raised to strengthen its balance sheet for acquisitions in Europe.

Just in the last few days, a series of events have again illuminated the ferocious competition in the European airline business as carriers seek to avoid the kind of turmoil roiling the industry in the United States.

Last week, Michael O'Leary, the pugnacious chief executive of Dublin-based Ryanair, the Continent's biggest low-cost airline, unveiled a plan to offer in-flight entertainment consoles at a cost of around $9 a flight to lure passengers as the no-frills carrier readies for what he called a ''blood bath'' of price-cutting. He also announced the opening of several new routes to Spain, with prices starting at less than $4 before airport taxes.

Two days later, easyJet, Ryanair's biggest rival, coupled a scale-back in its fleet expansion plans with an announcement that it would open new routes for the first time from Britain into Ireland -- Ryanair's home base -- another sign of the tooth-and-claw competition for passengers.

EasyJet and Ryanair are facing some stiff competition from a host of copy-cat competitors. A total of 67 low-cost airlines now operate in Europe, many of them start-ups replacing others that have already failed, according to industry figures. With names like Wizz Air, Snowflake, SkyEurope, Germanwings and Globespan, they are channeling an influx of new capital from private equity funds, banks and established airlines to try to attract passengers.

Some of Europe's full-service airlines, like British Airways, are facing such fierce price competition from low-cost carriers that they are now offering discounted fares of their own. While the fares are not quite as low, tickets booked several months in advance for specific, unchangeable dates can lower fares on expensive European routes like London-Zurich to around $60 before taxes compared with $900 for a full-fare, fully flexible ticket on the same route.

The challenge from the low-cost rivals is obvious enough. In Germany alone, Lufthansa is competing against more than 10 low-cost carriers whose share of the domestic German market has risen to over 17 percent from virtually zero in 2002, according to industry figures. Indeed, low-cost airlines are forecast to carry some 80 million passengers in Europe this year, a big increase over the 47 million passengers flown last year, according to the European Low Fares Airline Association.

In response, Lufthansa has announced that it will increase capacity on European flights by 4 percent this winter and by 6 percent on the long-haul flights, where low-cost carriers do not generally compete.

The low-cost carriers' ascendancy could hardly have come at a worse time for full-service carriers, reeling from the global slowdown in the industry since 2000, compounded by the impact of Sept. 11. some airline executives argue that in contrast to carriers in the United States , the European airlines cannot shelter behind Chapter 11 protection from creditors, and thus are forced to solve their problems, merge or go under.

That shakeout has forced the disappearance of some airlines and their replacement by successors created in rescue packages. Among those still standing, Air France merged with KLM, the Dutch carrier, and there is talk of deals in the offing between British Airways and Iberia, the Spanish carrier.

Virgin Express, a Belgium-based discount airline owned by Sir Richard Branson, is in talks with SN Brussels Airlines, the successor to Sabena. Both are under pressure from Ryanair's operations at Charleroi in Belgium. And Alitalia, the beleaguered state-owned Italian carrier, which just last Friday announced a major overhaul aimed at staving off liquidation, has also spoken of partnerships with Air France and Lufthansa of Germany.

Lufthansa itself has reportedly been eyeing the successor to Swissair, Swiss International Airlines, known as Swiss. ''This is just speculation, and we don't comment on this issue,'' said Stefan Schaffrath, a Lufthansa spokesman.

Add rising fuel costs to the already roiling mix. Jet fuel traded at about $1.49 a gallon in northwest Europe last week, according to Jet Fuel Intelligence, up from about 83 cents a gallon at the beginning of the year.

There is one bright spot here, though. Unlike their American counterparts, European airlines have managed to pass along some of the rising fuel charges directly to consumers. British Airways, KLM and Lufthansa are among the airlines that have added several euros per flight segment to cover the cost of fuel.

Compared with American carriers, European airlines also more consistently use oil price hedging, the purchase of securities to lock in low fuel prices. But hedging varies widely from company to company, and few airlines seem to have predicted the prolonged high prices: Swiss, for example, sold its fuel hedges in March to raise money. Ryanair has hedged fuel prices only till the end of October. The company says that it can counteract any profit loss by cutting costs, a strategy that analysts expect other already lean airlines to follow.

''The issue is how much do fuel costs dent into the earnings recovery?'' said Nick van den Brul, an airline analyst for BNP Paribas in London. The rising price of fuel ''neutralizes the effect of cost-cutting,'' Mr. van den Brul said.

At the same time, both Ryanair and easyJet have said they will continue to cut prices even though that will eat into profit. Ultimately, Mr. O'Leary has forecast, the two giants of the low-cost business will compete on an ever greater number of routes to take market share from the smaller no-frills airlines and from the full-service airlines.

''What we have seen is a structural shift in revenue,'' said Chris Tarry, an independent airline analyst in London. ''People are not prepared to pay as much as they did to travel, so the challenge is to get costs out of the business.''

The cost pressures on the big airlines have already had an impact. In August, British Airways discovered that a combination of absenteeism and cost-saving staff reductions had left it short of personnel to operate check-in counters at Heathrow Airport outside London. In a chaotic week, around 100 flights were canceled and over 10,000 passengers were stranded, damaging the airline's image for reliability.

Some executives have suggested that the challenge from the low-cost airlines will be less severe than Mr. O'Leary predicts. Jean-Cyril Spinetta, the chairman of Air France, for instance, has said the low-cost carriers are limited to around 10 percent to 15 percent of the market because they do not fly long-haul routes.

Those routes are often made more lucrative by high business-class fares. Indeed, British Airways once based its strategy exclusively on winning high-ticket business travelers, a strategy it was forced to abandon by the low-cost carriers.

Monkey

October 7th, 2004, 08:26 PM

Rolling 12 month passenger totals to August 2004:
EasyJet = 23,879,509
Ryanair = 25,452,041

Percentage increase in passengers since August 2003:
EasyJet = 19%
Ryanair = 20%

Load factor (ie percentage bums on seats) in August 2004:
EasyJet = 84.4%
Ryanair = 92%Rolling 12 month passenger totals to September 2004:
EasyJet = 24,343,649
Ryanair = 25,758,285

Percentage increase in passengers since September 2003:
EasyJet = 25%
Ryanair = 17%

Load factor (ie percentage bums on seats) in September 2004:
EasyJet = 86.9%
Ryanair = 87%

Desven

October 8th, 2004, 04:56 PM

Go Eire,Ryanair is a nice and succesful airline!!!

hkskyline

October 8th, 2004, 11:58 PM

Ryanair plans to triple its Boeing 737-800 fleet over 5-10 yrs
7 October 2004
AFX International Focus

PARIS (AFX) - Ryanair Holdings PLC chief executive Michael O'Leary said the low-cost airline plans to treble the size of its fleet of Boeing Co 737-800 aircraft over the next 5-10 years.

'Over the next 5-10 years we will double and treble the size of our fleet of 737-800s. We will only compete in those markets where we can fill 737-800s and the smaller markets we will leave to somebody else, and the bigger markets we will leave to somebody else,' he said at a news conference.

O'Leary said he 'welcomes' the subsidies row between Airbus Industrie and Boeing Co, after the US decided to file a formal case with the World Trade Organization alleging that the EU gives billions of dollars in unfair state aid to the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co NV unit.

'The more they're fighting the more they're competing against each other. The more there's competition between Airbus and Boeing, the better it is for airlines and the better for passengers,' he said.

Last year more than 10 pct of Ryanair's total costs went towards air traffic control, he said.

'It's an enormous figure. The equivalent number in the US is zero, they don't pay for the service in the US,' he said.

He also said Ryanair does not plan to take advantage of future privatisations of French regional airports by making direct investments.

Asked whether Ryanair would invest in regional airports he said: 'If they needed financial help we would be quite happy to talk to them about that. But we are not investors in airports.'

'Would we buy an airport or invest in an airport? No, we'd expect the local authority or local region to develop the airports. We will happily put in the aircraft, the flights, the fares and the jobs,' he added.

Privatising regional airports is a 'natural progression' he said, adding the 'future of airports lies not in public but in private ownership.'

The French government has said it plans to privatise around 10 regional airports which have annual traffic over over 1 mln passengers.

The government also plans to change Aeroports de Paris, the state-owned Paris airports operator, into a private company, paving the way for a sale of the company's stock to private investors in 2005.

Ryanair is in talks with Marseille airport about establishing routes to and from the airport, he said.

'Marseille is investing their own money into developing the low-cost facility and we're talking to them about developing routes to and from that facility,' he said.

O'Leary said the company has no plans to repay the 4 mln eur for the use of publicly-owned Charleroi airport south of Brussels that the European Commission later declared to be illegal.

'We don't receive any subsidies for Charleroi... the decision of the EU is wrong, but we believe it will be overturned on appeal later this year,' he said.

'Will we give back the money? No. We will be writing back to the (European) Commission some time in the next three or four weeks explaining why we have no money to give them back,' he said.

Ryanair would be 'delighted' if the case were fought in the Irish courts, he added.

O'Leary said he is confident the merger between Belgian airline SN Brussels Airlines and Virgin Express will have 'no impact' on Ryanair's business.

'If two higher fare airlines marry in a market where we are already the lowest fare airline by some considerable distance, it won't have any impact on our business,' he said.

He reiterated Ryanair will not follow its rivals' lead by slapping fuel surcharges on passengers due to rising fuel prices.

'We have a much lower cost base than other airlines... We are simply going to absorb the increase in fuel prices and make less profits this year if that's what we have to do but we won't have fuel surcharges,' he said.

Monkey

October 9th, 2004, 10:11 AM

Ryanair is going to fly 2 daily flights to Porto(from Stanstead), from January 2005!!!
:banana: :banana: :banana: :banana:Cool! I shall be booking!! :)

Desven

October 10th, 2004, 07:11 PM

Ireland rulz!!

Monkey

October 15th, 2004, 12:43 AM

I just booked EasyJet return flights to Budapest for £35.98 (~€52) including taxes. That's a good price given that it's reading week/half term at universities and colleges: :)

Tuesday 15 February, flight 2581
departs London Luton at 06:40, arrives Budapest (terminal 2B) at 10:10

Friday 18 February, flight 2588
departs Budapest (terminal 2B) at 20:55, arrives London Luton at 22:25

hkskyline

October 22nd, 2004, 09:21 PM

Saturday October 23, 2:17 AM
Icelandair buys 8.4-percent stake in EasyJet

LONDON (AFP) - Icelandair said it had bought an 8.4 percent stake in British low-cost carrier easyJet, describing the holding as a "long-term trade investment."

In a statement issued to the London Stock Exchange, Icelandair said it might buy further shares in the short term.

"We have a positive opinion of the easyJet business model and we think that the company has a bright future," Icelandair chairman Hannes Smarason said.

"Part of the company's investment policy includes making investments in sectors where the group has specialised knowledge.

"The Icelandair group is financially strong and the company is seeking ways to improve the return on its cash. We have therefore kept our eyes open for the opportunities in airline-related securities," he added.

EasyJet shares had earlier closed up 16 percent at 152 pence on rumours of takeover bid for the no-frills carrier.

The Guardian newspaper reported here Friday that three Icelandic airline companies -- Air Atlanta Icelandic, which owns British budget airline Excel Airways, plus Iceland Express and Icelandair -- were buying shares in easyJet.

EasyJet was founded in 1995 by Cypriot-born businessman Stelios Haji-Ioannou, whose family remains the major shareholder.

hkskyline

November 1st, 2004, 07:27 AM

Low-cost airlines take fight to BAA

CLAYTON HIRST
31 October 2004
Independent On Sunday

Ryanair and easyJet are preparing to challenge the proposed £3.5bn expansion of Stansted airport, claiming that it poses a threat to the low-cost airlines.

The two companies are outraged that airport operator BAA wants the airlines to fund the development through higher landing charges.

And they have accused BAA of "gold plating" its development proposals, claiming the expansion could be done for a tenth of the cost. The companies are seeking meetings with BAA executives to present their case and have also raised the issue with the regulator.

In a letter to the Civil Aviation Authority, easyJet says: "The planned development and financing of new runway capacity at Stansted completely ignores the reality. [It] does not take into account the crucial requirement for all low-cost airlines: a low-cost base. Any planned expenditure must not be allowed to run the risk of putting the airlines" future at Stansted in jeopardy."

A spokesman for Ryanair added: "The proposals are a complete nonsense. We will not allow them to go unchallenged."

BAA figures circulated to the airlines show that it intends to phase the development in three parts. BAA proposes to submit a planning application for phase one, which will cost up to £2bn, in 2006, with the development expected to be compete after 2012. The second and third phases, at £990m and £580m respectively, are not expected to be competed until 2020 and beyond.

It is thought that phase one would add around £2 to the average ticket price. But the low-cost airlines believe that they must absorb the costs themselves as customers would baulk at higher prices.

A BAA spokesman said: "Anyone who talks about us building a gold-plated facility with marble pillars is talking nonsense. The development will be designed to accommodate the low-cost airlines, but we also need to cater for future airport uses."

He added that the way BAA was regulated and financed would not enable the company to fund the Stansted expansion on a speculative basis.

babystan03

November 2nd, 2004, 02:42 PM

Business Times - 02 Nov 2004

Ryanair sees profits rise despite high fuel costs

DUBLIN, Ireland - Higher passenger numbers helped Irish budget airline Ryanair increase earnings by 14.9 per cent in the latest quarter despite rising fuel costs, the company said on Tuesday.

But the carrier said outlook for the rest of the year was 'cautious' because of the high price of oil.

Ryanair Holdings PLC said net profit for the three months to Sept 30 was 147.6 million euros (S$314.1 million), up from 128.4 million euros in the same quarter last year. Earnings per ordinary share rose 15.2 per cent to 19.31 euro cents from 16.76 euro cents.

Revenue for the quarter was 418.3 million euros, up 19 per cent from the same time a year ago, when revenue was 351.218 million.

Fuel costs rose 41.7 per cent in the second quarter to 61.9 million euros, but passenger numbers during the same period rose 24 per cent to 14 million.

'These record traffic and profit figures show just how robust Ryanair's 'lowest fares' model remains even in a very difficult economic environment characterised by record fuel prices and intense price competition,' said Ryanair's chief executive, Michael O'Leary.

'Central to these record profits is Ryanair's continuing disciplined route growth,' he said.

The airline opened new bases in Barcelona and Rome and launched another 41 new routes over the summer. Ryanair operates 189 routes to 91 airports across Europe and employs some 2,300 staff.

Mr O'Leary said Ryanair would open five new destinations during the winter, with low-fare flights to Riga, Latvia; Santander, Seville and Valencia in Spain; and Porto, Portugal.

He said that the high price of oil would impact future guidance, but added that Ryanair can absorb much higher fuel prices than its competitors and still offer lower fares without imposing surcharges. He said the surcharging policy of competitors had helped Ryanair's rate of yield decline ease.

Mr O'Leary said the outlook for the remainder of the fiscal year was 'cautious', with 'significant' increases in passenger volume growth predicted but also higher fuel costs.

Copyright © 2004 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. All rights reserved.

hkskyline

November 2nd, 2004, 07:25 PM

easyJet launches 16 NEW routes - on ONE day
29 October 2004 Corporate Press Release

This weekend easyJet, Europe's leading low cost airline, launches 16 new routes with the start of its winter 2004 schedule. The new routes connect more UK bases with Germany, Hungary, Italy, Spain, as well as introducing Estonia to the network. easyJet is also expanding its intra-continental network with half of the new routes directly connecting popular cities in mainland Europe, providing a greater choice of routes for French, German, Italian, Polish, Spanish and Swiss passengers.

easyJet recognises the great potential in Eastern Europe and, since the 10 accession countries joined the EU earlier this year, the airline has seen a great deal of demand from both business and leisure passengers. But it's not just new countries; the airline is also making significant additions to its Spanish and Italian networks.

By the end of March 2005, easyJet will operate 189 routes across 55 cities with more planned, reflecting the vast opportunities for growth that exist all over Europe. Most of these routes will be operated by the 13 brand new Airbus A319s which are being delivered this winter.

The new routes that start on Sunday 31 October are:

* Alicante - Geneva
* Berlin - Madrid, Krakow
* Bristol - Budapest, Madrid, Rome, (Valencia also starts 3rd November)
* Budapest - Bristol, Geneva, Newcastle
* Dortmund to Krakow
* Geneva - Budapest, Alicante, Rome
* Krakow - Dortmund, Berlin
* London Gatwick to Rome and Venice
* London Luton to Basel
* London Stansted to Tallinn
* Madrid - Berlin, Bristol, Paris ORY,
* Newcastle - Budapest, Rome
* Paris (Orly ) to Madrid
* Rome - Geneva, Gatwick, Bristol, Newcastle
* Tallinn - Stansted

There are an additional four new routes also starting next week:

* Basel - Luton (1 November)
* Valencia to Bristol and London Stansted (3 November)
* London Luton to Warsaw (3 November)

huaiwei

November 2nd, 2004, 07:30 PM

Time is GMT + 8 hours
Posted: 02 November 2004 2005 hrs

Ryanair sees profits rise 15 percent

LONDON : Ryanair, the Irish no-frills airline, said net profit rose 15 percent for the quarter to September, adding it was well-placed to combat the threat of record high oil prices and fierce competition.

The Dublin-based carrier posted net profit of 147.6 million euros (187.6 million dollars) in the second quarter of its financial year, up from 128.4 million euros in the same period of 2003.

It beat analysts' consensus forecast of 130 million euros.

Investors cheered the results, with Ryanair's shares surging 11.66 percent to 4.50 euros in early trading in Dublin.

Meanwhile, broker Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein upgraded the discount airline to 'buy' from 'hold'.

Ryanair, which operates 161 routes to 87 destinations in 17 European countries, said pre-tax profit rose 14 percent to 162.7 million euros during the second quarter compared with the same period in 2003.

Total operating revenues climbed 19 percent to 418.3 million euros.

"Our prediction of a bloodbath and airline casualties this winter may be accelerated by record high oil prices as well as irrational competition," Ryanair chief executive Michael O'Leary said in a statement accompanying the results.

"Ryanair can absorb much higher oil prices than its competitors and still offer the lowest air fares," he added.

Despite being "cautious" in its outlook for the remainder of the fiscal year, Ryanair said it expected to achieve significant increases in passenger volume growth and increased load factors, or the percentage of seats filled.

Passenger numbers climbed by 24 percent to 14 million in the half-year to September while net profit climbed 15 percent to 201.3 million euros.

First-half yields, or average fares, fell 5.0 percent, at the lower end of the airline's guidance of a fall between 5.0 and 10 percent.

"We attribute this to a combination of slightly better peak summer yields and the initial impact of the multiple fuel surcharges imposed by many of our high-fare competitors which has increased the price differential, making Ryanair's low fares even more attractive to consumers," it said.

The airline revised upwards its guidance on yields, saying it now expected a fall of between 5.O and 10 percent in the second half versus previous guidance for a decline of between 10 and 20 percent.

- AFP

hkskyline

November 2nd, 2004, 07:48 PM

easyjet @ London Luton by Coast @ HKADB :

http://hkadb.no-ip.org/hkadb/forum/files/london_399.jpg

http://hkadb.no-ip.org/hkadb/forum/files/london_402.jpg

http://hkadb.no-ip.org/hkadb/forum/files/london_400.jpg

Monkey

November 3rd, 2004, 02:44 AM

Rivals' surcharges boost Ryanair

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3973789.stm

No-frills airline Ryanair has said fuel surcharges at rival airlines helped to push more business its way in the six months to September.

Passenger traffic increased 24%, while profits surged a forecast-beating 18%.

Net income rose to 200.1m euros (£138.9m, $255.1m) in the six months to September, ahead of analysts' expectations of 187.6m euros.

The Dublin-based airline refused to follow its rivals' ticket price rises as oil prices surged in recent months.

But, it added that if oil prices remain above $50 for the rest of the year it would add 55m euros to budgeted costs.

Forecasts revised

Despite high oil prices, the airline has held back from fuel hedging - which is normally used by airlines to protect themselves from rising oil costs.

In its statement Ryanair added the policy would continue until fuel prices returned to "normal".

Meanwhile, the firm also revised its forecasts for a dip in yields - the amount it makes per passenger - to a decline of 5-10% during the second half of the year from its previous estimates of a 10-20% drop. During the first half of the year yields fell 5%.

Ryanair said this was partly due to "the initial impact of the fuel price surcharges imposed by many of our high fare competitors".

The surcharges have "increased the price differential, making Ryanair's low fares even more attractive to consumers," the airline said.

Monkey

November 5th, 2004, 09:43 AM

Rolling 12 month passenger totals to September 2004:
EasyJet = 24,343,649
Ryanair = 25,758,285

Percentage increase in passengers since September 2003:
EasyJet = 25%
Ryanair = 17%

Load factor (ie percentage bums on seats) in September 2004:
EasyJet = 86.9%
Ryanair = 87%Rolling 12 month passenger totals to October 2004:
EasyJet = 24,827,915
Ryanair = 26,196,065

Percentage increase in passengers since October 2003:
EasyJet = 25%
Ryanair = 19%

Load factor (ie percentage bums on seats) in October 2004:
EasyJet = 87%
Ryanair = 87%

Monkey

November 5th, 2004, 09:49 AM

Ryanair profits rise 15% to record €201m, traffic growth of 24%, net margin of 28%

Ryanair, Europe’s No.1 low fares airline today (2 Nov 2004) announced record half year profits of €201.3m. Traffic grew by 24% to 14.1m passengers, yields declined by 5% and consequently total revenues rose by 21% to €721.1m. Unit costs (excluding fuel and route charges) fell by 4% and (including fuel and route charges unit costs remained flat) and as a result the profit margin after tax declined by 1% to an industry leading 28%.

babystan03

November 5th, 2004, 04:07 PM

05 November 2004

Ryanair in talks to launch service to nine more Spanish airports

MADRID : Irish low-cost airline Ryanair is in talks to begin flights to an additional nine airports in Spain.

Ryanair already operates flights to eight airports in Spain, and soon will begin service to three others.

Ryanair chairman Michael O'Leary told the El Pais newspaper that the budget carrier was eyeing about 80 new airports in total in Europe, including six in Italy and 17 in Germany, as part of its expansion programme. He did not provide further detail.

"There is in fact a long queue of airports which are after our flights," O'Leary said Friday.

In Spain, Ryanair is due to begin flights to Zaragoza from December 1, to Almeria from January 19 and to Seville in February, according to the newspaper.

Iberia, the leading Spanish carrier, announced in mid-October that it may file a complaint against Ryanair at the European Commission on grounds that it has received illegal aid from regional governments in Spain. - AFP

Copyright © 2004 Agence France Presse. All rights reserved.

hkskyline

November 5th, 2004, 08:14 PM

Easyjet in half-term travel boost
BBC

No-frills airline Easyjet has said passenger numbers rose sharply last month, helped by the half-term school holidays in the UK.

The airline said it carried 2.4 million passengers in October, a 25% increase on the same period last year.

Easyjet's load factor - the average proportion of occupied seats per flight - rose to 87% from 85.5% in October 2003.

Easyjet chief Ray Webster described the firm's performance as "solid".

"Our low-cost business model remains robust and we continue to capitalise on it."

The passenger figures for October were also lifted by the launch of 18 new routes.

The increase in Easyjet's passenger numbers will help dispel investor concerns over rising oil prices at a time of intense price competition within the no-frills airline sector.

Last month, Easyjet's shares fell sharply after the airline warned that fares would remain under pressure into next year.

Two weeks ago, there was speculation of a takeover bid for Easyjet after Icelandic flag carrier Icelandair bought a 10% stake in the firm.

Easyjet shares were up more than 4% at 179p in early trade on Friday.

hkskyline

November 8th, 2004, 10:45 PM

Daily Mail
November 6, 2004, Saturday

Budget carrier easyJet tempts customers as British Airways adds fuel tariff
By Ian Lyall

All eyes will be on British Airways next week as easy-Jet confirmed that it was poaching BA passengers frightened off by the flag carrier's fuel surcharge.

BA -- with interim figures out on Monday -- slapped a 20 pounds tariff on long-haul tickets to cover the spiralling cost of running its fleet, while it has added an extra 8 pounds to the price of domestic and European returns.

Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary warned earlier this week of a winter bloodbath as weaker players in the sector succumb to the harsher operating environment.

EasyJet has tempted BA passengers on board its aircraft with fares as low as 50 pence.

It carried 2.4 million people last month, up a quarter on a year ago, though it was also helped by the timing of the half-term holidays.

The budget carrier filled 87 percent of seats, up from 85.5 percent. The only downside was that its yield fell 2 percent as a result of its discounting campaign. Shares rose 4 3/4 pence to 176 1/2 pence.

Easyjet rival Flybe also enjoyed a bumper October. It carried 367,740 passengers, up 34 percent, and filled 73.5 percent of its seats.

hkskyline

November 12th, 2004, 10:37 PM

Friday, 12 November, 2004, 13:21 GMT
Ryanair awaits wheelchair ruling

(BBC) Airline Ryanair must wait nearly a month to hear a decision on its appeal against a court judgement over charging a disabled passenger for a wheelchair.

Bob Ross, from Islington, London, won his case in January after being charged £18 to use a wheelchair at Stansted Airport, in Essex.

Ryanair claims the airport imposed the charge and owner BAA should accept its responsibility for disabled people.

The High Court reserved judgement and will decide on the case in three weeks.

Seeking more compensation

Mr Ross was supported in his case against Ryanair and Stansted Airport by the Disability Rights Commission, which is seeking compensation for 35 other people.

Mr Ross was awarded £1,336 compensation at the county court, which included the £36 cost of hiring the wheelchair at the inward and outward journeys to France, the £20 cost of the tickets and £1,000 for injury to his feelings.

Romie Tager QC, representing Ryanair, said it was not the airline that was discriminating against Mr Ross, but the owner of Stansted Airport, BAA.

He said Ryanair was prepared to absorb the cost of paying for someone to push a wheelchair through the airport.

Monkey

November 22nd, 2004, 02:48 AM

Here is an update on EasyJet and Ryanair's ever expanding route networks - note Ryanair's belated expansion into the EU's 10 new member states. However it was EasyJet that moved fastest into this market and scooped up the best destinations:

Ryanair destinations:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v496/Fatmonkey/Budget%20Airlines/Ryanair-routes.jpg

EasyJet destinations:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v496/Fatmonkey/Budget%20Airlines/EasyJet-routes.jpg

The London perspective:

Ryanair from London Stansted:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v496/Fatmonkey/Budget%20Airlines/Ryanair-Stansted-routes.jpg

EasyJet from London Luton:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v496/Fatmonkey/Budget%20Airlines/EasyJet-Luton-routes.jpg

EasyJet from London Stansted:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v496/Fatmonkey/Budget%20Airlines/EasyJet-Stansted-routes.jpg

EasyJet from London Gatwick:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v496/Fatmonkey/Budget%20Airlines/EasyJet-Gatwick-routes.jpg

Monkey

November 23rd, 2004, 02:29 AM

Michael O'Leary's forecast "bloodbath" in the European budget aviation sector seems to have started with Italian budget carrier Volare going bankrupt:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4032903.stm
http://buy.volareweb.com/jsp/web/index.jsp?lang=en

huaiwei

November 23rd, 2004, 03:11 AM

something I wanna find out...how is it the companies find it profitable to almost multiple their route networks by 2 or 3 flying to approximately the same destinations from each airport in London?

Monkey

November 23rd, 2004, 05:59 AM

^ God knows - but they manage to fill the planes. Both Ryanair and EasyJet have unbelievably high loading ratios (ie percentage bums on seats) and Ryanair in particular is very profitable. They fill them by offering seriously low prices and then, I suppose, they have the chance to sell them food and gifts as well. Ryanair and Easyjet have an extremely efficient model. Europe is also ideal for budget airlines having a large, wealthy, and densely settled population. London is also the most visited city in the world and Europe's premier business/financial centre. Londoners also travel frequently to other parts of Europe for business and leisure. EasyJet has most duplication amongst the three London airports used by budget airlines but only on the most popular routes.

hkskyline

November 23rd, 2004, 06:16 AM

RYANAIR - $240M INVESTMENT IN NEW LIVERPOOL BASE

http://www.ryanair.com/images/cday5.gif

9 NEW EUROPEAN ROUTES FROM LIVERPOOL
TO FRANCE - IRELAND – ITALY - SPAIN

Ryanair today (22nd Nov 2004) announced its 12th European base at Liverpool’s John Lennon Airport with an investment of $240M in 4 new Boeing 737-800 series aircraft and 9 NEW European routes from Liverpool to:

NEW ROUTES:
BARCELONA (REUS),LIMOGES, PISA, CORK, MURCIA, SHANNON
GRANADA, NIMES & VENICE

CURRENT ROUTES:
BARCELONA (GIRONA), DUBLIN, MILAN & ROME

Ryanair, which began services at Liverpool in 1988, already operates 14 daily international flights from Liverpool to Barcelona (Girona), Dublin, Milan and Rome. Over the next 12 months Ryanair will carry 1.4M passengers to/from Liverpool, saving consumers over €30M on high fares charged by Easyjet. This new base announcement and massive increase in routes, destinations and passenger numbers is also good news for the local economy too, because it will create and sustain over 1000 new jobs in the Liverpool area.

Also today, Ryanair announced new daily routes from Blackpool to Barcelona and Pisa to Barcelona. Ryanair already operates two successful routes from Blackpool to Dublin and London Stansted, and 5 daily routes from Pisa to Brussels, Glasgow, Hamburg, Frankfurt Hahn and London Stansted.

Announcing Ryanair’s 12th European base in Liverpool today, Ryanair’s CEO Michael O’Leary said:

“Consumers from Merseyside using Liverpool’s John Lennon Airport now have a real low fares airline offering fares that are almost half the price of Easyjet, serving 13 destinations throughout Europe and delivering unbeatable punctuality, and that’s Ryanair.

Our message to Easyjet is simple - You can’t match Ryanair’s low fares and you can’t match Ryanair’s punctuality and customer service either.

These new routes from Liverpool, with fares from an incredible £2.99 (excl. taxes) are available for booking right now, at www.ryanair.com, Europe’s biggest travel website.”

Neil Pakey, Managing Director of Liverpool John Lennon Airport commented:

"Ryanair's committment is a clear' coming of age' for Liverpool John Lennon Airport bringing an additional 1 million passengers through the Airport next year. Liverpool is clearly seen by the airline industry as a gateway airport for the North of England and in particular for the low cost airline market. Ryanair's decision to base four aircraft here will bring significant benefits for the North West including around 1000 jobs being created in the region's economy.

In addition, Liverpool's Capital of Culture status is further enhanced as more Europeans will be able to visit Merseyside via convenient direct flights and importantly with low fares."

huaiwei

November 23rd, 2004, 06:27 AM

hkskyline

November 23rd, 2004, 08:20 AM

OUTLOOK easyJet FY focus on yields, Icelandair
23 November 2004

LONDON (AFX) - Investors will focus on any change to the outlook for yields (average fare levels) when easyJet PLC, Europe's second-largest no-frills airline, publishes full year results today.

The Luton-based carrier cautioned in September that it expected yields to remain under pressure during 2005. They declined some 7 pct in the July-September quarter.

'We expect the group to issue a relatively cautious trading statement that fully reflects the current tough trading environment,' NCB Stockbrokers told clients.

'In light of Ryanair's post results comments (on Nov 2 it forecast yield decline of 5-10 in its second half to end-March 2005), we would expect the yield outlook to be the most important focus point of the post results briefing,' it noted.

'While the group does have some fuel hedges in place, we feel that fuel is likely to be less of an issue as we expect the group to fully echo Ryanair's comments about fares being somewhat stronger than initially expected as they are rising to compensate for [the lack of] fuel levies.'

The other major area of interest on Tuesday will be management's latest thoughts on Icelandair, which last month acquired a 10.1 pct stake in easyJet, sparking bid speculation.

In September easyJet noted 'continuing volatility in fuel prices' but raised its guidance for pretax profit for the year to end-Sept to 'in excess of 60 mln stg' -- at least 16 pct higher than the previous year's 52 mln stg -- after enjoying improved trading during its final quarter. The airline has issued two profit warnings this year, the last in June.

easyJet carried 24.3 mln passengers during the year, up 20 pct, and saw its load factor -- passengers as a proportion of the number of seats available -- edge up 0.4 percentage points to 84.5 pct. Revenue increased 17 pct to 1.09 bln stg.

The airline reckons actions to improve its competitive position are paying off. In the year to end-Sept it made changes to around 10 pct of its network.

Following a review of its capacity growth programme easyJet will increase the number of aircraft in its fleet, which currently stands at 93, by approximately 16 pct in 2005, less than the 24 pct rise previously planned. Further details on this as well as more cost cutting initiatives are expected today.

Monkey

November 23rd, 2004, 10:48 AM

Hmm...and the most amazing thing is that they seem to be practically basing a super huge chunk of their business on the london sector alone, especially for easyair? Is the market so lucrative, that they dont need to start establishing mutiple hubs all over europe, like wat ryanair seems to be slowly doing?EasyJet does have hubs all over Europe - look at their website. Note my diagrams are "The London Perspective".

huaiwei

November 23rd, 2004, 11:22 AM

EasyJet does have hubs all over Europe - look at their website. Note my diagrams are "The London Perspective".
Hmm...and that's basically Geneva, Schiphol, Berlin, Dortmund for non-UK bases, as officially designated by the airline, of which only Geneva and Berlin look more well established in terms of connectivity for now (Nice, for example, have more connections then both of these bases, but it isnt considered a base by the airline)?

Honestly it didnt quite meet my expectations when I made that point earlier, but nvm....tihs is for anyday to discuss over...

Monkey

November 23rd, 2004, 02:54 PM

Hmm...and that's basically Geneva, Schiphol, Berlin, Dortmund for non-UK bases, as officially designated by the airline, of which only Geneva and Berlin look more well established in terms of connectivity for now (Nice, for example, have more connections then both of these bases, but it isnt considered a base by the airline)?

Honestly it didnt quite meet my expectations when I made that point earlier, but nvm....tihs is for anyday to discuss over...They do have other bases but those other cities are neither business nor tourism hubs to rival London. They also have much smaller metro populations. London's metro population is 18 million and they have some of the highest incomes in the Europe. Paris is the only city that could provide even remotely comparable hub but the French government has deliberately restricted EasyJet's expansion to protect its preferred "national champion", Air France. I think Rome, Barcelona, Madrid, Nice, Malaga, Palma etc, despite a lot of connections, are not counted as bases because the traffic is largely inbound.

hkskyline

November 23rd, 2004, 03:24 PM

EasyJet to enter Irish market for first time
23 November 2004
Airline Industry Information

UK low cost airline easyJet is set to step into its biggest rival Ryanair's backyard after announcing its first routes from London Gatwick to the Republic of Ireland.

EasyJet will operate flights from Gatwick to Shannon, Cork and Knock. This is the first time that the airlines will compete on the same routes. Both Ryanair and easyJet have avoided any head-to-head rivalry but with both rapidly expanding their European networks direct competition was inevitable.

The move into the Republic of Ireland by easyJet comes despite its plans to cut capacity in 2005 after it warned that the continuing pressure to lower fares will harm revenue. Ryanair itself is about to go head-to-head with easyJet on routes from London Stansted to Valencia and Almera in Spain and is to expand its operations at easyJet's base at Luton Airport, reports The Financial Times.

Monkey

November 23rd, 2004, 09:58 PM

^ They must be crazy doing that!! Maybe they just did it to piss Michael O'Leary off.... ;)

Monkey

November 24th, 2004, 12:36 AM

Easyjet rises to twin challenges
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4034341.stm

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/40151000/jpg/_40151288_easyjet_free203.jpg

Easyjet predicts a good 2005

Easyjet has thanked the "resilience" of its business model for a 21% rise in annual profits, despite the pressure of high oil prices and tough competition.

The low-cost carrier saw its pre-tax profit increase to £62.2m ($115m) for the 12 months to the end of September, on revenues up 17% to £1.09bn.

Passenger numbers were up one-fifth to 24.4 million for the Luton-based firm.

Easyjet warned that the festive period would be "challenging", but said it was confident of ongoing growth in 2005.

"These are creditable results in challenging market conditions which have affected all airlines," said Easyjet chief executive Ray Webster.

"Both financially and operationally we are stronger than we have ever been before, and despite the high fuel price and degree of competition in the market we are well placed for the coming year."

Easyjet's shares were up 3.5p or 1.9% to 186.75 in early Tuesday trading.

Cost control

The firm, which last month saw Iceland's national carrier Icelandair buy an 10.1% stake, saw its load factor - the percentage by which its planes are full - increase to 84.5% from 84.1%.

Easyjet said that the twin pressures of high oil prices and tough competition from other budget airline rivals such as Ryanair were "beyond its control".

Total revenue per passenger fell 2% to £44.82 due to increased competition, but the increases in passenger numbers and load factors overcame this decline.

Easyjet said it was successfully offsetting negative factors by its strong focus on keeping operational costs as low as possible.

"There are good opportunities for us in 2005," added Mr Webster.

"We expect to grow our sales through further enhancing our network and growing ancillary revenues."

Cautious expansion

During 2004, the company expanded to 92 aircraft, 153 routes and 44 airports.

However the firm announced in September it would cut back its fleet expansion plans to 16% next year, instead of 24% as previously planned.

Easyjet's profits came in just ahead of market expectations.

Mr Webster said he had "no idea" if Icelandair plans to increase its stake in the airline.

"I have no idea, (but) we're delighted that at least someone recognises the underlying value of the airline."

Mike Powell, aviation analyst at Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein, said Easyjet's results were in line with its expectations.

"Overall our forecast remains unchanged and we are sticking with a hold rating for Easyjet's shares," said Mr Powell.

"A lot hangs on what happens with the Icelandair situation and whether it makes a takeover bid for Easyjet. We don't however think this will happen."

hkskyline

November 24th, 2004, 10:12 PM

Thursday November 25, 3:08 AM
Ryanair, easyJet expand flights to Italy after Volare bankruptcy

LONDON (AFP) - Ryanair and easyJet both announced plans to expand in the Italian market following the collapse of the low-cost airline Volare, which has declared insolvency and suspended flights and ticket sales.

Dublin-based Ryanair said it will start a twice-daily service from Paris (Beauvais) to Venice (Treviso), and also announced that it wants to hold talks with the Italian airports affected by the collapse of Volare about beginning low-fare domestic flights within Italy on routes previously served by Volare.

EasyJet meanwhile said it plans daily services starting in April or May next year from London Gatwick airport to Olbia, London Luton to Cagliari and Berlin to Olbia and Pisa.

The expansion comes after Volare suspended all its activities last Friday.

"Clearly a lot of Italian airports have lost significant traffic volumes as a result of Volare's collapse and we have invited all of these airports to meetings in Milan this week to see if we can help them to launch low-fare domestic and international routes, to make up for the traffic they have lost as a result of Volare's collapse," Ryanair deputy chief executive Michael Cawley said in a statement.

"Ryanair already flies to almost all of the airports in Italy previously served by Volare and we expect to announce further route expansion to and from these airports in the not too distant future subject to the successful conclusion of satisfactory agreements with these airports," he said.

He also offered free flights to stranded Volare passengers, subject to airport and government taxes.

EasyJet said it expected to see its passenger numbers on all Italian flights "significantly increase" in 2005.

"Italy is the second largest low cost airline market in Europe and although a number of other airlines may be facing commercial difficulties, easyJet views Italy as a vibrant and highly attractive market with great potential and we look forward to expanding further with more connections to main city destination airports," said chief executive Ray Webster.

Volare's board declared insolvency on Tuesday to benefit from the Marzano law adopted in December 2003 by the Italian government to save the failed food group Parmalat from bankruptcy.

Monkey

November 25th, 2004, 03:40 AM

^ This is what is going to happen in the bloodbath. The plethora of small operators will go under and Ryanair and EasyJet will snap up the slack. :yes:

Lee

November 25th, 2004, 03:44 AM

I am afraid the bubble of Low Cost airlines will burst, especially in the US, where they have 30% market share, and where prices are too low to make a profit.

Lee

November 25th, 2004, 03:47 AM

I guess BA's profits come from intercontinental flights, because there is no way in hell that they could make money on those low fare European routes, competeing with the likes of easy jet and ryanair.

Lee

November 25th, 2004, 03:52 AM

BA's only reason for sustaining its European routes is to feed into their highly profitable trans-Atlantic routes via their hubs at Heathrow, Gatwick, and Manchester. Essentially BA earns its profits from ferrying business class passengers to the US and Asia - a very different market. The low cost model simply doesn't work on long haul.

There must be a few high-yielding European destinations from LDN, no? How about Moscow, Brussels, and Milan?

Philip Cronin

November 25th, 2004, 11:46 AM

something I wanna find out...how is it the companies find it profitable to almost multiple their route networks by 2 or 3 flying to approximately the same destinations from each airport in London?

Because they are regional airports for British travellers as well as catering for the city centre to city centre market for visitors to London. About two thirds of the people in the London airports' catchment areas don't live in Greater London at all. People who live north of London fly from Stansted and Luton and people who live South of London fly from Gatwick, without actually going into Greater London at all. If Easyjet didn't provide service to a popular destination from both sides of London, most British passengers on the side they didn't serve would probably fly with someone else instead, rather than driving all the way around London to catch an Easyjet flight

Philip Cronin

November 25th, 2004, 11:55 AM

There must be a few high-yielding European destinations from LDN, no? How about Moscow, Brussels, and Milan?

Maybe Moscow and Milan, but not Brussels, which is served by both the Eurostar train and the Virgin Express budget airline.

hkskyline

November 25th, 2004, 06:54 PM

Sharks smell a short-haul shake-up:
The larger European low-cost airlines are awaiting a bloodbath
By KEVIN DONE and ADRIAN MICHAELS
24 November 2004
Financial Times

Ryanair, the leading European low-cost airline, will today announce plans to expand in the Italian market to take advantage of the collapse of Volare, the Italian low-fare scheduled and charter operator.

EasyJet, the key rival to Ryanair, is also sensing blood and is hopeful of being able to pick up Volare take-off and landing slots at Paris Orly airport.

The sharks are circling amid signs that the long forecast shake-out in the short-haul airline sector in Europe has started.

Volare's collapse follows only weeks after V-Bird, a Dutch-owned carrier operating out of Dusseldorf-Niederrhein airport in Germany, also ceased operations.

Ray Webster, chief executive of EasyJet, said yesterday that there were now at least 47 low-cost airlines in Europe compared with only seven three years ago.

"This is clearly not sustainable in the longer term and we expect consolidations and liquidations - indeed these have started to appear in recent months."

However, the picture is complicated because, even as some carriers go out of business, others are still determined to enter the sector.

In Italy, a successor to Volare - myair.com - is seeking to launch next month with three Airbus A320s, rising to four in January and six by April. It is being started by several former Volare managers.

Ryanair, which has a sizeable operation in Italy with two bases, one at Rome-Ciampino and one at Milan-Bergamo, will be seeking to crush such aspirations.

Michael O'Leary, Ryanair chief executive, said recently that high oil prices and competition would force the pace of the shake-out.

"Many of our competitor airlines who were losing money heroically when fuel was Dollars 25 a barrel are doomed the longer it stays at Dollars 50. Our prediction of a bloodbath and airline casualties this winter may be accelerated by record high oil prices as well as by irrational competition.

"We anticipate that there will be further airline casualties as the 'perfect storm' of declining fares and record high oil prices force loss-making carriers out of the industry."

Volare declared itself insolvent in the early hours of yesterday morning after a board meeting gave up hope of finding more money for a recapitalisation plan.

The company, which is privately owned, says it is missing in the short term Euros 60m (Dollars 78m) but people with knowledge of its finances say at least double that amount is realistically needed.

In the meantime, the Italian government has said it is looking at solutions for saving the company.

It seems likely that a special administrator will be appointed to co-ordinate any plans with the bankruptcy court. This would be an attempted rescue involving an amendment to a new law enacted for the collapse of dairy company Parmalat.

Enrico Bondi, Parmalat's administrator, at least has a viable business on which to base his efforts. People who have analysed Volare's situation doubted it could easily be saved.

Its fleet of about 25 aircraft is leased and now out of the company's hands. It also has no insurance to fly. The withdrawal of insurance and supplier deliveries last week caused the company to suspend all flights last Friday.

If rivals start to take over its slots at certain airports, Volare's hopes of a relaunch will diminish further.

Even worse, the Italian financial police have raided the company's offices and are conducting an investigation into allegations of false accounting. KPMG completed a forensic audit recently and raised questions about the company's accounts.

Deloitte audited the company's books in 2002 and 2003. "In both cases," it said yesterday, "the audit showed that Volare was in financial difficulty and that the company's continuation, and hence the recovery in its asset values, depended on finding new financial means to implement the board's strategy," Deloitte said.

While rivals in the low-cost airline business have boomed, Volare's problems, regardless of allegations of bad accounting, stem from crucial management mis-steps and bad timing.

Volare was combined with charter company Air Europe in 2000, increasing its overall debt just as the airline industry was about to be plunged into global recession, the events of September 11 2001 and later the Sars epidemic.

Lee

November 27th, 2004, 06:38 PM

Why is it Frills LCC like Jet Blue, TED and Song have been so successful in the US and offer facilities like Satelite TV, 32-34inch Leg Room, Assigned Leather Seats and Inflight Drinks and Snacks when carriers in the UK and Europe have gone the the opposite way?

Offering 29inch Leg Room, No Assigned Seats, No Connecting Services, etc, etc...

The only examples I can recall in Europe that have offered cheap frills is Duo and Jet Magic which have both failed. But they are not really compariable with Jet Blue.

Monkey

November 27th, 2004, 08:08 PM

Lee

November 27th, 2004, 08:13 PM

^ In Europe they compete on price to maximise the differential between their offering and that of the full service carriers. A Ryanair flight is considerably cheaper than a similar distance on Southwest or JetBlue.

Why is Ryanair cheaper than Southwest, when both offer the same product?

Also, when you say cheaper, can you show an example?

Lee

November 27th, 2004, 08:17 PM

I just went on Ryanair.com, and a London-Palermo ticket was 122 pounds. That's just as expensive as MCO-JFK on Jetblue.

At the same time I found a LDN-Cork route for only 12 pounds! Wow! :)

Monkey

November 27th, 2004, 08:40 PM

Why is Ryanair cheaper than Southwest, when both offer the same product?

Also, when you say cheaper, can you show an example?Yeah loads of examples. Just go on the websites and see for yourself. I have flown all over Europe (Nice, Madrid x2, Barcelona, Rome, Palermo, Prague, Berlin, Budapest) for virtually nothing with EasyJet and Ryanair. And as you say yourself they don't offer the same. JetBlue and Southwest are closer to the full service airlines.

Search on Ryanair.com for return flights from London Stansted to Malmo from Wed 1st March to Wed 2nd March (ie typical overnight business trip). You should find 99p each way (£27.55 return inc taxes). Try and get me any route for less on Southwest or JetBlue. I looked at Los Angeles to Las Vegas (just one third of the distance from London to Malmo) yet the price, the cheapest that Southwest offers ($98.20), is double Ryanair's price despite the weakness of the dollar and much shorter distance (363km compared to 958km).

Monkey

November 27th, 2004, 08:48 PM

I just went on Ryanair.com, and a London-Palermo ticket was 122 pounds. That's just as expensive as MCO-JFK on Jetblue.

At the same time I found a LDN-Cork route for only 12 pounds! Wow! :)I flew Ryanair to Palermo last year for £30 return including taxes - and that was on a holiday weekend (ie a peak time). I went ot Sicily to climb Mount Etna. I have flown twice to Madrid, both times at weekends, with Easyjet for just £18 return including taxes. :)

Lee

November 27th, 2004, 08:54 PM

Yeah loads of examples. Just go on the websites and see for yourself. I have flown all over Europe (Nice, Madrid x2, Barcelona, Rome, Palermo, Prague, Berlin, Budapest) for virtually nothing with EasyJet and Ryanair. And as you say yourself they don't offer the same. JetBlue and Southwest are closer to the full service airlines.

How is Southwest closer to full service airlines, when it doesn't offer any service besides a can of soda? JetBlue is obviously different.

Search on Ryanair.com for return flights from London Stansted to Malmo from Wed 1st March to Wed 2nd March (ie typical overnight business trip). You should find 99p each way (£27.55 return inc taxes). Try and get me any route for less on Southwest or JetBlue. I looked at Los Angeles to Las Vegas (just one third of the distance from London to Malmo) yet the price, the cheapest that Southwest offers ($98.20), is double Ryanair's price despite the weakness of the dollar and much shorter distance (363km compared to 958km).

Yes, I am seeing to incredible offers myself. Southwest's cheapest offer is $39 each way, which applies to many routes. Jetblue offers roundtrip routes for as low as $49 on short interstate flights, to $200 on trans-con (NY-LA). Actually, I found a NY-LA flight for a little over $100. Are there any Ryanair flights that long, as cheap?

I am still amazes that Ryanair is still able to make money.

Lee

November 27th, 2004, 08:57 PM

London-Malmo:

I searched December 5-14, and Ryanair offered it for only $11 pounds!!! Incredible. Unfortunately, I don't think they are making money on that.

Monkey

November 27th, 2004, 09:27 PM

How is Southwest closer to full service airlines, when it doesn't offer any service besides a can of soda? JetBlue is obviously different.Ryanair doesn't even give you a bottle of soda. You can buy one if you like but it's extra.I am still amazes that Ryanair is still able to make money.Ryanair makes loads of money - very profitable. They have made a profit every quarter since O'Leary took charge. At one point their market capitalisation was the highest of any airline in Europe. They have an extremely efficient model and some airports actually pay them to fly to their airports because they generate so much traffic and therefore make such a contribution to airport retail business. Ryanair's load factor (ie percentage bums on seats) is off the scale - nearly 90% - much higher than Southwest's.Actually, I found a NY-LA flight for a little over $100. Are there any Ryanair flights that long, as cheap?Ryanair doesn't have any flights that long. They prefer to fly the shortest routes where the low cost model works best. The shorter the better because they can offer more flights per day with a single aeroplane and obviously spend less on fuel per flight. Easyjet's longest flight (London to Athens) is also shorter than NY-LA but Stelios, the Greek founder of EasyJet, has an emotional attachment to his homeland. Also millions of Brits go on holiday to Greece every year and there are a lot of Greek business interests, especially in shipping, run from London.

huaiwei

November 27th, 2004, 09:34 PM

What is the longest flight time that Ryanair or Easyjet fly on their longest routes?

Monkey

November 27th, 2004, 09:42 PM

What is the longest flight time that Ryanair or Easyjet fly on their longest routes?The longest flown by either of them is EasyJet's route to Athens from the UK. From London it takes 4 hours and a bit longer from other parts of the UK.

Monkey

November 27th, 2004, 09:46 PM

^ Correction - EasyJet fly to Athens only from London airports and Berlin. So London to Athens is the longest.

Monkey

November 27th, 2004, 09:53 PM

From the map it looks like Ryanair's longest routes are one of London to Brindisi, London to Palermo, or Glasgow to Rome. They all take approximately 3 hours.

huaiwei

November 27th, 2004, 10:06 PM

The longest flown by either of them is EasyJet's route to Athens from the UK. From London it takes 4 hours and a bit longer from other parts of the UK.
Yeap I just hapapend to discover it myself too. :D I am asking this, because two of the 3 new LCCs (or maybe quasi LCC by some definitions) starting here are saying they will be flying in a 5 hour radiaus around Singapore, and I was like wondering how does that compare in approximate range with Europe. Seems like we are disadvantaged by being surrounded more by sea then land! :D

RafflesCity

November 27th, 2004, 10:19 PM

no lah..maybe the 'desirable' cities that many like to go to are a little further away :lol:

I shant comment on what is 'desirable' though :D

huaiwei

November 27th, 2004, 10:24 PM

Hahaa...but just see how much monkey is enjoying himself shuttling all over Europe like taking bus rides! I cant hardly wait to do the same thing over here! :rant: :D

hkskyline

November 27th, 2004, 10:25 PM

Thursday November 25, 02:58 PM
Ryanair may face tiff with German state over notice period for route closure

ERFURT, Germany (AFX) - Ryanair PLC may face a dispute with the east German state of Thuringia over the closure of its Stansted to Erfurt route, which the state's Ministry of Transportation pointed out violates the six month notice period included in its contract with Ryanair.

An exception is possible if there are 'important reasons' for cancelling the contract, the Ministry said.

A Ryanair spokeswoman said the airline cannot be forced to 'service a route that is loss-making,' but added the company is open to talks.

Ryanair announced yesterday it plans to close its 'under performing' route from Stansted to Erfurt on Jan 19 and its Barcelona to Turin route on March 1.

Lee

November 28th, 2004, 04:45 PM

Monkey, do you fly much BMI Baby? I think they are a LCC too. I think they might be on the verge of bk.

nick_taylor

November 28th, 2004, 05:26 PM

Lee

November 28th, 2004, 09:02 PM

BMI Baby are indeed a low cost carrier. It is kinda like the same scenario BA used to have with Go!

I'm also not sure what you mean by "bk"; Bankruptcy? They have in recent months expanded and in the coming months are opening up 40 new routes, unless you have insider information ;)

Well, BMI's CEO recently said "We are not making any money on short flights," and given that most of their flights are short, and go against other LCC, it doesn't sound good.

BMI Baby sounds cute :)

Monkey

November 28th, 2004, 10:20 PM

Hahaa...but just see how much monkey is enjoying himself shuttling all over Europe like taking bus rides! I cant hardly wait to do the same thing over here! :rant: :DLCC's in Europe are actually undercutting long distance buses on price!! Remember that LCC travel is within the EU so there are no visas or restrictions for EU citizens. We are all free to move, live, work etc in each others countries without any restrictions whatsoever. I can go and live in Italy tomorrow and start a business in Sweden the next day. ASEAN cannot provide this level of integration given the much wider dispartities of wealth in SE Asia. I think on the Singapore LCC thread I picked up on a comment by one Singaporean LCC CEO saying that the European and American markets were "domestic". I disputed that by saying that in Europe the market is overwhelmingly international. However he probably considers internal EU flights to be domestic which is a fair point.

Monkey

November 28th, 2004, 10:24 PM

Monkey, do you fly much BMI Baby? I think they are a LCC too. I think they might be on the verge of bk.No I've never flown them. They are based in the Midlands not London - and yes I think they will go bankrupt. They are an old airline that tried to convert to the budget airline formula but only half heartedly. By contrast Ryanair's Michael O'Leary was absolutely ruthless and uncompromising in pursuing low cost principles and that is why he was able to transform a bankrupt airline into the world's most dynamic and fastest growing LCC.

Monkey

November 28th, 2004, 10:35 PM

Yeap I just hapapend to discover it myself too. :D I am asking this, because two of the 3 new LCCs (or maybe quasi LCC by some definitions) starting here are saying they will be flying in a 5 hour radiaus around Singapore, and I was like wondering how does that compare in approximate range with Europe. Seems like we are disadvantaged by being surrounded more by sea then land! :DWell there's nothing you can do about greater distances. That's just geography. All LCCs in SE Asia face the same fundamental geography so Singapore's LCC's won't be disadvantaged relative to those of neighbouring countries. It also won't stop the LCC model from taking off in SE Asia. Remember that America also has greater distances than Europe but that didn't stop LCC's from developing and prospering there. Singapore is the best placed SE Asian city to draw traffic from Australia as well as from mainland SE Asia. I think Bangkok and Thai resort cities will offer Singapore the most intense competition as LCC destinations/hubs.

hkskyline

November 29th, 2004, 10:01 PM

Monday November 29, 1:33 PM EST
Ryanair To Announce Shannon As New Base Tuesday-Source

DUBLIN -(Dow Jones)- Ireland's no-frills airline Ryanair Holdings PLC will Tuesday announce Shannon Airport as a new base, a source close to the company said Monday.

"Chief executive officer Michael O'Leary will announce that a new base will be established at Shannon Airport Tuesday and will be flying down there tomorrow morning," the source said.

Although the source wouldn't give details, there's been speculation that Ryanair arranged a five-year, 50 cent landing charge at new routes at Shannon, compared to average charge of EUR7.50.

With Ryanair expected to go ahead with its Shannon announcement, the decision - plus recently announced additional Irish routes - is the most significant Irish move in about 10 years, analysts say.

Earlier this month, Ryanair announced the addition of a route from Shannon to Liverpool. It already flies from Shannon to Frankfurt/Hahn, Glasgow/Prestwick, Beauvais and Charleroi.

The move by Ryanair is also seen as a direct competitive move against low-cost rival EasyJet (EZJ.LN), which will have four daily flights from London/Stansted to Shannon in January.

It remains to be seen whether Ryanair can now secure a new deal at Dublin Airport, although analysts say this depends on the Irish government giving the go-ahead to an independent terminal there.

At Monday's close, Ryanair shares were flat at EUR5.10 on the Irish Stock Exchange.

Company Web site: http://www.ryanair.com

-By Quentin Fottrell, Dow Jones Newswires; 353-1-676-2189; quentin.fottrell@ dowjones.com

Monkey

December 2nd, 2004, 01:18 AM

Ryanair says paid in-flight TV popular
http://www.reuters.co.uk/newsPackageArticle.jhtml?type=businessNews&storyID=631121&section=finance

Wed 1 December, 2004 16:46

LONDON (Reuters) - Europe's biggest low-cost airline Ryanair says about 30 percent of passengers paid to use its new in-flight entertainment system during initial trials.

Chief Executive Michael O'Leary said the airline needed three percent penetration to recoup its investment in the entertainment system which it introduced to six aircraft last month.

"At the moment, based on initial trials, it looks like the penetration rate will be 30 percent," O'Leary told an Institute of Economic Affairs conference in London on Wednesday.

The system is being introduced across the airline's entire fleet in April to May next year.

Passengers have to pay five pounds or seven euros a flight to access movies, cartoons and television shows on the portable units which look like a small laptop.

Airlines are seeking new sources of non-ticket revenue as they battle high fuel costs and lower fares amid tough competition.

O'Leary reiterated that the airline, which is currently unhedged, did not plan to introduce a fuel surcharge and would not resume hedging until oil prices fell.

He said Ryanair would still turn a profit even if oil hit $75 (39 pounds) a barrel.

"If it goes to $75 a barrel we will be the only break-even airline in Europe. At those prices we will probably be the only airline in Europe flying," he said.

Oil prices hit a record high of $55.67 on October 25, but have since fallen more than $7.

Ryanair, which announced on Tuesday it would set up another European base at Shannon in Ireland, did not plan to expand aggressively in eastern Europe for at least three or four years, he said.

Ryanair shares were trading 4.13 percent firmer at 5.3 euros by afternoon trading.

Monkey

December 2nd, 2004, 01:25 AM

Also Ryanair's market capitalisation has overtaken BA's again and is also ahead of merged Air France/KLM. By this measure Ryanair is once again Europe's largest airline. From Reuters:

- Ryanair = £2,667.11 million
- Air France/KLM = £2,645.54 million
- British Airways = £2,404.04 million

hkskyline

December 6th, 2004, 10:26 PM

EasyJet to drop Paris Orly-Marseille flights - airport
6 December 2004

MARSEILLE (AFX) - EasyJet PLC is dropping its twice-daily flights between Paris Orly and Marseille, an official at Marseille-Provence airport said.

The official said the low-cost airline cited the lack of slots at Orly and the cost of security, which reaches 26 eur on a 50 eur ticket.

He accused the government of distorting competition with the railways, whose security cost is borne by the taxpayer.

The Marseille-London Gatwick link will continue.

Earlier, French railway staff protested at Paris' Gare de Lyon against a new service reserved for online ticket buyers that allows train passengers to travel from the capital to Marseille for as little as 19 eur.

Societe Nationale de Chemins de Fer Francais' iDTGV service ('interactif-detente-TGV' or 'interactive-relaxation-high-speed train') was launched today and sells both first and second class seats at a heavy discount.

Monkey

December 6th, 2004, 11:41 PM

With Air Polonia and Volare out of business Easyjet and Ryanair can enjoy just a little more breathing space and also have somewhere to fly all those new planes they've ordered. :yes:

Monkey

December 7th, 2004, 09:45 AM

Rolling 12 month passenger totals to October 2004:
EasyJet = 24,827,915
Ryanair = 26,196,065

Percentage increase in passengers since October 2003:
EasyJet = 25%
Ryanair = 19%

Load factor (ie percentage bums on seats) in October 2004:
EasyJet = 87%
Ryanair = 87%Rolling 12 month passenger totals to November 2004:
EasyJet = 25,249,936
Ryanair = 26,392,361

Percentage increase in passengers since November 2003:
EasyJet = 25%
Ryanair = 10%

Load factor (ie percentage bums on seats) in November 2004:
EasyJet = 84.6%
Ryanair = 83%

Monkey

December 7th, 2004, 12:45 PM

New routes boost Easyjet traffic
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4074743.stm

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/40151000/jpg/_40151288_easyjet_free203.jpg

Easyjet has expanded its routes

Passenger numbers at no-frills airline Easyjet hit 2.1 million in November, up 25% on the same point last year.

The low-cost carrier cited the expansion of its network in Europe, with the addition of nine new routes, as the reason for the increase.

Its load factor - how many seats it has filled on flights - was down slightly from a year ago, to 81.2% from 81.5%.

Luton-based Easyjet now flies more than 150 routes, competing with 42 low-cost rivals in the European market.

Fuel pressure

Last month, the airline thanked the "resilience" of its business model for a 21% rise in annual profits, despite the pressure of high oil prices and tough competition.

Easyjet's annual fuel bill has risen by almost 22% in a year, which accounts for 14% of spending.

However, the carrier is seeking to make savings through the use of more fuel-efficient Airbus A319s and its withdrawal from poorly-performing markets or airports which charge high landing fees.

Easyjet said last month it was braced for a challenging winter with continued strong competition leaving "limited visibility" on fares.

Shares in the airline jumped last month after Icelandair built a 10% stake in the company.

hkskyline

December 17th, 2004, 06:45 AM

Ryanair criticised over adverts
BBC

The ruling followed a complaint from its arch rival, easyJet
Low-cost airline Ryanair has been criticised by advertising watchdogs for making misleading claims

Ryanair ran newspaper adverts, which claimed it had "better punctuality" than Easyjet, citing the Association of European Airlines (AEA) in the advert.

Neither carrier is a member of the AEA and, Ryanair, whose main UK operation is based at Stansted, was told "not to misattribute statistics".

Ryanair apologised for the advert but noted the sole complainant was Easyjet.

The advert, with a headline "Why Pay More... To Arrive Later", contained a table of statistics but the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) said Ryanair had "misleadingly implied" these were from an independent source.

Question of distance

In a separate ruling, the ASA has upheld complaints from two members of the public over a Ryanair advert about new routes from Luton airport.

The airline had said Spanish destinations Girona and Reus served Barcelona.

The travellers, however, believed the two destinations were considerable distances from the city, the ASA said.

The body said airlines should not claim airports served specific cities unless those airports were listed by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) as doing so.

Dublin-based Ryanair said the references had been published in error.

Complaints from the same two people over claims in the advert that Orio al Serio, Ciampino, Treviso and Vasteras, respectively served Milan, Rome, Venice and Stockholm, were rejected because they were included in IATA listings.

roadtomadrid

December 17th, 2004, 02:15 PM

yeah, ryanair is very good but connect small spanish cities with europe. and easyjet too, but madrid or barcelona or valencia with london or paris, with fast ticket.

hkskyline

December 19th, 2004, 06:23 PM

Ryanair says sorry to hundreds of travellers stranded in Paris
The Herald
IAIN WILSON, Chief Reporter
December 17 2004

RYANAIR, the Irish budget airline, yesterday apologised to hundreds of Scottish customers who had been stranded in France for four days after their return flights were cancelled because of fog.

All the passengers had finally touched down at Prestwick last night, having been trapped in a backlog because extra flights were not provided during breaks in the weather.

Up to 600 people who flew to Beauvais airport on Monday were involved, with only 300 able to fly home earlier via Lille, an hour's bus drive away.

Many criticised Ryanair for failures to help find accommodation during their ordeal, and also complained of a lack of information.

As the controversy continued, the airline announced its busiest Christmas ever, with more than 1.3 million people booked on 550 daily flights on 209 routes.

A Ryanair spokesman said it had been impossible to provide extra flights because its 77-strong fleet of aircraft was in full use or grounded by airport closures due to bad weather.

Paul Fitzsimmons, head of communications, apologised to the Scottish passengers.
He said: "Our business is to get people away on schedule, not to cancel services. We really tried to do as much as we could to get people away."

He added it had proved impossible to fly more people home earlier from Lille because local coach firms had been unable to cope with the numbers at Beauvais, swelled by stranded flights from other Ryanair routes.

Of complaints from passengers left without food and to find their own accommodation, Mr Fitzsimmons said the budget airline's terms and conditions were clear: Ryanair did not pay for hotels, meals, delays or cancellations.

Monkey

January 13th, 2005, 12:47 AM

Rolling 12 month passenger totals to November 2004:
EasyJet = 25,249,936
Ryanair = 26,392,361

Percentage increase in passengers since November 2003:
EasyJet = 25%
Ryanair = 10%

Load factor (ie percentage bums on seats) in November 2004:
EasyJet = 84.6%
Ryanair = 83%Rolling 12 month passenger totals to December 2004:
EasyJet = 25,716,329
Ryanair = 26,582,833

Percentage increase in passengers since December 2003:
EasyJet = 28%
Ryanair = 9%

Load factor (ie percentage bums on seats) in December 2004:
EasyJet = 81%
Ryanair = 83%

hkskyline

January 15th, 2005, 08:22 PM

Friday January 14, 06:46 PM
Ryanair to partly reverse planned Milan expansion

LONDON (Reuters) - Ryanair Holdings is partly reversing plans to expand in Italy due to a dispute with airport authorities in Milan, the Irish-based low-cost airline has said.

Ryanair, which announced plans in November to expand in Italy, said it would not add a fifth aircraft at Milan Bergamo airport as planned and would cancel three regular flights on routes from Milan.

"All our growth and cost projections for fiscal 2005/2006 remain unaffected," Chief Executive Michael O'Leary said in a statement on Friday.

Ryanair said it had negotiated cost savings and a longer contract with the airport in November in exchange for increased passenger numbers, but the airport could no longer fulfil one of the terms of the agreement.

SACBO, the company that manages the airport, was not immediately available for comment.

Ryanair, hoping to capitalise on the woes of grounded Italian rival Volare Group, previously said it would fly 9 million-10 million passengers in Italy in 2005.

hkskyline

January 16th, 2005, 06:10 PM

EasyJet Announces Two New Routes
Thursday January 13, 8:23 am ET

British Budget Airline EasyJet Is Linking Belfast to Berlin and Rome

BELFAST, Northern Ireland (AP) -- Budget airline easyJet PLC announced two new routes Thursday to link Belfast with Berlin and Rome, a move being subsidized by a British government agency.

EasyJet, founded in 1995, has made Belfast International Airport an increasingly important base in the past three years -- and ended decades during which getting into or out of Northern Ireland almost always meant a connection through London.

The new Rome and Berlin routes, scheduled to begin service in July, will bring to nine the number of easyJet's direct European routes operating from the Northern Ireland capital.

EasyJet already flies from Belfast to Amsterdam, Paris, the southern French city of Nice, and the southern Spanish cities of Malaga and Alicante. It plans to open routes soon to Geneva, Switzerland and Palma, on the Spanish island of Mallorca. It also operates domestic services to seven British cities.

EasyJet Chief Operating Officer Ed Winter said Belfast now accounted for 12 percent of the airline's operations, which are based at Luton, north of London.

Northern Ireland, with 1.7 million residents, has a booming summer holiday season -- partly because much of the population leaves the country during traditional Protestant marches that peak in mid-July.

The British government's Invest Northern Ireland agency said it would subsidize the cost of easyJet's landing fees on both routes, but declined to offer specifics on the value of aid. It said the links to the German and Italian capitals would underwrite stronger tourism and business connections.

"Securing these new direct routes to Germany and Italy is a tremendous boost for the Northern Ireland economy," said Leslie Morrison, chief executive of Invest Northern Ireland.

Morrison said local companies were already exporting goods worth more than 250 million pounds (euro360 million; US$475 million) annually to the two countries. He forecast that the daily air links would put Northern Ireland on the map "as a potential inward investment location for German and Italian companies."

hkskyline

January 24th, 2005, 08:06 PM

easyJet to expand in Switzerland
24 January 2005
Airline Industry Information

British low-cost carrier easyJet has entered into a long-term deal to establish a new base in Basel, Switzerland, and will station three additional aircraft at the airport.

easyJet, which currently flies from Basel's EuroAirport to Britain and Germany, will recruit flight crews locally and add more aircraft and routes from Basel.

The airline is reportedly to expand its Basel network to more than 10 destinations during the summer and is negotiating a number of new routes.

hkskyline

January 26th, 2005, 07:41 PM

Ryanair unveils more Dublin routes in challenge to Ireland's state Aer Lingus
By SHAWN POGATCHNIK
26 January 2005

DUBLIN, Ireland (AP) - The budget airline Ryanair announced a half-dozen new routes Wednesday that link Dublin with other European cities in a renewed challenge to Ireland's state-owned Aer Lingus.

Ryanair said four new routes starting April 17 would connect the Irish capital to Rome; Eindhoven in Holland; and Biarritz and Carcassonne in southern France. It said Dublin routes to Sheffield, England, would open April 28 and to Frankfurt, Germany, on May 3.

Ryanair is headquartered in Dublin but has made Stansted Airport, near London, its biggest hub. Today the airline offers 186 routes to 91 destinations in 17 countries, but hadn't launched any significant expansions in Dublin since 1997.

Deputy Chief Executive Michael Cawley said the fares were much lower than those of Aer Lingus.

Ryanair Holdings PLC shares rose 1.75 percent Wednesday to euro5.85 (US$7.65).

Aer Lingus remains the biggest player in the Irish market. It faced possible bankruptcy in 2001 but has rebounded strongly, partly by emulating Ryanair's sales technique -- offering discounted fares over the Internet that play down the considerable extra cost of fees and taxes.

Aer Lingus has stronger service standards and offers more direct flights from Dublin to continental European destinations.

Ryanair does fly directly between Dublin and Brussels, Paris and several holiday spots in southern Spain and Portugal. Otherwise its Irish passengers trying to reach the Continent must endure lengthy stopovers in Stansted or other British airports, where the airline doesn't provide for luggage to be transferred.

Ryanair repeatedly complains it's being blocked from doing more in Dublin because the government of Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern protects Aer Lingus. The latest satirical Ryanair ad campaign in Irish newspapers portrays Ahern as Marxist revolutionary Che Guevara.

On Wednesday, Cawley accused Ahern of failing to deliver on 3-year-old government plans to develop a second terminal in Dublin that Ryanair would hope to dominate.

Cawley said the six new routes would produce 500 jobs at the airport and bring more than 250,000 extra tourists to Ireland. But he estimated that a new terminal would generate 10 times as much new employment and business, and urged the government to get on with it.

"These routes today are just a taste of what's possible if `decision' would replace `dithering' as the tourism policy of Bertie Ahern's government," he said.

The government last year broke up Aer Rianta, the state company that ran Ireland's three largest airports, into three competing companies.

Aer Rianta opposed Ryanair's proposals, which called for a second Dublin terminal to be built that would be reserved for low-budget rivals of Aer Lingus. The newly formed Dublin Airport Authority hasn't spelled out any expansion plans yet.

hkskyline

January 29th, 2005, 05:51 PM

easyJet aims to boost self-service check-ins after Geneva test
Wed Jan 26,11:02 PM ET

GENEVA (AFP) - Low-cost airline easyJet hopes to roll out self-service check-in kiosks at airports across Europe if a test of the time-saving method is a success in Geneva, its busiest winter destination, a top official said.

"The goal is really, more and more, to put in place this system in airports," said Jean-Marc Thevenaz, the director of easyJet Switzerland, noting that it reduces passengers' check-in time by about 50 percent and cuts costs.

Either Berlin or Basel is likely to be next on the British-based carrier's list of airports to switch to the self-service model, he said.

"We want to go everywhere," Thevenaz told a group of reporters on Tuesday.

The trademark orange-coloured kiosks, shaped like slot machines at a games centre, enable easyJet to handle more passengers for a larger number of flights at the same time, he explained.

From now on, all easyJet travellers from Geneva must either insert a credit card into one of a bunch of new machines erected in the departure hall, enter a reservation number or type in their name to receive a boarding pass.

Anyone with luggage to stow onboard must register for a coded luggage label. They are then required to queue up at the old check-in counters where a member of staff takes the bag, weighs it and checks the passenger's passport.

"It seems crazy because you do all the stuff with the machine and the bags and then you have to go to the kiosk anyway to check again," complained one passenger, Alan McKenzie, a 45-year-old software worker from Britain who had just sampled the system for the first time.

"I don't see how it is more efficient for easyJet," he said, clutching a new, credit card-sized boarding pass for his afternoon flight home.

Thevenaz, however, argued that staff had to be present to ensure the luggage being loaded onto a plane belonged to the correct passenger for security reasons, adding that the time spent on this was now much shorter.

EasyJet tested its do-it-yourself kiosks at a smaller airport in Nottingham, England, last summer but the Geneva venture is its largest to-date.

"It is the test for us. If we pass this one we can install our system anywhere," said Thevenaz, noting that the Geneva airport was the firm's busiest in winter due to the large number of skiers and the high volume of awkward luggage, such as skis and snowboards.

Most passengers passing through departures appeared at ease with the new system as plenty of easyJet staff were on hand to explain how it worked.

"It is the first time that I have seen these machines and I think they are great. It seems faster than the old method," said Marcelle Thiery, a 47-year-old Spanish engineer heading home to Madrid.

With 18 kiosks on the Swiss side of the airport that have been operational since last week and five on the French-side that have been in use since mid-December, easyJet wants to demonstrate that airports need to change.

"The way we manage people, the way we manage luggage has not been changed for 10 to 25 years," said the easyJet executive.

"The volume we are bringing to the airport is so big we cannot just continue to have a row of check-in counters. That does not work any longer," he said, underlining that the company's passenger traffic through Geneva had jumped from zero in 1998 to two million annually and was set to rise further.

A second terminal being planned for the airport next year should boost passenger figures to four million by 2007, Thevenaz added.

For his part, Jean-Pierre Jobin, chief executive of Geneva International Airport, welcomed the move by easyJet, while noting that longhaul fliers such as British Airways and Swiss already offered a self-service check-in option.

"It increases the productivity and it reduces the cost... It is the future," he told AFP.

Ultimately Jobin said he wanted one type of kiosk that could be used by all airlines rather than each relying on their own machine.

hkskyline

January 30th, 2005, 05:39 PM

BAA and Ryanair row over charges
By KEVIN DONE
29 January 2005
Financial Times

BAA, the UK airports operator, has doubled its provision against Ryanair's unpaid airport charges at London Stansted airport from Pounds 7m to Pounds 14m.

BAA claims that the Irish low-cost carrier has repudiated its previous low-cost deal by its failure to pay all of its landing charges, and since last summer, it has been charging Ryanair at Stansted's full landing charge rate, excluding any discounts.

The provision has been set at Pounds 7m a quarter.

Stansted is Ryanair's most important operating base in Europe, and tensions between the two groups are expected to intensify as BAA seeks to increase charges generally at Stansted in coming years in order to finance the ambitious expansion of the airport.

The expansion plans include building a second runway.

They have been locked in litigation since last summer and have issued counter-writs, with BAA claiming that Ryanair has failed to pay its full charges, while the airline claims that the fuel levy charged by BAA at Stansted is excessive and unlawful.

BAA said that it was confident of winning the dispute, but, given the court action, it had established the provision.

The group, the world's largest airports operator, announced yesterday that it had increased its pre-tax profit in the first nine months of the financial year to the end of March 2005 by 18.1 per cent, from Pounds 441m to Pounds 521m.

Underlying profit, before tax and exceptional items, rose by 16.8 per cent from Pounds 441m to Pounds 515m.

BAA booked an exceptional profit of Pounds 12m in the third quarter from the disposal of Jurys Inn Hotel at Heathrow airport.

BAA passenger traffic at its seven airports in the UK - led by Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted - rose by 6.5 per cent in the first nine months to 110.6m, and Mike Clasper, chief executive, said the group remained on track to achieve its forecast passenger growth of more than 6 per cent for the full year.

In the first nine months, operating profits at Heathrow rose from Pounds 290m to Pounds 312m, at Gatwick from Pounds 84m to Pounds 93m, and at Stansted from Pounds 32m to Pounds 41m.

RafflesCity

January 30th, 2005, 05:43 PM

Sons of Ryanair founder come in for a landing - at The Sail

27 Jan 05

$9.4 million price tag: Sources say the Ryans have bought all 11 units on the 16th floor at The Sail, shown here in the artist's drawing as the white towers

By KALPANA RASHIWALA

(SINGAPORE) Two scions of Tony Ryan, the founder of Irish budget airline Ryanair, have bought an entire floor of The Sail@Marina Bay for about $9.4 million or $922 per square foot, sources told BT yesterday.

http://business-times.asia1.com.sg/mnt/media/image/launched/2005-01-27/krryan-235813.jpg

Brothers Cathal and Declan Ryan, who are in their 40s, are said to have picked up all 11 apartments on the 16th floor of the 70-storey tower that The Sail's developers, City Developments and AIG, began selling in late October.

The brothers are said to be looking at re-arranging the layout of the apartments on the floor they have bought. The transaction was inked a few days ago.

Gerry de Silva, spokesman for CityDev's parent, the Hong Leong Group, told BT yesterday there had been an en bloc sale of an entire floor located 'between the 15th and 20th storeys' to British investors at $9.4 million - but he would not confirm the buyers' names or the floor.

He said, however, that the 11 apartments they bought comprise six sea-facing units and five with city views.

The one, two and three-bedroom apartments add up to 10,215 sq ft.

To date, CityDev and AIG have sold 555 of the 681 apartments in The Sail's taller tower. They have yet to announce plans for other block, with 63 storeys and 430 apartments.

The average price achieved so far for the 99-year leasehold condo is $967 psf.

Mr de Silva said about 38 per cent of the buyers are foreigners, including mainland Chinese, Hong Kongers, Malaysians, Britons, Americans and investors from the Indian subcontinent.

The Sail is the first condo coming up in the Marina Bay area where Singapore's Central Business District extension is being developed. At 70 storeys, it will, when completed, be Singapore's tallest residential project and the world's highest apartment buildings.

Cathal and Declan were understood to be looking for an en bloc deal involving several contiguous high-rise floors at The Sail, but these are no longer available in the tower that has been released for sale.

The Ryan family is one of the richest in the UK, according to The Sunday Times Rich List 2004.

The family is aiming to repeat its European budget carrier success in Asia. The Ryans' private investment arm, Irelandia Investments, has a 16 per cent stake in Tiger Airways, the low-cost carrier started by Singapore Airlines.

hkskyline

January 31st, 2005, 06:38 PM

Ryanair Profits Decline 16 Percent
By JANE WARDELL
31 January 2005

LONDON (AP) - Ryanair Holdings PLC blamed high oil prices and intense competition for a 16 percent drop in third-quarter net profit reported Monday. The result was better than expected, however, and the low-cost airline raised its full-year profit outlook.

Net profit for the quarter fell to 34.5 million euros ($44.96 million) from 40.96 million euros a year ago. Revenues increased 15 percent to 294.44 million euros ($383.74 million) from 254.99 million euros and passenger volumes rose 13 percent to 6.9 million.

Chief Executive Michael O'Leary said fuel costs would keep affecting earnings, but that the airline continued to "grow strongly and profitably in spite of adverse market conditions."

Ryanair said that yields, or average fares, rose by 1 percent, as opposed to the airline's earlier warning of a likely 5 percent to 10 percent decline.

O'Leary said that based on current booking trends, yields for the fourth quarter could be as much as 5 percent higher than in the previous corresponding quarter.

Ryanair is now expecting to record a net profit before exceptional items and goodwill of 246 million euros ($320 million) in the year to March 31, 2005, Chief Financial Officer Howard Miller said. The carrier had previously expected at least 200 million euros ($260 million).

Ryanair shares rose 7.5 percent to 6.31 euros ($8.22) in afternoon trading on the London Stock Exchange.

O'Leary said the better-than-expected yield development in the quarter was largely due to capacity reductions by competitors and the impact of fuel surcharges made by full-service airlines such as British Airways PLC and Deutsche Lufthansa AG. Those surcharges made Ryanair's fares "more attractive" to European consumers, he said.

The airline said it will continue to hedge against fuel prices -- its hedging contracts expired at the end of October 2004 but were restarted at the end of November as prices fell. It is currently hedged at around $41 a barrel through to March. Benchmark light, sweet crude for March delivery was trading at $46.10 a barrel Monday, down $1.08.

Deputy chief executive officer Michael Cawley said the airline expects yields to head lower again next financial year, possibly by about 3-4 percent.

The carrier also announced Monday that it will begin operating three Italian domestic routes in April, its first venture into the local market there. The routes, starting April 28, would connect Rome to Alghero in Sardinia, to Venice and to Verona.

In less positive news, the airline reported a disappointing trial of its new onboard entertainment service, which offers videos and music for 5 pounds ($6.50) per flight, partly due to an initial lack of availability of non-English language content.

O'Leary said the service issues had been resolved but the airline will not roll out the service across its fleet "unless we see a significant improvement in customer take-up."

hkskyline

January 31st, 2005, 06:39 PM

Ryanair launches three Italian domestic routes
31 January 2005

ROME (AP) - The budget airline Ryanair said Monday that it would start operating three Italian domestic routes in April.

The three new routes would connect Rome to Alghero in Sardinia, to Venice and to Verona in northeastern Italy, starting April 28, Ryanair said.

The airline said it would operate up to 10 daily flights for the three routes, starting from a euro4.99 (US$6.5) fare.

It's the first time that the airline launches domestic routes in Italy, and the move is seen as a challenge to Italian state-run carrier Alitalia.

Speaking at a news conference in Rome, Ryanair Chief Executive Michael O'Leary said his company's low-fare routes "mean Italian consumers can now fly for a fraction of Alitalia's high fares."

hkskyline

January 31st, 2005, 06:40 PM

Ryanair Exec: Sees 34M Passengers In Yr To Mar 2006
31 January 2005

LONDON (Dow Jones)--Ryanair Holdings PLC expects to carry 34 million passengers in its financial year ending March 31 2006, Deputy Chief Executive Michael Cawley said Monday.

Cawley was speaking to reporters after the company reported third quarter results that were much better than analysts expected.

The deputy CEO said the airline is expecting to carry about 27.5 million passengers in the current financial year ending March 31, 2005 compared to 23.1 million in the previous year.

Ryanair said Monday it now expects yields - or average fares - to rise by up to 5% in the fourth quarter ending March 31. Based on the expected increase in passenger numbers, Cawley said yields are then expected to fall in the next financial year, possibly by 3-4% from a year earlier.

"Fares are going up to the three-month period at the end of March, after that we expect them to fall," he said. The increase in yields during the fourth quarter is partly due to a comparative steep 22% fall in the year earlier quarter.

hkskyline

February 1st, 2005, 06:48 PM

Ryanair and easyJet go to war over Ireland
Robert Lea, Evening Standard,
30 January 2005

EUROPE's two premier budget airlines went to war today as easyJet launched its first services to Ryanair's backyard.

The easyJet services from Gatwick to Shannon and Knock are also the only routes in Europe on which the two compete directly.

With Ryanair opening on Gatwick-Shannon in the spring, the first head-to-head battle between them will be to Knock in the west of Ireland, a seemingly inauspicious route but one likely to offer a window to a future in which the airlines will take on each other more aggressively.

'If you ask me why they have picked a fight over Knock of all places, the answer is God only knows,' said one aviation analyst, pointing to the fact that, between them, the two operate more than 400 routes.

'What I do know is that we are likely to get more of the same.'

EasyJet said in the autumn it was flying to the Republic just days after Ryanair announced it would start flying from Britain to provincial Spain, previously seen as the preserve of easyJet.

Weeks later, Stansted-based Ryanair said it would launch on the same Irish routes out of Gatwick.

Ray Webster, chief executive of easyJet, denied his move was titfortat and has attempted to remain diplomatic in explaining his act of aggression.

'Fares to the Republic of Ireland in many cases have remained stubbornly high and have generatedconsistently strong yearroundreturns for the incumbent airline [Ryanair],' he said.

An easyJet spokesman added: 'We are not going to enter into a war of words but, wherever we see price-gouging by an incumbent airline, we'll look at adding capacity. Ryanair's profit margins on these routes are twice what they are anywhere else.'

Ryanair co-deputy chief executive Howard Millar hit back.

'They are free to fly where they want to and if they want competition they can have competition,' he said.

'We will be happy to take the game to them. They seem to think there is a pot of gold buried somewhere in the west of Ireland. What we don't understand is that they have always said they fly to big secondary airports around Europe. So why are they flying to a small village on top of a hill on top of a bog?'

Knock's fame, such as it is, comes from the Catholic shrine which has attracted millions of pilgrims. A hundred years after 15 locals witnessed an apparition of the Virgin Mary, Saint Joseph and Saint John, Knock got the papal seal of approval in 1979 with a visit from the newly-installed Pope John Paul.

hkskyline

February 2nd, 2005, 05:49 PM

Ryanair's in-flight movies a turn-off
01 February 2005
The Guardian

Ryanair's passengers have turned up their noses at the chance to pay euros 7 (pounds 5) for the privilege of watching a Hollywood movie or a cartoon on the low-cost airline's flights.

The budget carrier admitted yesterday that an in-flight entertainment system has flopped in trials run since November on five aircraft based at Stansted airport.

It intends to cut the price from euros 7 to euros 5 to stimulate demand. If that fails, it will drop the system, which the Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary predicted would generate "enormous sums of money".

Ryanair disclosed the setback as it announced a fall in profits from euros 47.5m to euros 35m in the three months to December.

Howard Millar, deputy chief executive, said of the system: "Initial trials haven't been as good as we'd like."

He said the cause was partly a lack of foreign-language films, as only half of Ryanair's passengers speak English as a first language. He added that fewer children flew during the winter, which meant that cartoons had failed to take off.

Ryanair based the pay-as-you-go televisions on technology used in the US by budget carriers such as JetBlue. Other European airlines have been watching its progress keenly. Industry sources say that easyJet is planning a similar trial this year.

Profits at Ryanair were hit by a 68% leap in fuel costs to euros 72m. Ryanair's passenger numbers increased by 13% to 6.9m. Average fares were broadly flat.

hkskyline

February 5th, 2005, 04:20 AM

easyJet, Europe's leading low cost airline today launches its first new routes from the Republic of Ireland, connecting Cork, Knock and Shannon to London's Gatwick airport
28 January 2005 Corporate Press Release

From Cork, easyJet will operate a twice daily service with a morning and evening departure which allows a good day return for the business traveller.

From Shannon, easyJet begins with a daily service, which will increase to twice daily from the 21 April 2005 and there will be a daily service from Knock.

These new services are expected to attract both business and leisure travellers alike, as the routes have strong tourism, VFR and business connections in both directions, with the inbound traffic helping boosting the local economy in Ireland. Advance sales have been strong and easyJet expects to carry close to 1/2 million passengers in the first 12 months.

All three routes are available to book on easyJet.com from €17.99 one way (€25.98 return including taxes).

Ed Winter, easyJet's Chief Operating Officer joining the celebrations at all three airports today and commented:

"It is an exciting day for easyJet and we are delighted to be starting these new services, the Republic of Ireland is a practically untapped market for low cost services and air fares in the regions have been too high for too long. easyJet is now providing hundreds of thousands of Irish travellers the opportunity to access the South of England through our Gatwick gateway with our well established product at great low fares".

Monkey

February 7th, 2005, 12:49 PM

Rolling 12 month passenger totals to December 2004:
EasyJet = 25,716,329
Ryanair = 26,582,833

Percentage increase in passengers since December 2003:
EasyJet = 28%
Ryanair = 9%

Load factor (ie percentage bums on seats) in December 2004:
EasyJet = 81%
Ryanair = 83%Rolling 12 month passenger totals to January 2005:
EasyJet = 26,116,482
Ryanair = 26,918,454

Percentage increase in passengers since January 2004:
EasyJet = 22.8%
Ryanair = 20%

Load factor (ie percentage bums on seats) in January 2005:
EasyJet = 84.4%
Ryanair = 74%

hkskyline

February 7th, 2005, 05:36 PM

Easyjet passenger numbers take off in January

LONDON, Feb 7 (AFP) - British low-cost airline easyJet announced Monday that it carried 2.08 million passengers in January -- an increase of 23.8 percent on the same month last year.

EasyJet added it was "performing positively" during the second quarter, but cautioned that "visibility remains limited".

The no-frills airline said the load factor -- passengers as a proportion of the number of seats available -- was 76.4 percent, down 0.8 percentage points on January 2004.

Figures for the first quarter (October to December 2004) were broadly in line with the company's forecasts, the airline said in a trading update.

In morning trade, easyJet shares were up 0.2 percent to 232.5 pence, having earlier touched 238 pence -- its highest level since last June 2004 but still well below last year's high of 380 pence, reached before two profit warnings.

Total revenue per passenger slipped 0.8 percent to 41.87 pounds (59.80 euros) during the last three months of 2004, while the airline carried 6.7 million passengers, up 26 percent on the same period of the previous year.

The load factor for the quarter was 83.0 percent, up 0.6 points from the first quarter of 2003.

Meanwhile, the total number of passengers flying with easyJet increased by 22.8 percent in the twelve months to January to 26.1 million people.

The airline noted a 2.0 percent drop in average fares to 39.04 pounds was offset by a focus on ancillary revenue -- through improvements to on-board services and its excess baggage policy -- which increased by 21 percent as a result.

"To date the second quarter (of which January is the first month) is performing positively; however, as with any airline, visibility remains limited, and part of the positive performance will be due to the timing of Easter," said chief executive Ray Webster.

"As previously indicated, we have had a sound first quarter with load factor and total revenue per passenger little changed from last year," he added.

Monkey

February 7th, 2005, 11:20 PM

Low-cost founding fathers
http://www.economist.com/printedition/displayStory.cfm?Story_ID=3598896

Jan 27th 2005
From The Economist print edition

How cheap air flights are bringing Europeans together

BRUSSELS is full of monuments to the “builders of Europe”. There is the Schuman district, the Monnet circle, the Spinelli building. It may now be time for a Stelios Square or a Boulevard O'Leary. For in recent years, Stelios Haji-Ioannou and Michael O'Leary, the two pioneers of Europe's low-cost airlines, have done more to integrate Europe than any numbers of diplomats and ministers. They have helped to create a new generation for whom travelling to another European country is no longer exotic or expensive, but utterly commonplace.

On a recent Friday night at Stansted airport, near London, it was easy to see how people's lives have changed. There was Ettore Thermes, an Italian financier, who commutes every week between his home in Rome and his office in London and says “I use the plane like a bus.” Or Suzy Romer, a Scottish student visiting her boyfriend in Bilbao, who noted that “what these airlines do is let you live in two countries at once.” Then there was a group of middle-aged men and women, who schedule weekends away in Europe around the fixtures of Leicester rugby club: that particular weekend they were heading for Bergamo in northern Italy. And there were American backpackers marvelling at the fact that their flights to Barcelona had cost the same as their train tickets from London to Stansted.

None of these people had paid more than £50 ($95) for their flights. All agreed that they were taking journeys, and indeed making choices about their lives, that would have been quite impossible before the low-cost revolution. Indeed Europeans are now so blasé about hopping on a plane that confusion can easily result. Last summer your correspondent got chatting to a British traveller still hanging around the airport in Rodez, in France's Massif Central, more than an hour after the arrival of her Ryanair flight. “My friends will be arriving by boat soon,” she asserted confidently. On further questioning, it emerged that she thought she was on the Greek island of Rhodes.

Confusion, if not perhaps on this scale, is understandable. The network of low-cost routes around Europe is huge. From Stansted that Friday, Ryanair alone was flying to some 70 different destinations, as far apart as Aarhus in Denmark and Zaragoza in Spain. EasyJet was flying to 25 cities, with a further 25 served from Luton. And although the low-cost revolution began in Britain and Ireland, and is still best-established in these two countries, it has now spread right across the continent.

The new EU members in Central Europe are the latest to catch the bug: they have a favourable combination of low labour costs, interesting new destinations and populations eager to taste the new freedom of travelling west without a visa. Wizz is based in Hungary and Poland; SkyEurope flies from Slovakia and Poland. In Germany Lufthansa now has 12 low-cost competitors on domestic routes. Some newcomers such as Air Polonia and Italy's Volare have gone bust, but other new carriers seem to pop up almost every week. The industry is still expanding rapidly. Low-cost airlines carried 80m passengers in Europe in 2004, up from 47m in 2003. They have over 20% of the European market today and may reach 40% by 2010.

The inspiration for the low-cost revolution came from America, and particularly from the success of Southwest Airlines. The British and Irish were the first to pick up on the trend, in the early 1990s. As Anglophone countries, they are often quicker to copy ideas from the United States; and their relatively flexible labour markets, affluent consumers and island geographies also encouraged low-cost carriers. The surge in British holidaymakers buying houses in France is closely linked to the rise of low-cost airlines. And it is not just travellers who feel the benefits. Entire regional economies have felt the impact. The city of Carcassonne in south-west France reckons that the 235,000 passengers who arrive every year on low-cost airlines have created over €270m ($360m) of extra economic activity.

On the downside

Inevitably, there are grumblers. Many believe that rising oil prices and increasing competition must lead to a big shake-out in the industry. Even Mr O'Leary has warned of an impending “bloodbath”. Some of the prices on offer are so low that one wonders wickedly whether some of the airlines might not have a more profitable sideline: smuggling? piracy? But even if a bloodbath did take place, it seems safe to say that the low-cost habit is now so firmly established in Europe that the days of rip-off airfares will never return.

So much the worse, groan environmentalists, who complain that the spread of low-cost airlines is hugely polluting and a prime contributor to global warming. The European Commission in Brussels is looking into raising “aircraft emissions charges” to take account of their environmental costs. The commission is already unpopular with Mr O'Leary for ruling that Ryanair received illegal state-aid from the local government in Charleroi, its Belgian base. The low-cost airlines are also angry about new EU regulations passed last year that could increase compensation for passengers whose flights are cancelled.

Yet nobody should lose sight of the fact that the Eurocrats and the low-cost carriers are natural allies. The conditions for Europe's airline upheaval were created by EU legislation. Through a succession of liberalisation packages, the commission broke the power of national flag-carriers to monopolise routes between and within European countries. It is EU law that allows a low-cost British upstart such as easyJet to compete with Air France on such lucrative domestic routes as Paris-Toulouse. By allowing newcomers to enter the market, Brussels has achieved that rare thing: an unambiguous triumph both for European consumers and for the ideal of “ever closer union” in Europe. When they have stopped arguing with Mr O'Leary, the Eurocrats might consider putting up a statue to him.

hkskyline

February 8th, 2005, 03:23 PM

EU Commission confirms drafting guidelines on aid to regional airports
8 February 2005

BRUSSELS (AFX) - The European Commission confirmed it is currently drafting legally-binding guidelines to regulate state aid to regional airports following its battle with low-cost airline Ryanair PLC last year.

'The Ryanair case was a precedent,' said Stefaan de Rynck, spokesman for transport commissioner Jacques Barrot. 'Following that, we said we would make rules for all 25 member states so that governments and airport managers know what the conditions are if they want to grant state aid.'

Under the new plans, due to be unveiled officially by the commission today, governments would be able to grant state aid to attract low-cost airlines to poorly-served regional airports under certain conditions.

According to a report in the Financial Times this morning, aid would only be allowed to airports with fewer than 5 mln passengers a year.

Last February, Ryanair was ordered by the commission to repay 4 mln eur of state aid given at Charleroi airport in Belgium.

The guidelines will come into force this summer after consultation with member states, De Rynck said.

hkskyline

February 10th, 2005, 05:35 AM

easyJet Adds Two New Routes, Daily Services
9 February 2005

LONDON (Dow Jones)--easyJet said Wednesday that it would be expanding its operations from both London Luton and London Stansted Airports with the addition of two new routes.

The daily service from Stansted to Oviedo Airport in Asturias will commence on Mar. 24, whilst the daily service from Luton to Grenoble will commence on Apr. 20.

Chief Executive Ray Webster said the new routes "will further diversify our choice of destinations from our bases at Luton and Stansted."

"By maximising our operational opportunities, we can introduce the completely new destination of Asturias to our network, as well as provide our Luton passengers with access to the Rhone-Alps region," he added.

easyjet said the new routes have been made possible by the transfer of the current daily Grenoble service from Stansted to Luton, allowing space in the schedule for the new Asturias service.

Stansted passengers can still access the Rhone-Alps regions with the twice daily Lyon service, whilst Luton passengers now have a new exciting destination to choose from. The Stansted to Grenoble service will end on Apr. 19 and begin at Luton on Apr. 20.

hkskyline

February 11th, 2005, 12:33 AM

Ryanair offers "free" tickets for SAS loss
10 February 2005
Airline Industry Information

Irish budget airline Ryanair has said that it wants to give away 10,000 "free" tickets for every SEK100m that the Scandinavian airline SAS reports in loss.

According to Ryanair, this would be a "tax return" for the Scandinavian tax payers. SAS was expected to report its results today (10 February). Lotta Lindquist-Brosjo, Ryanair's Nordic director, has told boarding.no that the offer has a basis at least in the fact that SAS is a state-owned airline and one of Ryanair's main competitors in the Nordic region.

The tickets offered by Ryanair will however not be completely free - the travellers will have to pay taxes and fees and the tickets will only be valid for travel on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

hkskyline

February 15th, 2005, 09:32 PM

Brussels Charerloi Airport Gets OK For New Terminal
Feb. 15, 2005

BRUSSELS (Dow Jones)--Belgium's regional Charleroi airport, home to Irish airline Ryanair Holdings PLC, Tuesday said it has received the go-ahead to build a new passenger terminal.

Charleroi airport, owned by the regional government of Wallonia, said the approval was an important step in its development plans. Construction work will begin this year with a view to the terminal becoming operational in time for the peak summer season of 2007.

No financial details were released.

With an annual capacity of 3 million passengers the new building will provide a more comfortable environment for passengers and also offer airlines more modern facilities.

Charleroi airport plays an important role in Wallonia by providing jobs in a region depressed by the closure of steel mills and other industry.

hkskyline

February 16th, 2005, 09:25 PM

Ryanair Carries 3 Million at Liverpool
Corporate Press Release

Ryanair, Europe's No.1 low fares airline, today (16th Feb 2005) celebrated carrying 3M passengers through Liverpool airport by putting 30,000 FREE SEATS up for grabs on 5 new European routes that will be launched from Liverpool from March this year.

Ryanair's Head of Communications, Peter Sherrard, today at Liverpool John Lennon Airport said;

"Ryanair is delighted to carry 3M passengers and give away 30,000 free seats to celebrate. Our new European routes from March and will bring the total number of low fare Ryanair routes from Liverpool to 13.

Over the next year, Ryanair will carry up to 1.5M passengers through Liverpool's John Lennon airport. This new base will make Liverpool the low fare airport in the North of England and make it a tourism gateway for over 1 million European visitors to Merseyside over the next 12 months.

hkskyline

February 18th, 2005, 11:08 PM

Irish Labor Union Backs Ryanair Call For Dublin Terminal
18 February 2005

DUBLIN (Dow Jones)--Ireland's largest labor union Friday threw its support behind Ryanair Holdings PLC's calls for a second terminal at Dublin Airport.

Jack O'Connor, president of the Services, Industrial, Professional & Technical Union said the union "strongly favors" a second terminal.

He "rejected any suggestion" that there were conflicting views within SIPTU on the issue that could jeopardize plans for the new terminal.

No-frills airline Ryanair's chief executive officer Michael O'Leary has repeatedly called for a second terminal at Dublin Airport, promising 5,000 jobs if it's built.

Analysts now say it looks likely Ryanair will get its wish, with SIPTU's support and recent indications that the government is finally making progress on the issue.

Earlier this week, Ireland's transport minister Martin Cullen said he was working on a series of proposals to present to Prime Minister Bertie Ahern.

-By Quentin Fottrell, Dow Jones Newswires

hkskyline

February 19th, 2005, 06:31 PM

State 'must own' second Dublin air terminal
Paul Melia
19 February 2005
Irish Independent

THE COUNTRY's largest trade union Siptu said yesterday a second terminal for Dublin Airport should be built and run by the public sector, not a private group.

General president Jack O'Connor said a second terminal owned by the Dublin Airport Authority was the union's preferred option. Only in the absence of this would the union support the McEvaddy brothers in building a terminal.

This support would only be offered if there was agreement that the McEvaddy project would not affect quality of jobs at the new terminal. The union's civil aviation branch said it had been in talks with the McEvaddy-led group on the possibility of a "substantial" employee shareholding in a private terminal. In a letter to Taoiseach Bertie Ahern released yesterday, Mr O'Connor said a second terminal formed a "key component" of aviation infrastructure. It noted that maintaining security and quality of employment was reflected in an agreement reached by the Government and the Irish Congress of Trade Unions during Sustaining Progress talks last summer.

Members were not confident that assurances on employment would be delivered, it warned. It was in these circumstances that the civil aviation branch at Dublin Airport engaged in exploratory discussions with Ulick McEvaddy and others with a view to developing a proposal, the letter continued.

"I also wish to advise that a company would be established to handle the airport workers' interest in any private project and the union would not be directly involved," the letter added. Adoption of the preferred option would contribute to stability of industrial relations, the letter concluded.

hkskyline

February 20th, 2005, 02:20 AM

Appeal win for Ryanair in flight delay row
Ray Managh
19 February 2005
Irish Independent

A 74-YEAR-OLD woman and her three daughters stranded in fog at Liverpool's John Lennon Airport were told they would have to wait four days for their next Ryanair flight home to Dublin, a court heard yesterday.

Judge Alison Lindsay said in the Circuit Civil Court that while she had great sympathy for the shabby way in which the four women had been treated she was unable to compensate them.

She overturned a €281 award which Lorraine Byrne had won in the Small Claims Court for her mother and two sisters - the extra money the foursome had to pay Cityjet to fly them to Belfast where they got a bus to Dublin.

Ms Byrne, of The Court, Woodpark, Ballinteer, Dublin, said the family group had spent a wonderful four days in Liverpool.

But they had to collect their suitcases from the apron of the airport and spend the night in a very cold departures lounge without food or beverage until the Cityjet flight took off at 6am. Her mother, who suffered from arthritis, did not have enough medication left and they could in no way consider waiting around the airport for four days until the next Ryanair flight to Dublin.

She told Mr Peter Lennon, solicitor for Ryanair, that the airline refunded the group €120 in accordance with the terms and conditions of their flight contract. She said when she booked the tickets on the internet she was aware she accepted Ryanair's limitedliability.

Mr Lennon said the terms stated the airline did not provide meals or refreshments or hotel accommodation but refunded the value of the cancelled flight.

Siobhan O'Neill, deputy head of Ryanair's Customer Service Department, said Ms Byrne had a choice of accepting seats on the next available Ryanair flight out of Liverpool, which was not until the following Tuesday, or accepting a refund which Ryanair had paid.

Judge Lindsay, overturning the Small Claims Court award, said Ms Byrne had accepted Ryanair's terms and conditions of carriage and could not therefore expect to recover the extra expense of the Cityjet seats and the bus fares from Belfast to Dublin.

Air passengers gained sweeping rights under new EU rules introduced this week which oblige airlines to offer compensation for delays, cancellations and overbookings.

The European Commission has told the Government to set up an independent body to deal with passengers complaints against airlines.

hkskyline

February 23rd, 2005, 08:35 AM

Ryanair concealed the true price of flights, court told
Brian Farmer
23 February 2005
Irish Independent

RYANAIR concealed the true price of flights - including some to Ireland - and misled travellers about the cost of flying with a rival, it was alleged yesterday.

The budget airline failed to clearly spell out how much insurance and tax charges added to the price of a seat, Chelmsford Crown Court was told. The company's internet advertising also exaggerated the cost of flying with rival firm Buzz, prosecutors alleged.

Trading Standards Officers from Essex Co Council, who are bringing the prosecution, alleged Ryanair's internet advertising breached consumer protection legislation.

The airline denies 18 charges of misleading customers on a website advertising flights from Stansted Airport in Essex to countries including Italy, Germany, France, Spain and the Republic of Ireland.

Trading Standards Officer, Amanda Farrell, told a jury of seven men and five women she began investigating the adverts in March 2003 after reading media reports about the likelihood of Ryanair taking over Buzz. Ms Farrell added that the Ryanair website quoted a number of Buzz fares.

And she added: "I did notice the Buzz fares which I had just seen (on the Buzz website) seemed to be lower than the fares I was reading on Ryanair."

She found a Buzz flight from Stansted to Frankfurt for £21. Ryanair claimed the flight cost £34. Ms Farrell said she found a Buzz flight to La Rochelle for £21. The Ryanair website claimed the flight cost £54. She found a Buzz flight to Toulouse, France for £29. Ryanair's website claimed the flight cost £42, she said.

Ms Farrell added that officials then broadened the inquiry and examined Ryanair's claims about its own flights. She detailed a number of advertised prices for Ryanair flights from Stansted then explained how the price was higher when additional costs were taken into account. She said the indication that the fare was "exclusive of taxes" was not given until later in the booking process.

The hearing continues.

Monkey

February 24th, 2005, 04:20 PM

Ryanair in $4bn Boeing plane deal
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4293531.stm

Budget airline Ryanair has placed an order for 70 Boeing 737-800 planes, in a deal valued at $4bn (£2.1bn) which should lead to 2,500 new Ryanair jobs.

It also has an option for a further 70 aircraft, a move which brings the Ryanair/Boeing order book up to 225 firm orders and options on 193 more.

Ryanair said the new planes would help it to cut operating costs further.

The carrier reported a drop in quarterly profit earlier this year after it was hit by higher fuel costs.

However, when it reported the results, the airline was upbeat about prospects for 2005, despite tough competition in the budget airline market.

Saving cash

Ryanair chairman David Bonderman said that the 737-800 had "significantly reduced our unit operating costs and allowed us to reduce air fares each year for the last five years".

"With this new order and new pricing in place, Ryanair expects that unit operating costs (excluding fuel) will continue to fall each year for the next five years," he added.

At the end of this year, Ryanair will have taken delivery of about 100 new planes, while the 70 new orders are due for delivery between 2008 and 2012.

The airline said that when all these planes have been delivered, it will be able to carry more than 70 million passengers a year, making it Europe's largest airline. About 2,500 new jobs should be created in the next seven years, it added.

The order can be seen as good news for Boeing, which in recent years has been overtaken by European plane maker Airbus as the world's biggest-selling plane maker.

hkskyline

February 24th, 2005, 07:57 PM

easyJet: Business Continues To Perform Solidly
24 February 2005
Dow Jones International News

LONDON (Dow Jones)--EasyJet said Thursday that to date the second quarter is performing positively and in line with expectations; part of the positive performance will be due to the timing of Easter.

Speaking at the annual meeting Chairman Colin Chandler said: "EasyJet's business continues to perform solidly. However, there are still challenges ahead and much remains to be achieved".

"Making predictions in this business is no easy task and, as with our competitors, visibility remains limited. We can safely say that competition will continue from low cost carriers and from the established airlines", Sir Colin said.

He added that volatility in the price of fuel is inevitable as well.

"These challenges are being met by constant attention to cost efficiencies by the management team and continued emphasis on increasing revenue from all sources available to the company."

hkskyline

February 27th, 2005, 10:52 PM

February 24, 2005, Thursday
We'll dwarf BA by 2010, says Ryanair
By Robert Lea, Evening Standard (UK)

Ryanair will dwarf British Airways by the end of the decade, the Irish budget airline's chief executive Michael O'Leary boasted today after putting in another multi-billion dollar order for new Boeing aircraft.

The order for 70 more Boeing 737-800s will enable the carrier to double the number of passengers it aims to carry annually to 70 million by 2010, up from the 34 million it plans to carry this year. That, said O'Leary, will make it Europe's biggest airline, taking more passengers around the continent than industry giant Lufthansa carries around the world. Lufthansa had 50 million passengers last year and is growing much more slowly than Ryanair. BA had 35 million and its growth is almost flat.

Ryanair already has 155 Boeings being delivered over the next few years and by 2010 its fleet will have quadrupled from the 51 aircraft the airline was flying last year.

The new aircraft have a list price of $ 57 million (30 million) each but Ryanair, which leases rather than buying many of them, is likely to have negotiated hefty discounts.

hkskyline

March 2nd, 2005, 05:47 PM

Ryanair sees 1.5 mln passengers through Shannon in first year of operation
2 March 2005

LONDON (AFX) - Ryanair Holdings PLC said it expect to carry over 1.5 mln passengers through its new base at Shannon Airport in its first year of operation.

The company said it had already received 200,000 advance bookings for Shannon routes, where it starts services on May 3.

hkskyline

March 4th, 2005, 01:20 AM

Ryanair Loses Case Over Ads
Associated Press
3 March 2005
The Wall Street Journal

LONDON -- A British court ruled that Ryanair misled customers about the price of some flights but said the budget airline could keep listing before-tax fares as long as it warned customers it was doing so.

A Chelmsford Crown Court jury found the Dublin-based Ryanair Holdings PLC guilty of six breaches of the Consumer Protection Act for Web-site promotions in which it omitted the words "excluding tax." Ryanair said the omission in six instances was accidental.

The jury said that in cases where the words "excluding tax" appeared, Ryanair wasn't guilty of misleading customers, validating its practice of advertising prices that don't include tax.

The prosecution, led by Essex County Council's trading-standards officers, had argued that a Web-site ad violated the Consumer Protection Act because it didn't quote the total price.

"This was an unnecessary action against Ryanair," the company said. "This case was brought on the basis of no complaint by a member of the public. Our Web-site page clearly shows consumers that prices quoted are exclusive of taxes and charges. The Web site also includes details of the taxes and charges to be paid by the consumer."

The allegations related to the cost of flights from London Stansted airport, in Essex, to various European destinations.

Mike Hill, head of Essex Council's trading-standards department, said the council would press the national government to require Internet advertisements to quote prices that include tax.

Newspaper, television and billboard advertising must include tax in the prices they give, Mr. Hill said, and he had hoped the court would find that applied to Web sites. The court didn't immediately say whether it would fine the airline for the violations.

SkylineTurbo

March 4th, 2005, 03:25 AM

Contacts with 'Ryan Air'
Invest in Serbia
President of management board of airport in Nis called 'Constantine the Great', Nebojsa Rancic said yesterday that representatives of the airport had made contact with Irish 'Ryan Air'.

'We exchanged with them information regarding technical conditions for traffic of the airport in Nis', Rancic told Beta News Agency.

Nis airport in talks with Ryanair
Invest in Serbia
NIS – The airport authority in the southern Serbian city of Nis has begun discussions with cut-price Irish airline Ryanair.

The chairman of the airport’s board, Nebojsa Rancic, said today that this does not mean that any kind of negotiations are under way and instead described the talks as an exchange of information on technical services available at the airport.

Ryanair operates at bargain-basement prices by using regional and alternative airports throughout the world to avoid the heavy costs of airports in main centres. Cabin service is minimal, with no free food or beverages.

hkskyline

March 4th, 2005, 06:37 PM

Ryanair wants new hub in Germany, in talks with two airports

FRANKFURT, March 4 (AFP) - The Irish cut-price airline Ryanair wants to set up a new hub in Germany and is in talks with two airports to that end, the carrier's chief executive Michael O'Leary said in a newspaper interview published Friday.

"It is highly likely" that Ryanair will open a new base in Germany next year, O'Leary told the Financial Times Deutschland in an interview.

Intensive talks were already under way with two airports, he said, without naming them.

Ryanair currently flies from eight German airports but its main base is the Hahn airport in southwestern Germany, from where it operates six daily flights.

hkskyline

March 7th, 2005, 03:57 AM

EasyJet charges 65p a minute to book by phone
By Jeremy Skidmore
5 March 2005
The Daily Telegraph

Customers calling EasyJet to buy a ticket or amend a booking now have to dial a premium-rate phone line that costs 65p a minute. At the same time, Ryanair has from today closed its reservations line at weekends, so anyone wishing to buy tickets by telephone at this time will have to use a special number costing pounds 1 a minute. Both EasyJet and Ryanair claim that 98 per cent of their bookings are already made online and these changes are aimed at encouraging even more people to follow suit. EasyJet has replaced its national-rate number with three new lines for customers, according to their needs. The number for sales and existing bookings is 0905 821 0905 and costs 65p a minute; for internet support, 0905 560 7777, the charge is pounds 1 per minute and calls to customer services, on 0871 244 2366, cost 10p per minute. A spokeswoman for EasyJet claimed the change was in response to customer demands.

"People don't like to call one number and then be directed to the right department, so we now have three different departments, but we have to cover the costs of managing them,'' she said. "We are an internet company and we want to control the number of phone calls we get in future. It is possible to make all bookings and changes on the internet. A phone line costing 65p a minute will encourage people to do that. "Web support for people having trouble with their site is a specialist area and costs are high, but we have kept customer service calls to 10p per minute because it is not fair if, for example, people have to pay a lot to chase up a grievance they may have.'' Ryanair charges 10p a minute for telephone calls concerning sales and amended bookings from Monday to Friday on 0871 246 0000. But the lines are now shut at weekends and the only available number, 0905 566 0000, is for people having trouble making a reservation via the internet costs pounds 1 per minute. A spokeswoman for Ryanair said: "The sales lines have been shut at the weekend because there really isn't the volume of calls to justify keeping them open.'' Simon Evans from the Air Transport Users Council said that the price increases were "inevitable''. He added: "Of course we would prefer that airlines did not charge so much for customer services, but employing lots of people to answer phones is very costly and if we want to continue having low fares we have to accept that.''

hkskyline

March 8th, 2005, 08:05 AM

easyJet Carried 2,168,985 Passengers In Feb
07 March 2005

LONDON (Dow Jones)--Easyjet said Monday that passenger numbers rose by 16.3% in February, and load factors were ahead of the 12-months rolling average.

Easyjet also announced new routes to Asturias, Grenoble and Maastricht-Aachen. An expansion of Berlin base is planned with routes to the convenient airports of London Gatwick, Milan and Rome.

The company expects to carry over 3 million passengers to and from Berlin in 2005.

Passenger Statistics for February 2005:

2005 2004
Month ending
Passengers 2,168,985 1,864,970
Load Factor 85.9% 88.6%

Rolling 12 months ending
Passengers 26,420,497 21,535,211
Load Factor 84.2% 84.4%
Total Revenue GBP1,176m GBP992m

Monkey

March 8th, 2005, 11:52 AM

Rolling 12 month passenger totals to January 2005:
EasyJet = 26,116,482
Ryanair = 26,918,454

Percentage increase in passengers since January 2004:
EasyJet = 22.8%
Ryanair = 20%

Load factor (ie percentage bums on seats) in January 2005:
EasyJet = 84.4%
Ryanair = 74%Rolling 12 month passenger totals to February 2005:
EasyJet = 26,420,497
Ryanair = 27,165,404

Percentage increase in passengers since February 2004:
EasyJet = 16.3%
Ryanair = 13%

Load factor (ie percentage bums on seats) in February 2005:
EasyJet = 85.9%
Ryanair = 79%

hkskyline

March 8th, 2005, 06:49 PM

BELGIAN PRESS: O'Leary Freezes Charleroi Expansion
8 March 2005

BRUSSELS (Dow Jones)--Ryanair Holdings (RYA.DB) CEO Michael O'Leary says his low cost airline will not expand at Charleroi airport until its appeal is decided against a European Union ruling that it received illegal state aid at the airport, Le Soir reports.

In an interview with the Brussels daily, O'Leary said he expected the court decision in 2006.

O'Leary vowed that his airline wouldn't pay more for landing and handling rights to the Belgian airport even though it carries more than two million passengers, the E.U. limit on governments giving aid to airports.

"The only change will be for other ground operations companies to open up at Charleroi," O'Leary said. "We are quite happy with this competition."

Newspaper Web site: http://www.lesoir.be

hkskyline

March 9th, 2005, 07:19 AM

Ryanair Threatens To Slash Targets For Dublin Terminal
08 March 2005

DUBLIN (Dow Jones)--Ryanair Holdings PLC (RYAAY) Tuesday threatened to slash its passenger targets for a second Dublin Airport terminal if it's partly run by the existing Dublin Airport Authority with union cooperation.

The Irish government is edging closer to a long-awaited decision to build the new terminal to be run by Dublin Airport Authority in a deal with the Services, Industrial & Professional Workers Union, or SIPTU, observers say.

But Ryanair Chief Executive Michael O'Leary said at a press conference that he'd only deliver 500,000 to 1 million passengers over five years, rather than the 5 million to 10 million he previously promised, if the terminal wasn't run independently.

"A second terminal run by the same people who run the first terminal would be more of the same," O'Leary said. "We'd expand into it, but not on the scale that we've promised. What we don't want is no competition."

He added, "SIPTU closed Dublin Airport twice in the last two years and it threatened to close Dublin Airport on St. Patrick's Day in 2004. This brotherhood doesn't want a competing terminal."

O'Leary has pledged to create 5,000 jobs if the government agrees to a second Dublin terminal that is run as an independent low-cost terminal, but Tuesday accused Prime Minister Bertie Ahern of pandering to union interests.

He also denied that new newspaper advertisements depicting Ahern's face on the body of a tortoise was a personal attack. "He's incapable of making a decision that may offend trade union members at Dublin Airport," he said.

hkskyline

March 10th, 2005, 12:08 AM

Ryanair rules out link with Siptu in terminal
Emmet Oliver
09 March 2005
Irish Times

Ryanair has warned that it will not get involved in any new terminal at Dublin airport if the trade union Siptu has a shareholding in the project.

Speaking at a press conference in Dublin, the airline's chief executive, Michael O'Leary, said of Siptu: "Even with a small shareholding in the project, we wouldn't go near the place."

"This is the union that, when they didn't like S�amus Brennan's plans, they closed the main airport in this country twice in two years," he said.

He said Siptu didn't want competition in any sphere and had blocked taxi and bus deregulation.

His comments come at a time when Siptu is considering taking a shareholding in a terminal project, with either the Dublin Airport Authority or the McEvaddy brothers.

However, Mr O'Leary said the company might be prepared to use a terminal involving the Dublin Airport Authority (DAA), formerly Aer Rianta, but it would not be able to offer the full range of new services and new jobs under such an arrangement.

Referring to the DAA, he said: "They are the worst builders of inefficient terminal facilities since Wilbur and Orville first flew."

Asked what would happen if the DAA was involved, he replied: "Instead of us delivering between five and 10 million new passengers over a five-year period, I think we'd deliver between half and one million over a five- to 10-year period."

He has asked Ryanair customers, via http://www.ryanair.com, to e-mail the Taoiseach on the issue of the terminal. He said the airline was offering 100,000 free seats to passengers who e-mailed the Taoiseach asking him to give permission for a new terminal.

Mr O'Leary said that he now feared a fudge on the issue. "What we don't want, and what we would strongly oppose, is no competition. And no competition is what Bertie and the fudge meisters in the Cabinet are going to give us, which is some waffley fudge that Dublin Airport Authority or Siptu would be developing the second terminal.

"The second terminal, run by the same people who delivered us the black hole of Calcutta, known as the first terminal, would not represent competition."

He said a site on the north apron was by far the best location for a terminal but this did not preclude a third terminal on land owned by businessmen Ulick and Desmond McEvaddy.

"We believe they should be allow to build a terminal on that site as well, but not at the expense of an efficient low-cost terminal on the north apron site," he said. "Don't make it the second terminal, make it the third or fourth terminal," he added.

"As the second terminal, it would be a disaster," he explained.

hkskyline

March 11th, 2005, 05:31 PM

Ryanair Carried 2.12M Passengers In Feb Vs 1.88M
03 March 2005

LONDON (Dow Jones)--Ryanair Holdings said Thursday that in February 2005 it carried 2,123,896 passengers, up from 1,876,946 in February 2004.

In the rolling 12 months to Feb. 28, 2005, the airline carried 27,165,404 passengers.

Load factor in February 2005 was 79% compared with 77% a year earlier, and for the rolling 12 months to Feb. 28 load factor was 84%.

The percentage of internet sales rose slightly to 98% from 97% in February 2004. Internet sales in the rolling 12 months to Feb. 28, 2005 was 97%.

Load factor represents the number of passengers as a proportion of the number of seats available for passengers.

hkskyline

March 16th, 2005, 06:33 PM

Record St. Patrick's Weekend Bookings at Ryanair - 140,000 on Irish Routes
Corporate Press Release

Ryanair, Europe's No. 1 low fares airline today (Wednesday, 16th March 2005) announced record bookings for the St. Patrick's weekend on its 51 routes to/from Ireland. The airline will carry over 600,000 passengers on its network of 220 routes across 19 countries over the same period.

Speaking this morning, Peter Sherrard, Ryanair's Head of Communications said:

"Ryanair will carry 140,000 passengers on our routes to/from Ireland over this St Patrick's Weekend period* making it our busiest ever.

This translates to 90,000 visitors to Ireland over the St Patrick's Weekend period saving €9M over the high fares of other airlines - so more spending money to enjoy the festivities! St. Patrick would have been proud !

With Europe's lowest fares and No 1 punctuality, people are voting with their feet and flocking to Ryanair's low fares and great customer service."

* March 16th - Tuesday March 22nd

hkskyline

March 19th, 2005, 07:39 PM

Ryanair secures court order over pilot codenames
19 March 2005
Irish Times

Ryanair has secured a High Court order restraining two members of the Irish Airline Pilots Association and its British counterpart, BALPA, from deleting or destroying codenames used on the Ryanair European Pilots Association (REPA) website.

Ryanair claims that persons allegedly known to the defendants are engaged in a concerted process of intimidation, bullying, harassment and criminal activity designed to dissuade pilots from taking up positions as pilots with a new aircraft fleet.

Yesterday's order was made returnable for April 4th. Ryanair is seeking an order directing the defendants to disclose the details of the names and address of those who are referred to by codenames on the REPA website.

Yesterday, Richard Nesbitt SC, with Martin Hayden SC, for Ryanair told Mr Justice O'Sullivan the airline was in the process of converting its Dublin fleet to 737-800 aircraft and was seeking pilots. The company became aware in December 2004 of allegations of bullying and harassment of Ryanair pilots for the purpose of dissuading them from accepting positions in Dublin flying these aircraft.

While Ryanair could not access the websites allegedly concerned, it had obtained printouts of what purported to be communication between members of REPA on the site.

In an affidavit, Eddie Wilson, director of personnel with Ryanair, said a REPA member with the codename "ihateryanair" posted a massage on the website, saying: "We are all united here...every one of us. They are not welcome and they will know it as soon as they walk in." Mr Wilson said he understood the references to "they" was to Ryanair pilots who were considering applying or who had applied to fly 737-800 aircraft in Dublin.

Another message on the website allegedly says: "The really sad thing is that no one likes a turncoat, neither the company or their friends, because, if they will do it once, how can you trust that they will not do it again."

Mr Wilson said that while Ryanair accepted the rights of individuals to join trade unions if they wished, REPA was not a registered trade union.

He said REPA was set up in October 2004 and its website was designed to allow Ryanair pilots communicate with one another in a manner designed to obscure the identity of the person communicating through the use of codenames and password procedures.

hkskyline

March 20th, 2005, 03:56 AM

Copenhagen Airports forced back to drawing board on changes to charges
18 March 2005

COPENHAGEN (AFX) - Copenhagen Airports AS has been forced to go back to the drawing board over proposed changes to its charging structure aimed at attracting no-frills carriers like Ryanair Holdings PLC, according to a report in daily Boersen citing airline sources.

The airport operator had been proposing the removal of a discount on the charge for transit passengers in order to fund a 15 pct general reduction in charges.

The plan has been vetoed by transport minister Flemming Hansen following protests from SAS AB, which routes many Scandinavian passengers to Copenhagen, where they change to overseas destinations.

The airline sends 10 mln passengers a year to or through Copenhagen's Kastrup airport and removing the transit passenger discount would have cost SAS about 100 mln dkr a year in extra charges.

Earlier this week, Ryanair was reported as showing renewed interest in adding Copenhagen's Kastrup airport to its destination list.

The Irish carrier currently uses Malmoe's Sturup airport for customers in eastern Denmark because of the Swedish airport's charges structure.

The discount airlines have complained about the level of charges at Copenhagen, which are the highest in Scandinavia, Boersen said.

Copenhagen Airports must now start its negotiations with the airlines again. A new agreement is needed by the end of this year, when the existing one expires.

hkskyline

March 23rd, 2005, 06:00 PM

Ryanair loses crucial EU dismissal case
Stephen Castle in Brussels
23 March 2005
The Independent

THREE FORMER employees of Ryanair won a key legal battle against the company yesterday when a court in Belgium ruled that their dismissal two years ago broke Belgian labour laws.

The ruling, which could have implications for a host of companies, is a blow to the no-frills airline operator, which claimed that the three staff members had been employed under Irish contracts. But the airline failed to convince the court with their argument that the sacking, two years ago, was legal because it accorded to Ireland"s labour laws.

The verdict from a court in Charleroi coincided with the start of an EU summit in Brussels at which a piece of proposed legislation on cross- border employment conditions was centre stage.

The airline immediately announced plans to appeal. Its director of personnel director, Eddie Wilson, said: "These three former employees were let go at the end of their probation period in accordance with their contract of employment. Ryanair will launch an appeal to this decision to uphold our contracts of employment."

Though transport would be exempt from the planned new EU law designed to free up the market in services, the case highlights the extent to which labour law differs across Europe.

Under Irish law, the company argued it was within its rights to let the three cabin staff employees go after they served a one-year trial period. Lawyers for the employees claimed that under Belgian law the trial period for workers is only six months, after which they have full job protection.

Ryanair pointed out that the three signed contracts drawn up in Dublin and worked on planes that are registered in Ireland. However, the judge found that the workers were based at the company"s hub in Charleroi and therefore were entitled to the protection offered under Belgian law. Ryanair has one month to lodge an appeal.

hkskyline

March 25th, 2005, 12:30 AM

easyJet plans to show all-inclusive fares online
24 March 2005
Airline Industry Information

British low-cost airline easyJet has announced that in the future it will quote fares online that include taxes and charges.

From early summer 2005, when the carrier has completed an upgrade of its software systems, easyJet's web bookings will show the complete fare payable, including government tax, airport tax, insurance, security and other charges, reports The Times.

At the moment the complete fare is only shown in the last stages of making a booking.

All-inclusive fares already have to be quoted in newspaper, television and outdoor advertising, and the move to adopt the same transparency for online bookings has been welcomed by the Air Transport Users' Council.

hkskyline

March 25th, 2005, 03:21 AM

Ryanair Loses in Belgian Court on Labor Issue
23 March 2005
The Wall Street Journal Europe

BRUSSELS -- Ryanair lost a Belgian court case that may have wider implications for the European Union as it battles over labor rights for cross-border workers.

A court in Charleroi, Belgium, on Monday ruled in favor of three Belgian employees who claimed their 2002 dismissal by the Irish no-frills airline was an infringement of Belgian labor laws. Ryanair claimed the three employees were hired on Irish contracts and their firing was legal under Irish law.

Ryanair, based in Dublin, said yesterday that it would appeal the ruling.

"These three former employees were let go at the end of their probation period in accordance with their contract of employment," said Eddie Wilson, Ryanair's director of personnel.

The verdict came on the eve of an EU summit in Brussels where the question of cross-border workers' rights looms.

At that meeting -- set to open late yesterday in Brussels -- France and Germany are expected to resist a plan designed to make it easier for companies to operate across borders by allowing them to apply the regulations of their home countries. Opponents of the plan say it will allow companies from countries with low taxes and weaker social-protection rules to undercut rivals in other EU nations with higher taxes and more stringent labor laws.

The new proposal excludes the transport sector, which is covered by other EU legislation, but the Ryanair case reveals some of the conundrums facing companies and workers in an increasingly open European economy.

Under Irish law, the company said it was within its rights to let the three cabin staff employees go after they served a one-year trial period. Lawyers for the employees claimed that under Belgian law the trial period for workers is six months, after which they have full job protection.

Ryanair said that the three cabin staff signed contracts drawn up in Dublin and worked on planes that are registered in Ireland. However, the judge found that the workers were based at the company's hub in Charleroi and were entitled to the protection offered under Belgian law, and to other benefits such as holiday and overtime payments that weren't given under Irish legislation.

hkskyline

March 25th, 2005, 07:15 PM

O'Leary to fight airport terminal plan
Mark Brennock
21 March 2005
Irish Times

Ryanair chief executive Michael O'Leary last night said he would oppose a planning application for a second terminal at Dublin Airport and use any other legal options open to him unless the new facility was built by the private sector.

Mr O'Leary said yesterday that reports that the Government will shortly agree to allow the Dublin Airport Authority (DAA) build the second terminal suggested that "a typical Bertie fudge" was on the cards.

He claimed this showed the Taoiseach was unwilling "to upset his friends in the unions" and that "the Siptu tail is wagging the Bertie dog".

Minister for Transport Martin Cullen is expected to update ministers tomorrow on an aviation policy package he is preparing. After a series of meetings with unions and other interests over the past fortnight, Mr Cullen is expected to propose the sale of a majority stake in Aer Lingus, with the building of a second terminal by the DAA. A final decision is not expected tomorrow, however.

Mr O'Leary has campaigned for a private-sector terminal to be set up in competition with the existing terminal, claiming the DAA presides over an uncompetitive State monopoly. He said yesterday that Ryanair would oppose a new DAA terminal "at the planning stage and in the courts", although he did not yet know precisely what legal grounds were available. "We may take it to Brussels on a competition basis," he said.

He told The Irish Times last night that Ryanair would continue to campaign to have a private-sector terminal built. "We don't want to own or build a terminal: we just don't want the Dublin Airport Authority and Siptu to own and build a terminal," he said.

In a reference to the repeated criticisms of Dublin Airport's facilities, he said: "Another terminal provided by the people who brought us the Black Hole of Calcutta is not competition: it's still the Black Hole of Calcutta."

Fine Gael has described as "long overdue" the news that the Cabinet may tomorrow discuss plans to sell a majority stake in Aer Lingus. However, Labour said the case for privatisation of a healthy State company had not been made, but it welcomed reports that the second terminal would be built by the DAA.

Fine Gael spokesman Brian Hayes said consumers had lost out from years of Government procrastination over Aer Lingus.

hkskyline

March 27th, 2005, 09:08 AM

easyJet pledges no hidden costs as watchdog attacks misleading prices
Charles Starmer-Smith
26 March 2005
The Daily Telegraph

The no-frills airline EasyJet has promised that any prices it quotes from early summer will include all taxes, fees and charges. The pledge follows criticism this week from a passengers' watchdog that charges being added to headline fares varied wildly from airline to airline. "The misleading adverts for 99p flights or free flights just don't work any more," an EasyJet spokeswoman said. "The British public are not stupid. Their decision is based on the final total, not the price exclusive of all taxes, charges and fees.

To date we have always been committed to publishing fares that exclude only the Government's imposed air passenger duty. Now we will go a stage further."

A report from the Air Transport Users Council (AUC) showed that although headline figures have fallen, making fares appear more attractive, the total fare has in many cases remained the same because of a steady increase in charges and fees quoted on airline websites. Moreover, the charges vary greatly.

For example, on a London-Amsterdam flight, the AUC found that British Airways' charges totalled pounds 41 and EasyJet's pounds 10. "There is a danger that taxes, fees and charges might spiral out of control as airlines separate out more and more of their costs in order to seek a competitive advantage," the report said. It added that EasyJet was alone in consistently lowering the proportion of charges that made up its total prices, while Ryanair, BA and Virgin Atlantic continued to quote high charges separately from the fare.

For example, anyone booking a return flight from London Gatwick to Geneva in April (April 27-May 2) will have to pay pounds 33.90 in charges on BA and only pounds 14 on EasyJet. On a return from Stansted to Valencia (April 26-30) Ryanair charges pounds 22.14 -- accounting for more than half the fare - and EasyJet charges pounds 9.50.

Ryanair dismissed the AUC report as "irrelevant". "Regardless of whether EasyJet chooses to quote all-inclusive fares on its website, its fares will always be more expensive than Ryanair's," a spokeswoman said. "Last year we carried 27.5 million passengers, none of whom complained of our web fares being inclusive or exclusive."

BA and Virgin have announced another increase in fuel surcharges. From Monday, passengers booking a long-haul return flight with either airline will now have to pay pounds 32 on top of all other taxes and fees. On short-haul flights, BA's fuel surcharge is rising from pounds 8 to pounds 12 return. The increase -- the second in six months -- follows a new peak in crude-oil prices of pounds 57 a barrel, a rise of almost 30 per cent this year. Passengers booking a return flight with BA from London Heathrow to New York now have to pay pounds 83.50 in taxes. Ryanair and EasyJet say they will continue to absorb the rising cost of fuel rather than pass it on to passengers.

hkskyline

March 28th, 2005, 11:27 PM

easyJet targets BA customers
By Robin Pagnamenta
27 March 2005
The Express on Sunday

EASYJET chief executive Ray Webster says he plans to boost the airline's share of UK business air travel by 50 per cent.

Webster claimed that easyJet had a 14 per cent share of the UK corporate market, a sector still dominated by traditional carriers, especially British Airways.

However, Webster said a 20 per cent share was realistic and achievable "in the medium term".

EasyJet has struck a deal with travel management company Business Travel International (BTI) to make it easier for business travel agents to book w ith easyJet.

The no-frills operator has also introduced selfcheck-in kiosks and relaxed its hand baggage w eight limits.

EasyJet has expanded its Berlin hub operation in recent months. Webster said the airline would be hoping to exploit its routes to the new EU countries and possibly starting flights to Moscow.

hkskyline

March 29th, 2005, 12:37 AM

UK firm wins €8m contract from airline
23 March 2005
Irish Times

Ryanair awarded an €8 million telecommunications contract for the management of its European network operations to the British firm Cable & Wireless yesterday.

Cable & Wireless will upgrade and manage Ryanair's internal and external communications networks and introduce a range of technologies such as voice over internet protocol (VoIP).

VoIP technology enables people to make telephone calls over internet networks rather than traditional phone networks, dramatically cutting call costs.

The new service introduced by Cable & Wireless will enable Ryanair personnel to make calls using a "soft phone" on their laptop when working from any of the company's European offices.

hkskyline

March 30th, 2005, 06:26 PM

EasyJet 'winning battle' with fuel prices
23 March 2005
Irish Independent

BUDGET airline EasyJet says it is winning the battle to shield its profits from soaring fuel prices.

Investors expressed relief that operating margins during the six months to March 31 would be broadly in line with last year.

Oil is currently 50pc more expensive than a year ago and the past six months have seen the cost of crude set a string of new records, culminating in a high of above US$57 a barrel.

Chief executive Ray Webster said: "The price of fuel remains high and volatile. In spite of this, operating margins for the period are expected to be broadly in line with last year."

In a trading statement ahead of its interim results on May 24, EasyJet said it expected to carry 24pc more passengers than a year ago as its European expansion pays off.

The company - founded by Greek colourful entrepreneur Stelios Haji-Iannou - will pass a milestone next month when it receives its 100th aircraft.

The airline now flies to 60 airports.

With Easter falling in the first half of this year, the company said total revenues per passenger were likely to rise by between 1pc and 2pc over the same period of 2004.

It also expected to have more than �600m on its balance sheet.

Mr Webster said trading conditions were currently stable, even though competition from smaller low-cost airlines and former flag-carriers was unlikely to diminish.

But the size of EasyJet meant that it was in a strong position to withstand trading pressures as it was able to generate more savings than its competitors.

hkskyline

March 31st, 2005, 12:32 AM

Ryanair draws first blood in battle over pilots' web attack
Andrew Clark
30 March 2005
The Guardian

Pilots' leaders have accused Ryanair of an extraordinary attack on free speech in a high court battle over a website that contains anonymous criticisms of the airline by some of its employees.

The Irish low-cost carrier is trying to unmask the identity of pilots responsible for controversial remarks about its working practices on a message board run jointly by the British and Irish pilots' unions.

Ryanair has drawn first blood by securing an injunction from a Dublin judge that bans the unions from destroying the codenames used by pi lots on the Ryanair European Pilots' Association's website.

Jim McAuslan, general secretary of the British Airline Pilots' Association (Balpa), said: "We shall vigorously defend our position in refusing to divulge names of pilots who discuss with one another their problems and aspirations."

Pilots' unions are furious with Ryanair over its handling of training for pilots moving from older jets to new Boeing 737-800s, which have been introduced to modernise the airline's fleet.

Balpa claims pilots are being forced to pay the cost of retraining, with little alternative available to them other than redundancy.

Ryanair denies this. It says crew are merely being asked to sign five-year "bonds" which require them to pay back training costs if they leave the company.

It says the unions' website is being used to "threaten and intimidate" pilots who take up the offer of retraining and insists that it has not threat ened refusenik staff with redundancy.

Union leaders say confidentiality is crucial in the aviation industry. They point out that pilots use online forums to report safety concerns. If anonymity is jeopardised concerns may never be aired.

Ryanair has fought a series of battles over online message boards. Last year, an independent pilots' website deleted a thread containing comments about the airline following a threat of legal action.

Unions have attacked the airline for forcing trainee staff to pay for uniforms and for refusing to give them free in-flight meals.

Ryanair's director of person nel, Eddie Wilson, said the website had included posts from pilots suggesting "criminal activity" against the airline and its employees.

"We will not under any circumstances allow any of our pilots or people to become the victims of an organised campaign of intimidation," Mr Wilson said.

hkskyline

April 2nd, 2005, 09:46 PM

Airport welcomes first of Ryanair"s new Liverpool fleet
1 April 2005
Daily Post (Liverpool)

LIVERPOOL John Lennon Airport yesterday welcomed the arrival of the first of four new Ryanair planes to be based there.

The new Boeing 737-800 is flying the two latest routes the Irish budget airline is operating from the city - to Venice"s Treviso airport and Murcia in Spain.

They are part of 11 new routes announced last November by the airline when it named Liverpool as its latest European hub airport.

A team of airport firefighters formed a guard of honour as the jet touched down from Dublin to douse it in an arc of spray.

The launch of the latest two routes will help create and sustain over 1,000 jobs in the Liverpool area.

Liverpool JLA managing director Neil Pakey said: "Ryanair"s commitment is a clear "coming of age" for Liverpool John Lennon airport, bringing an additional one million passengers through the airport next year.

hkskyline

April 5th, 2005, 07:36 PM

Ryanair sees annual traffic numbers soar 20 percent

LONDON, April 5 (AFP) - Ryanair, the Irish no-frills airline, carried 2.566 million passengers in March -- an increase of 20 percent on the same month the previous year, it said Tuesday.

That compared with 2.137 million passengers carried in March 2004.

Passenger numbers were boosted partly because the Easter holiday weekend fell during March this year, compared with April in 2004, Ryanair said in an official statement.

The no-frills airline said the load factor -- passengers as a proportion of the number of seats available -- was 80 percent, compared with 78 percent in March 2004.

Meanwhile, the total number of passengers increased in the twelve months to March to 27.594 million people, with a load factor of 84 percent.

The low-cost Dublin-based carrier added that 98 percent of air tickets over the past year were booked over the Internet, compared with 97 percent the preceding 12 months.

hkskyline

April 8th, 2005, 05:33 PM

easyJet March passenger traffic up 29 pct.

LONDON, April 7 (Reuters) - Passenger numbers at European low-cost airline easyJet (EZJ.L) rose 28.9 percent in March from a year ago to 2.57 million, the British-based carrier said on Thursday.

The airline said its load factor - the proportion of seats sold - was 91.2 percent of capacity, 4.3 percentage points higher than a year ago.

The increase, which included the busy Easter break, beat figures from larger low-cost rival Ryanair (RYA.I) which this week reported a 20 percent rise in passenger numbers.

Shares in the airline, which has expanded aggressively in the past 12 months and now flies to 60 airports, had risen 2 percent to 219 pence in early morning trade against a flat FTSE-350 transport sector .

Also on Thursday, smaller British regional airline Flybe reported a 32 percent year-on-year increase in March passenger numbers to 345,426.

British Airways (BAY.L) said earlier this week that its passenger traffic, measured in revenue passenger kilometres (RPKs), rose 4.5 percent.

EasyJet said the traffic numbers were in line with its pre-close trading statement from March 22, which signalled a rise in first-half revenues per passenger and said operating margins were steady, sending its shares higher.

While passenger numbers continue to rise, budget airlines face concerns about falling yields, the average revenue per passenger carried and kilometre flown, amid stiff competition.

Monkey

April 10th, 2005, 02:08 PM

Rolling 12 month passenger totals to February 2005:
EasyJet = 26,420,497
Ryanair = 27,165,404

Percentage increase in passengers since February 2004:
EasyJet = 16.3%
Ryanair = 13%

Load factor (ie percentage bums on seats) in February 2005:
EasyJet = 85.9%
Ryanair = 79%Rolling 12 month passenger totals to March 2005:
EasyJet = 26,996,777
Ryanair = 27,593,923

Percentage increase in passengers since March 2004:
EasyJet = 28.9%
Ryanair = 20%

Load factor (ie percentage bums on seats) in March 2005:
EasyJet = 91.2%
Ryanair = 80%

hkskyline

April 10th, 2005, 09:19 PM

Ryanair boss paid more tax than his profitable airline
10 April 2005
The Sunday Independent (Ireland)

NICK WEBB and DAN WHITE

RYANAIR boss Michael O'Leary paid more tax in one go than his hugely profitable airline has over the last three years. Despite a turnover of €1.07bn and pre-tax profits of nearly €230m, Ryanair actually paid just €2.05m in tax last year.

Europe's most profitable airline's tax bill was €21.9m last year but by deferring a large chunk of the dues, through using clever accountancy, it handed the Revenue Commissioners a paltry €2.05m. This represented a minuscule 0.89 per cent of the company's pre-tax profits.

In 2003, Ryanair paid just €3.4m in tax on its €265m profits, having deferred the majority of its bill. This represented less than 1.3 per cent of its pre-tax profits. In 2002 it paid €5.07m in tax, again having deferred a huge slice of its tax charge.

In one of his regular publicity gimmicks O'Leary presented the Government with a three-foot cheque for nearly €14m made out to "dithering Bertie" in November 2003. This, he said, represented his personal tax bill for the year. He added that he was happy to pay the tax for the privilege of living in the independent republic of Mullingar. O'Leary's massive personal tax bill was settled months after he cashed in 4 million Ryanair shares for about €23.8m.

Ryanair is able physically to pay less tax than its profit and loss account suggests it owes, by deferring a large part of the bill. The principal reason for this is that companies can use their investment in new plant and machinery to defer or put off paying tax, using accelerated capital allowances.

Ryanair has been involved in a huge capital expenditure programme as it seeks to expand its fleet of Boeing jets.

Last year, O'Leary spent about €331m on new aircraft, with Ryanair effectively getting a new airplane every fortnight. In February, Ryanair announced plans to buy 70 next-generation Boeing 737s, with an option to buy 70 more. The initial list price of the aircraft is $4.6bn but the final bill could hit as much as $9.2bn if all the options are exercised. Since 1999, Ryanair has ordered 225 737s and taken options on 193 more. The new planes will be delivered between 2008 and 2012. The rolling capital expenditure programme, which sees new jets arriving until 2012 at the very least, could see Ryanair's tax bill deferred for a number of years before it has to pay up, analysts said.

"We've been buying shed-loads of aircraft since 1998.So we've built up a massive set of capital allowances. It'll take years to work through them," said Ryanair's Howard Millar.

"It [the tax rate]'ll start to catch up once we get over the capital expenditure hump. Our percentage going out the door will start to increase," he said. "The proportion we'll be able to shelter will decline over the next two or three years. Then it'll get smaller and smaller."

Ryanair isn't the only major Irish company to pay almost nothing in tax by deferring its bills. The 20 most valuable companies on the stock market have put off paying a staggering €1.1bn in tax, through the clever and entirely legal use of a variety of tax breaks and allowances. Cement and concrete giant CRH handed over just €188m to the tax man last year, having deferred a large chunk of its €247m bill.

babystan03

April 15th, 2005, 01:56 PM

15 April 2005

Ryanair agrees plans for new European base in Germany

LONDON : Ryanair, the Irish no-frills airline, announced it had reached an agreement for a new European hub at Luebeck airport near Hamburg in northern Germany that would handle two million passengers annually.

Ryanair said it had reached an agreement with New Zealand-based investment group Infratil, which simultaneously announced the purchase of Luebeck airport.

"Ryanair ... has reached agreement with Infratil to base up to four new (Boeing) 737 aircraft and deliver up to two million passengers per annum to Luebeck airport," the airline said in a statement.

"This agreement is subject to the successful completion of a conditional purchase agreement between Infratil and the City of Luebeck announced on April 14. Settlement of the transaction is expected to occur a few months' time," it added.

Ryanair said it would invest over 250 million dollars (196 million euros) in four new Boeing 737 aircraft and create over 200 new jobs in Luebeck.

"This new base would revolutionise the future growth of Luebeck Airport," Ryanair's deputy chief executive Michael Cawley said.

Ryanair currently flies from eight airports in Germany, where its main base is the Hahn airport in southwestern Germany.

The airline has helped to transform European air travel by offering cheap fares on short-haul routes across the continent.

Ryanair's announcement came a day after it agreed to settle out of court a dispute with British airports operator BAA surrounding the scale of fuel levy charges at Stansted Airport, north of London.

In February, Ryanair announced the order of 140 Boeing planes, including 70 firm orders in a deal worth over 4.0 billion dollars, and the creation of 2,500 jobs.

The airline is looking to steal a march on its rivals, especially Britain's easyJet, by driving prices down amid cut-throat competition from both the no-frills sector and traditional flag carriers including British Airways, Germany's Lufthansa and Aer Lingus in Ireland.- AFP /ls

Copyright © 2005 Agence France Presse. All rights reserved.

babystan03

April 19th, 2005, 12:20 PM

Business Times - 19 Apr 2005

Low-cost carrier Ryanair scraps inflight entertainment system

(LONDON) Irish low-cost carrier Ryanair said yesterday it was scrapping its paid inflight entertainment system due to lack of demand from passengers. Dublin-based Ryanair it had decided not to introduce the much-lauded portable entertainment units, on trial on some of its planes since November, across its fleet.

'It was lack of demand. They decided not to follow it any further,' a Ryanair spokeswoman said. It was a rare about-face for chief executive Michael O'Leary who said in September the units would become 'as common as the in-flight magazine'. However, the airline said it had not lost any money on the system which it had on trial on just five aircraft before making a significant investment. Ryanair is now considering in-flight gambling as the latest source for non-ticket revenue.

Passengers were asked to pay 5 (S$15.7) to access movies, cartoons and television shows on the portable units, which resemble small laptops, and are not built into seats as on full-service carriers. - Reuters

Copyright © 2005 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. All rights reserved.

huaiwei

April 19th, 2005, 12:52 PM

$15 for movies?? I can buy a DVD with that money! :D

hkskyline

April 25th, 2005, 02:40 PM

5 dollars is the ballpark price for digital video terminals on airlines. Jetsgo offered something similar before. However, since Ryanair's flights are very short, an entertainment system is not very feasible since why would anyone pay the amount for an hour-long flight?

Ryanair to Pay $3.57B for 70 Boeing Jets
Fri Apr 22, 5:49 PM ET

NEW YORK (AP) - Irish budget airline Ryanair Holdings PLC will pay $3.57 billion for the 70 Boeing Co. airplanes it has ordered, a large discount on the listed price, the carrier said Friday.

The price for each 737-800 airplane will be about $51 million, including the engines and some optional features, Dublin-based Ryanair said in a regulatory filing.

Boeing's list price for that model, according to the Boeing Web site, is a range of $61.5 million to $69.5 million. Boeing spokesman Todd Blecher said it's not unusual for the manufacturer to offer discounts for large orders.

Ryanair will also pay around $900,000 per aircraft for equipment from third parties that Boeing will install.

The deal includes a clause that would boost the price of the airplanes, scheduled for delivery between 2006 and 2011, according to a formula based on U.S. employment costs and producer prices.

Ryanair said it will finance the new airplanes through bank loans, which are guaranteed by the Export-Import Bank of the United States, a federal agency that helps finance the export of U.S. goods to foreign countries.

U.S. shares of Ryanair fell 57 cents, or 1.4 percent, to close at $41.58 on the Nasdaq Stock Market.

Ryanair, with revenue of $1.4 billion for the year ended March 31, has a fleet of about 30 Boeing 737s and makes 1,250 flights a week. It flies nearly 6 million people on 45 routes covering Ireland, France, Belgium, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Germany and the United Kingdom.

hkskyline

April 25th, 2005, 09:40 PM

easyJet not yet decided on Central Europe hub - claim
25 April 2005
Airline Industry Information

Low-cost airline easyJet has dismissed a story reported in the Hungarian press that it was making Budapest's Ferihegy Terminal 1 its headquarters for Central European flights.

easyJet had not decided yet, and its decision depends on the landing and handling fees to be charged by Budapest Airport, said an account manager for MMD Communications, which represents easyJet, quoted by The Budapest Sun.

hkskyline

April 27th, 2005, 11:11 PM

Ryanair routes from city soar to 13
27 April 2005
Liverpool Echo

IRISH budget carrier Ryanair has introduced three more routes from Liverpool John Lennon airport A special guest touched down yesterday to mark the occasion. The 800th Boeing 737-800 aircraft to leave the US plane-maker"s Seattle factory, in special Ryanair livery, flew the Liverpool to Pisa, Cork and Granada routes.

Next Tuesday, the Dublinbased airline will start the final new route of the 11 announced last November, from Liverpool to Shannon. It will then operate 13 routes from Liverpool.

About 1.5m extra passengers are expected to use the11 new routes this year, taking the airport"s total towards the 5m mark.

Ryanair European sales and marketing chief, Sinead Finn, said: "Routes to Cork, Pisa and Granada have been a roaring success with over 75,000 bookings

hkskyline

May 3rd, 2005, 04:08 PM

Ryanair to begin daily flights from Portugal to Frankfurt

LISBON, April 29 (AFP) - The Irish cut-price airline Ryanair, which began flying from Portugal in January, will start operating daily flights from Oporto to Frankfurt on October 30, airport officials said Friday.

The airline began flying twice a day from London to Oporto, Portugal's second-largest city, in January.

Passenger traffic at Oporto airport jumped 13 percent to 807,437 during the first quarter of 2005, a 13 percent increase over the same time last year due in large part to the arrival of Ryanair, Europe's biggest no-frills airline, and its German rival Air Berlin, it said in a statement.

It added that Portuguese flag-carrier TAP-Portugal began a new daily flight Friday from Oporto to Rome.

Oporto airport currently offers regular flights to over 30 destinations.

hkskyline

May 5th, 2005, 03:50 AM

Ryanair beats Aer Lingus in cheap stakes
Aideen Sheehan
3 May 2005
Irish Independent

National carrier proves dearer for most European holiday destinations

RYANAIR has come out cheaper than Aer Lingus for most comparable flights in a random survey by the Irish Independent.With the holiday season starting, Ryanair was cheaper than Aer Lingus for flights from Dublin to a number of European destinations booked both last-minute and up to three months ahead of departure.

If you fancied spending next weekend in Paris, a flight with Ryanair would be just over a third of the price charged by Aer Lingus - at €139 compared to €380 for flights leaving on Friday night and returning on Monday evening.

However, your journey to and from the airport would be at least 30 minutes longer with Ryanair, which flies to Beauvais, compared with Aer Lingus, which flies to Charles de Gaulle.

Booking a similar weekend in late June would be over twice as expensive with Aer Lingus - €170 compared with Ryanair's €70.

A week in Rome would also be substantially cheaper with Ryanair (which has just opened a new route there from Dublin), particularly if you booked well ahead, when you'd get a flight for €118 compared to €221 with Aer Lingus.

Flying to Malaga for a fortnight would be substantially cheaper with Ryanair if you wanted to head off next Saturday, when you'd get a return flight for €161 compared to €280 with Aer Lingus.

Flights to Faro on the Portuguese Algarve also came out well over €100 more expensive with Aer Lingus both next week and later in the summer.

However, for flights to the UK the differences were less marked, and Aer Lingus was sometimes cheaper than Ryanair.

For example, you'd save over €60 by flying with Aer Lingus if you wanted to go from Dublin to Manchester next Friday evening, returning on Monday evening, and the price was almost identical at €67 for a similar weekend in late June.

For flights from Cork to London, Ryanair had the best deal if you were booking to go over the August bank holiday weekend but Aer Lingus was slightly cheaper for similar timings next weekend.

All the prices quoted include taxes, charges and internet credit card booking fees which are €4 with Aer Lingus and €5 for a return flight with Ryanair. They were all researched last Thursday.

Ryanair remains much more limited than Aer Lingus in terms of the number of routes it serves directly from Ireland.

Aer Lingus has greatly expanded its range of routes in recent times and now serves over 50 European and US destinations, including cities such as Naples, Bilbao, Prague and Dubrovnik.

The variation in prices shows it is vital to shop around if you want the best deal, with flexibility the best way of getting a bargain.

Mike

May 5th, 2005, 05:07 AM

Ryanair to begin daily flights from Portugal to Frankfurt

Ryanair cannot afford to fly into Frankfurt. They are flying to Hahn instead. From Hahn to Frankfurt takes you about 1:30h by car if there is no traffic jam, if there is a jam then it can take you over 2 hours. If Hahn would be considered part of the Frankfurt metro, Frankfurt would be larger than London. It's a joke.

hkskyline

May 5th, 2005, 05:22 AM

Ryanair tends to refer to these secondary airports with the nearest large city name, such as Frankfurt Hahn, Brussels Charleroi, and Girona Barcelona.

hkskyline

May 5th, 2005, 03:09 PM

EasyJet Would Consider Hedging At $30-40/Bbl Oil Price
4 May 2005

LONDON (Dow Jones)--U.K. budget airline easyJet PLC (EZJ.LN) would consider hedging its fuel costs if the oil price fell back to $30 to $40 a barrel, Chief Executive Ray Webster said Wednesday.

Hedging at these levels "will be very attractive," Webster told Dow Jones Newswires.

EasyJet's hedging protection mostly expired at the end of April, although it does have some protection through to the end of June.

"Where oil is at the moment, we are taking the spot price," he said. Brent crude is trading at around $50.9 a barrel.

The airline is due to release its results for the six months to March 31 at the end of May.

EasyJet could expand to around 300 aircraft over the longer term, Webster added. At the end of September, easyJet will have about 108 aircraft in its fleet.

hkskyline

May 6th, 2005, 02:13 PM

Ryanair faces bill if it fails to fill seats
Eugene Hogan
05 May 2005
Irish Independent

RYANAIR will have to pay €10 for every seat it fails to fill under new passenger number guidelines, it has emerged.

The 'no frills' airline will be hit with the added cost if it fails to meet the 1.5 million passenger mark through Shannon Airport during the next 12 months.

On the day it commenced its 26 daily flights on 14 international routes from Shannon, Ryanair chief executive Michael O'Leary gave an insight into what will be an extremely expensive deal for the company should it fail to deliver on its promises.

"If we only deliver 1.45 million passengers, then we are going to have to pay over €500,000," he said.

The Ryanair chief, however, said he has "no doubt" they will reach the 1.5 million passenger target in the first year, right up to two million passengers per annum by year five.

Meanwhile, Mr O'Leary yesterday confirmed that his company will press ahead with legal action under Irish and EU competition law and public procurement law to prevent Aer Rianta from being the body to develop the second terminal at Dublin Airport.

The Ryanair chief also confirmed that pilot John Goss had been reinstated as per High Court order of last week.

He added Mr Goss was not yet back on active flying duty but would be "shortly".

hkskyline

May 6th, 2005, 02:17 PM

Ryanair Carried 2.66M Passengers In April Vs 2.14M
05 May 2005
Edited Press Release

LONDON (Dow Jones)--Ryanair PLC said Thursday it flew 2,656,855 passengers in April, up 24% from 2,142,545 a year earlier.

Load factor, which represents the number of passengers as a proportion of the number of seats available, fell to 81% from 82% for April.

For the 12 months to date, Ryanair flew 28,108,233 passengers with a load factor of 84%.

The company said 98% of seat sales were via the Ryanair internet site, compared with 97% a year earlier.

hkskyline

May 6th, 2005, 02:20 PM

Ryanair Springs Forward
05 May 2005

LONDON (Dow Jones)--So a flying start for Ryanair (RYAAY) this year: April passenger numbers up 24% on the year to almost 2.7 million and load factor on course at 81%.

Not bad, considering the mounting evidence of a consumer spending pullback in the U.K. and Europe.

But before you get carried away, it's worth mulling just how many additional passengers in April were headed to Rome for the papal events. Ryanair doesn't break out performance on its routes on a monthly basis.

Nor does the airline discuss yields, which is as an important a measure as ever for the industry while fuel charges continue to eat into profitability.

This is all the more crucial for low-cost airlines, since fuel surcharges make up a large portion of their forecast summer fares.

For punters circling Ryanair's shares, still down some 13% on February's high for the year, prudence might be advisable, at least until after British Airways (BAB) turns in its April figures later this afternoon and easyJet (EZJ.LN) follows on Monday.

There has been a shift in consumer patterns in recent years and holidays abroad are now seen as essential where they were once luxury perks.

But that doesn't mean the no-frills airline sector will be impervious to a consumer slowdown any more than retailers have proven to be. Gray skies may yet be on the horizon.

(Robb M. Stewart has been a reporter for more than a decade, covering business and finance from Canada, Sweden and the U.K.)

Monkey

May 9th, 2005, 08:57 PM

Rolling 12 month passenger totals to March 2005:
EasyJet = 26,996,777
Ryanair = 27,593,923

Percentage increase in passengers since March 2004:
EasyJet = 28.9%
Ryanair = 20%

Load factor (ie percentage bums on seats) in March 2005:
EasyJet = 91.2%
Ryanair = 80%Rolling 12 month passenger totals to April 2005:
EasyJet = 27,487,296
Ryanair = 28,108,233

Percentage increase in passengers since April 2004:
EasyJet = 25.2%
Ryanair = 24%

Load factor (ie percentage bums on seats) in April 2005:
EasyJet = 85.2%
Ryanair = 81%

hkskyline

May 9th, 2005, 11:38 PM

easyJet shares rise on passenger growth, upgrade
By Michael Smith

LONDON, May 9 (Reuters) - Shares in British low-cost airline easyJet rose to near one-year highs on Monday after strong April passenger numbers and a broker upgrade offset lingering concerns about low fares and fuel costs.

EasyJet said passenger numbers rose 25.2 percent in April from a year earlier to 2.44 million, more than some analysts expected as the figures excluded the busy Easter break which fell in March this year.

Brokerage Smith Barney, the research arm of Citigroup, upgraded its rating on easyJet and also on rival Ryanair to "buy" from "hold".

EasyJet shares rose 3.2 percent to 239-1/2 pence by 0832 GMT, just off February's one-year high, as the stock claws back from heavy losses a year ago following a profit warning and fears of a consumer slowdown.

"We continue to believe that the low-cost airlines will be able to weather any such storm, as they will attract the more price conscious consumer who is trading down from the full service carrier," stockbrokers NCB told clients in a note. EasyJet said it was not changing its guidance prior to half-year results on May 24.

"Taking into account the effect of Easter falling in March rather than April this year, underlying market conditions have remained unchanged," Chief Executive Ray Webster said in a statement.

EasyJet has expanded aggressively in the past 12 months on short-haul European routes but remains under pressure from falling fares amid stiff competition and high fuel costs.

In March, the airline signalled a rise in first-half revenues per passenger and said operating margins were steady.

The airline said its April load factor -- an indication of how many seats it has filled on flights -- was 85.2 percent, 3.6 percentage points higher than a year earlier.

UK regional airline Flybe, which flies different routes to easyJet, said on Monday its April passenger numbers rose 29 percent to 407,000 after expanding its network

Low-cost rival Ryanair last week reported a 24 percent jump in passengers in April.

British Airways said last week April traffic was near flat because the timing of Easter drove down leisure travel, although first and economy class business soared.

hkskyline

May 11th, 2005, 10:07 PM

Lithuania woos Ireland's Ryanair

VILNIUS, May 11 (AFP) - The Lithuanian transport ministry said Wednesday it would hold talks starting this week with Ryanair in hopes that the Irish low-cost airline would begin service to the Baltic state.

"Lithuania has done all it can and hopes that Ryanair will put forward proposals on the beginning of operations," said Vidmantas Kairys, head of the civil aviatian department at the transport ministry.

"We hope that Ryanair will open flights to at least one destination this year and that flights will be conducted every day," he added.

A Ryanair delegation, headed by Bernard Berger, head of the carrier's new flight development department, is due to arrive in Lithuania on Friday.

Lithuania in February sent letters to eight low-cost European airlines inviting them to begin service to the Baltic state, but only received a reply from Ryanair.

Ryanair earlier had expressed interest in serving the Baltic state and had been in negotiations with Lithuanian officials.

But the talks failed because, according to Lithuanian officials, Ryanair was asking for a disguised fee to enter the Lithuanian market.

The transport ministry said Wednesday it was ready to provide the necessary infrastructure for Kaunas airport, where Ryanair's flights would be based.

The ministry also said it would organize public transport from Vilnius, the capital, to Kaunas, the second-largest city, some 100 kilometers (60 miles) away.

The announcement of the talks with Lithuania came on the same day as a French court ruled that funds given to Ryanair by the chamber of commerce in the southwest French city of Pau were illegal, demanding the cancellation of the aid package.

The ruling was the latest in a series of court decisions against Ryanair, which has received subsidies from regional and local governments across western Europe in a bid to encourage the airline to fly to smaller cities.

hkskyline

May 12th, 2005, 05:35 AM

Ryanair London-Pau route aid judged illegal by regional court
11 May 2005

PAU, France (AFX) - Aid awarded to low-cost airline Ryanair Holdings PLC by the Pau-Bearn Chamber of Commerce for its London to Pau, southwest France, route has been judged illegal by the Pau administrative tribunal which has ruled the aid must be cancelled, court sources said.

'The decision which approved financial aid to the benefit of Ryanair without prior notification to the European Commission is illegal and should be cancelled,' the tribunal said in its ruling.

Charter airline Air Mediterranee sought a ruling by the tribunal in September 2003 because it believed the aid amounted to unfair competition against its own route between London and Tarbes-Lourdes.

The tribunal said in its judgement that the Pau Chamber of Commerce gave Ryanair 80,000 eur to open its London Stansted-Pau route in 2003, then 11 eur per Ryanair passenger, up to an annual ceiling of 400,000 eur.

Ryanair also benefited from advantageous landing tariffs, the tribunal said.

The tribunal said the agreement between the Chamber of Commerce and Ryanair must be 'cancelled' or 'rescinded' within two months of the ruling, or face a fine of 1,000 eur per day.

hkskyline

May 12th, 2005, 04:06 PM

Pilot in new bid to jail Ryanair boss and have assets seized
John Maddock
11 May 2005
Irish Independent

A NEW application will be made to the High Court tomorrow to jail Ryanair chief executive Michael O'Leary for allegedly failing to restore a senior pilot to flying duties.

Leave was given by Mr Justice Barry White late yesterday to lawyers for pilot John Goss to bring an application tomorrow for the attachment and committal of Mr O'Leary and two other executives with the company. An order is also being sought for the sequestration of the assets of Ryanair.

A fortnight ago, an application to jail Mr O'Leary and Ryanair's director of flight and ground operations David O'Brien was deferred when the judge found that a secretary within the company rather than they personally had been served with notice of contempt proceedings.

It was submitted then that Ryanair had breached an order made in February restraining the airline from conducting a disciplinary hearing with him.

But at the April 27 hearing, Mr Justice White granted a mandatory injunction compelling Ryanair to reinstate Capt Goss to his flying duties.

Under the injunction, the company was restrained from suspending him from his duties or preventing him from flying or interfering with his ability to comply with his aviation licence requirements.

The company had told Mr Goss in a letter of April 12 that in its view it was sensible and operationally appropriate that he should not engage in full-time duties and he was suspended on full pay until a court hearing fixed for May 31 and any subsequent disciplinary process was concluded.

Yesterday, Hugh Mohan SC, for Mr Goss, said that regretfully his client still had not been rostered to fly.

There had been a meeting following the April 12 judgment.

Mr Goss now claims Ryanair is in contempt of the April 27 court order and is seeking the attachment and committal of Mr O'Leary, Mr O'Brien and the company's chief pilot, Ray Conway.

The judge was told at the conclusion of yesterday's hearing that two letters had been received from the company yesterday seeking to dissuade yesterday's application going ahead.

hkskyline

May 12th, 2005, 05:19 PM

Lithuania govt says Ryanair to start flights to Kaunas this autumn
11 May 2005

VILNIUS (AFX) - Lithuania intends to invite Ryanair Holdings PLC to start low-cost flights to Kaunas airport this autumn, the Transport Ministry said.

It said a delegation from the Irish budget airline, headed by Benny Berger, director of the new flights development department, is to arrive in Lithuania on Friday.

Ryanair is expected to introduce at least one daily service by the end of this year, according to the statement from the Transport Ministry.

hkskyline

May 13th, 2005, 03:07 AM

Ryanair shareholders approve $4 billion Boeing buy

DUBLIN, May 12 (Reuters) - Ireland's Ryanair shareholders gave the thumbs up on Thursday for Europe's top no-frills airline to proceed with its planned buy of $4 billion worth of new planes from Boeing Co. .

Shareholders approved the plans following an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) at Ryanair's Dublin headquarters after the company announced in February that it had ordered 70 Boeing 737-800 aircraft and had taken options to buy 70 more.

The purchase forms part of the carrier's plan to expand aggressively in Europe, particularly in Spain and Italy, so as to achieve its goal of becoming Europe's largest airline within seven years.

hkskyline

May 14th, 2005, 06:19 PM

Ryanair's O'Leary denies being in contempt of court
13 May 2005
Irish Times

Ryanair chief executive Michael O'Leary denied an allegation in the High Court yesterday that he was in contempt of a previous court order in relation to a pilot who claims the company has failed to restore him to flying duties.

Mr O'Leary, in an affidavit, said he absolutely rejected the contempt allegation and said there was no basis for his attachment or committal to prison or for the sequestration of the company's assets.

He said the previous court order specifically did not prevent Ryanair from making decisions about the suitability of the pilot, John Goss, to fly on bona fide safety grounds.

Mr Goss has brought an application to jail three Ryanair executives for alleged contempt: Mr O'Leary; the director of flight and ground operations, David O'Brien; and the company's chief pilot, Ray Conway.

The airline told Mr Goss in a letter of April 12th last that it was sensible and operationally appropriate that he should be suspended on full pay until a court hearing previously fixed for May 31st and any subsequent disciplinary process were concluded.

In submissions yesterday, senior counsel Hugh Mohan, for Mr Goss, said that since earlier proceedings, his client had not been put back on flying duties.

In his affidavit, Mr O'Leary said he rejected the allegations by Mr Goss that he was attempting to thwart or breach the court order.

Also in an affidavit, Mr O'Brien said he had no hand, act or part in the decision to stand down Mr Goss from the flying duties for which he had been rostered.

Mr Justice White at the end of yesterday's hearing commented: "I have observed Mr O'Leary chewing on a biro from time to time. Is that indicative of stress on the part of Mr O'Leary or lack of respect for this court? Please get instructions."

Richard Nesbitt SC in reply said: "He understands absolutely the importance of this court and is entirely understanding of your lordship's powers and is fully respectful of the court."

The hearing continues today.

hkskyline

May 14th, 2005, 06:21 PM

BELGIAN PRESS: Ryanair Sued For EUR2.3 Million
13 May 2005

BRUSSELS (Dow Jones)--The French-speaking Belgian regional government is suing Ryanair Holdings (RYAAY) to recoup EUR2.3 million in aid, L'Echo reports.

The money was for the Irish low cost airline to set up a hub in the Belgian city of Charleroi. But since the European Commission judged the aid illegal last year, the region's Transport minister Andre Antoine told the newspaper that Ryanair must pay it back.

"If this payment doesn't happen, the Commission is going to ask the regional government to make the payment," the minister says.

Newspaper Web site: http://www.lecho.be

hkskyline

May 14th, 2005, 08:27 PM

Boeing And Ryanair Complete Pact For Boeing 737-800s
12 May 2005

SEATTLE (Dow Jones)--Ryanair Holdings plc. (RYAAY) shareholders approved the company's plan to buy 70 737-800 airplanes from Boeing Co. (BA).

In a press release Thursday, Boeing said the 70 planes are worth $4.6 billion at list prices, including technology that will lower takeoff noise at airports, reduce fuel burn by up to 4% and increase the distance the 737 can fly.

However, when the companies inked their deal in April, Ryanair said it negotiated a 10% discount and planned to pay around $3.57 billion for the 70 Boeing airplanes it ordered.

A Boeing spokesman said the company doesn't comment on what airlines pay, and representatives for the Dublin-based air carrier weren't immediately available.

In a filing at the time, the Irish carrier said the cost for each plane would be about $51 million, including the engine and some optional features. On its Web site, Boeing's list price for that model is $61.5 million to $69.5 million.

The airplanes are scheduled for delivery between 2008 and 2012, and the European low-cost airline has options for another 70 aircraft.

In its latest release, the aerospace company said Ryanair is its largest 737 customer outside the U.S.

Ryanair has ordered a total of 225 Boeing 737-800s to date, has received 82 since its first delivery in 1999, and now has 143 on backlog. The carrier plans to more than double its service and carry more than 70 million passengers by the 2011/2012 business year.

Boeing has $52.46 billion of revenue in 2004.

hkskyline

May 17th, 2005, 06:24 AM

easyJet chief executive steps down in boardroom reshuffle

LONDON, May 16 (AFP) - British low-cost airline easyJet said Monday that chief executive Ray Webster would be stepping down before his planned retirement in 2006.

Meanwhile, founder and major shareholder Stelios Haji-Ioannou was to rejoin the board as a non-executive director, the airline added in an official statement.

The airline said Webster -- who has been at the helm for almost 10 years -- decided that now was "the appropriate point in time for the company to identify and appoint a successor".

On the appointment of his successor, Webster would resign from the board and, up until November 30, 2006, would report to group chairman Colin Chandler.

"Given that he planned to retire in 2006, (Webster) felt the succession process should be accelerated. My fellow directors accept and support (his) decision even though we shall greatly miss his talents," Chandler said.

Commenting on his return to the board, Haji-Ioannou said he foresaw no major changes to his relationship with the airline he launched.

"By becoming a non-executive director myself, rather than operate through a representative on the board, I expect it to continue to be business as usual.

"I would like to stress that my role will be in a purely non-executive capacity, given my business commitments with the 14 other easy-branded businesses."

hkskyline

May 17th, 2005, 06:00 PM

Ryanair awards employees 3 pct pay rise
17 May 2005

LONDON (AFX) - Ryanair Holdings PLC, the Dublin-based no frills airline, said it has implemented a 3 pct pay increase backdated to April 1, 2005.

The move follows a round of direct negotiations with staff last month.

The 3 pct award applies to all staff groups across Europe who participated in the direct negotiations.

Consequently, it does not include the Dublin-based pilots.

'The door remains open to this group should they choose to avail of it,' Ryanair said.

The airline claims its employees enjoy better pay than its competitors.

hkskyline

May 19th, 2005, 04:09 AM

Ryanair triggers union protests over non-union salary hikes

BRUSSELS, May 18 (AFP) - Union leaders slammed low-cost airline Ryanair Wednesday for negotiating salary hikes only with non-union staff, saying its strategy was tantamount to "blackmail" to force people to leave unions.

The European Transport Workers' Federation and the International Transport Workers' Federation (ETF, ITF) lashed out after the Irish budget carrier decided Tuesday to raise pay by three percent backdated to April 1, except to employees negotiating through unions.

"Discrimination of workers to collective bargaining because a worker freely chooses to affiliate to a trade union is totally unacceptable," said ETF official Erika Young.

"In this case, it borders almost to blackmail. Inferring that affiliation to a trade union is detrimental to the company's profits is extremely misleading, given the success of other unionised low-fares and network carriers."

According to Ryanair personnel chief Eddie Wilson, the pay increase applies to all staff who participated in the direct negotiations with the company. Only Dublin-based pilots did not do so and were therefore left out.

"This pay increase reinforces the strength of Ryanair's model whereby people negotiate directly with the company and as a result enjoy better pay and conditions than our low-pay unionised competitors," he said Tuesday.

The airline added that the staff who were affiliated with unions were nonetheless welcome to approach the airline for direct talks.

"The door remains open to this group should they choose to avail of it," it said.

The ETF and ITF questioned the validity of the direct negotiations. "Are there real negotiations when Ryanair does not recognize trade unions?" it asked.

"It's time Ryanair stopped its anti-union practices, allowed all its workers to freely affiliate to any trade union and eliminated discrimination between members of its staff," said Young.

hkskyline

May 19th, 2005, 04:11 AM

Ryanair says in talks on UK mobile phone venture

LONDON, May 18 (Reuters) - Irish no-frills airline Ryanair said on Wednesday it was in talks with telecoms network operators about launching its own UK mobile phone business.

Ryanair, which recently banned its staff from charging their mobile phones at work, said it may sell mobile phone connections via the Internet under the plan.

Ryanair Deputy Chief Executive Michael Cawley told reporters the carrier was talking to potential partners for the business, which may not necessarily use the airline's branding.

A source familiar with the talks told Reuters that Ryanair hoped to become a Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNOs), which means it would buy airtime wholesale from network partners but own no phone network of its own.

Ryanair had initial talks with 3UK, owned by Hutchison Whampoa , but failed to reach agreement, the source said.

EasyMobile, which is linked to Ryanair rival easyJet , launched its own-brand mobile phone service in Britain in March, while airline entrepreneur Richard Branson's Virgin Group also has a mobile phone business.

Ryanair, which earns ancillary revenues from charging passengers for food, drinks, car hire and hotels, was also looking at gambling and property ventures for new sources of non-ticket earnings.

"Currently we are looking at some gambling products. That is very much at an embryonic stage," Cawley said.

Ryanair is expanding aggressively in Eruope and plans to double passenger numbers by 2012. On Wednesday it launched four new routes to Poland, where it expects to grow dramatically, and one to Slovakia. The airline currently operates 229 routes.

Cawley said it would announce two new bases in June or July.

Ryanair shares were trading 0.3 percent firmer at 6.07 euros in Dublin at 1303 GMT.

hkskyline

May 19th, 2005, 04:13 AM

Ryanair Mulls New Revenue Streams, Unveils New Routes
By Lilly Vitorovich
18 May 2005

LONDON (Dow Jones)--Irish budget carrier Ryanair Holdings PLC (RYA.LN) said Wednesday that it is reviewing several non-ticket revenue projects in a bid to fill the void left by its failed in-flight entertainment offering.

At a press conference, Deputy Chief Executive Michael Cawley said gambling products, mobile phones, property deals and other options are all being considered by management.

"Currently, we're looking at some gambling products... but that's very much embryonic stage," Cawley said as the airline launched four new routes to Poland and one to Slovakia.

Ryanair last month announced it wouldn't proceed with the roll out of an in-flight entertainment system after an extended trial found that most passengers weren't keen on paying for the console-based service.

With skies crowded by full service and no-frills carriers and the competition driving down ticket prices, generating non-ticket, or ancillary, revenue is becoming increasingly important for the no-frills carriers.

Ryanair has held talks with several companies about a possible deal which would see the distribution of mobile phones via the internet. The service would allow mobile users to make calls in any part of Europe at the lowest cost, according to recent media reports.

"We've talked to lots of people," Cawley said, but cautioned no deal has been signed.

However, he did stress that Ryanair is unlikely to use its own corporate name when it comes to the phone's branding to ensure no damage is done to its corporate name and image, which is synonymous for cheap fairs.

Cawley declined to provide any more details, adding the company is likely to say more when it releases its annual results May 31.

Ryanair's growth has been phenomenal since it was established in 1985 by the Ryan family. It has become a case study for other no-frills carriers around the world.

At present, the Dublin-based airline operates 229 routes to some 20 countries, with 12 European bases. It has a fleet of more than 100 Boeing 737-800 aircraft, with firm orders for a further 125 new planes, which will be delivered over the next seven years, according to its website.

Cawley was upbeat about the group's expansion into Poland, which will take its current one flight daily service to five daily in October.

The new routes to Gdansk, Bydgoszcz, Szczecin and Rzeszow and a new twice-daily service to the Slovakian capital Bratislava from London-Stansted will be immediately profitable, thanks in large part to good deals with airport operators, he added.

In the first year of expanded operations to Poland, Ryanair expects to carry 600,000 passengers, while it expects to carry a total of 34 million passengers in 2005.

Details of more new routes are likely in the next six to 12 months, with Lithuania, Norway, Iceland, Malta, Cyprus, and further routes in Poland all on the radar, Cawley said, adding: "We're very optimistic about growth."

The group is looking to establish two more bases, possibly in Germany, Italy, France, Spain or Poland.

Corrected May 18, 2005 9:16 ET (13:16 GMT) [ 18-05-05 1250GMT ]

Irish budget carrier Ryanair Holdings PLC (RYA.LN) said Wednesday that it is reviewing several non-ticket revenue projects in a bid to fill the void left by its failed in-flight entertainment offering.

("=Ryanair Mulls New Revenue Streams, Unveils New Routes," published at 1250 GMT, incorrectly gave the day as Tuesday instead of Wednesday.) [ 18-05-05 1314GMT ]

hkskyline

May 19th, 2005, 05:45 PM

Grounded pilot back on roster, court told
19 May 2005
Irish Times

Grounded Ryanair pilot Capt John Goss had been re-rostered by the low-fares airline and was back flying, the High Court heard yesterday.

Hugh Mohan SC, counsel for Capt Goss, said his client had only recently learned that he had been put back on the airline's roster and would be taking up flying duties that day (Wednesday) or today.

Mr Justice Barry White was to have given his decision yesterday on an application to jail Ryanair chief executive Michael O'Leary and two other company executives for alleged contempt of court, but said he would not now do so until Wednesday next, May 25th.

Mr Mohan said that the airline bosses had failed to reinstate Capt Goss to flying duties in blatant breach of two previous High Court orders.

Mr Mohan, who appeared with Ms Marguerite Bolger, said Capt Goss had undergone and passed final medical and psychiatric examinations and, as earlier, had been passed as completely fit to fly.

Mr Goss had claimed that Ryanair was in contempt of court and had sought the attachment and committal of Mr O'Leary, Ryanair director of flight and ground operations David O'Brien and Capt Ray Conway, the airline's chief pilot.

He is also seeking an order for the sequestration (seizure) of Ryanair's assets.

Mr Mohan said that, because of the obduracy of Ryanair in its manner of handling the matter following the making of the initial court order, Capt Goss had to bring a second motion for contempt of court. The airline had done everything it could to prevent him from flying and had done so in the face of the order of the High Court.

Since the last court hearing, Capt Goss had attended a medical examination in the Netherlands in order to have his concentration levels tested and had been found fit to fly.

Mr Mohan said Ryanair had been engaged in a war of attrition which it had set out to win on the basis that it believed it was bigger than this one individual. Mr O'Leary, seemed to have left court under some misapprehension and had continued shilly shallying.

Mr Richard Nesbitt SC, counsel for Ryanair, told Mr Justice White that Capt Goss had now been rostered as ordered by the court.

Mr Nesbitt, who appeared with Mr Martin Hayden SC and Mr Mark Dunne, said the issue in the case had always been one of flight safety.

Capt Conway, was now happy that Capt Goss could fly.

"It is exceptionally unfortunate that all that has been put before this court is something suggestive of a dishonestly motivated ruse by Capt Conway, the chief pilot of Ryanair," Mr Nesbitt said.

"There is no satisfactory evidence to merit that finding. The centre of the matter has always been Capt Conway doing his job and trying to do it to the best of his ability."

Judge White said he would give his decision next Wednesday at 10:30am.

hkskyline

May 19th, 2005, 05:47 PM

Ryanair could have to pay out €44m to pilots
Siobhán Creaton
19 May 2005
Irish Times

Ryanair could potentially face a compensation bill of up to €44 million if the 170 victimisation claims taken by its Dublin-based pilots were to be upheld by a rights commissioner. The first of these cases is expected to be heard in mid-June.

The complaints, some of which have been lodged by the airline's most senior pilots, stem from Ryanair's action in seeking to persuade the pilots to accept terms and conditions attached to their training to fly its new fleet of aircraft.

The initial complaints were first submitted by the airline's eight most senior captains to the Labour Relations Commission last November. Many of the pilots have made multiple complaints.

In the past week, fresh victimisation claims have been made on grounds of the airline's refusal to give the pilots a pay rise. Ryanair said on Tuesday that it had awarded a 3 per cent pay increase to its staff with the exception of its pilots.

It said that the increase, backdated to April 1st, had been granted following "direct negotiations" with its staff last month.

It claimed that the pay rise was awarded to staff who negotiated directly with the company. The pilots are members of the Irish Air Line Pilots Association (Ialpa), which is part of trade union Impact. Ryanair claimed it withheld their pay increase because they had chosen not to negotiate with the airline.

The victimisation claims will be heard by a rights commissioner who has the powers to award a maximum settlement equal to twice the complainant's salary where a claim is upheld.

Ryanair has claimed that its team of pilots are among the highest paid in the airline industry and earn up to €130,000 a year.

Each of the pilots could stand to win compensation of up to €260,000 if successful.

Sources among the pilots suggest that up to 70 further victimisation complaints may yet be taken.

The Labour Court is to investigate a case taken by the Ialpa on behalf of some Ryanair pilots relating to their terms and conditions of employment.

The investigation will centre on the pilots' right to training by the airline, their contracts and rights where redundancies are sought.

The Labour Court findings are binding.

Ryanair is claiming that the new Industrial Relations (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2004 cannot be used to enforce trade union recognition against an employer, such as Ryanair, which does not engage in negotiations with trade unions.

The Labour Court accepted this submission but noted that the legislation does provide a measure of protection to employees when pay and conditions are not freely determined by collective bargaining.

Capt John Goss, the pilot who secured an injunction restraining Ryanair from conducting disciplinary proceedings against him pending a full court challenge, was among the group of the airline's eight most senior pilots to lodge the first victimisation claim.

The airline is also fighting a number of separate legal challenges related to its ongoing dispute with its pilots.

These include High Court proceedings it has taken against Ialpa accusing it of conducting an "organised campaign of harassment and intimidation of Ryanair pilots" through a website set up last year for its pilots.

Ryanair has claimed the website, www.repaweb.org , had been a conduit for intimidation of pilots considering flying the airline's new Boeing 737-800 series aircraft to be based in Dublin later this year.

"In addition to threatening and intimidating Ryanair pilots, this website has also published specific threats ... which have been the source of a formal complaint to the Garda Síochána," it said.

hkskyline

May 24th, 2005, 05:01 PM

Tuesday May 24, 9:35 PM
EasyJet Half-Year Loss Widens to $40.85M

AP - Low-cost airline easyJet PLC said Tuesday its half-year loss widened because of surging fuel costs, a situation that is unlikely to change this year.

EasyJet said it lost 22.3 million pounds ($40.85 million) in the six months to March 31, extending a 19.7 million pounds loss in the previous corresponding half.

The London-based airline said that a 50 percent rise in fuel costs over the past year had masked other successes, including a 25 percent rise in the number of passengers it carried over the half year to 13.5 million and a 26 percent jump in revenue to 553.3 million pounds ($1.01 billion).

Shares in the carrier fell 4.8 percent to 2.36 pounds ($4.33) on the London Stock Exchange, after it warned that the high oil costs would continue to push pretax profits for the current year to below the level of 2004.

"Fuel now represents 18 percent of our cost base, and the high prices experienced over the winter months show little sign of abating," Chairman Colin Chandler said.

Crude oil prices hit an all-time high of $58.28 on April 4. They have since fallen by around $9 as inventories have risen.

Average fares at easyJet were little changed from a year ago, because of strong competition from rival low-cost carriers. The airline has joined other budget carriers in refusing to impose a fuel surcharge on passengers to pass on the cost, a measure undertaken by British Airways PLC and other full-cost airlines.

There are now 47 low-cost airlines operating in Europe, compared to just seven three years ago, and they are relying on winning more customers through lower fares.

EasyJet said that it still increased revenue per passenger by 16 percent by tapping into other earnings potential, such as in-flight food services.

It has also saved money by adding more fuel-efficient Airbus A319s and withdrawing from poorly performing markets or airports that charge high fees.

The airline has launched 40 routes over the past six months, for a total of more than 150, and started flights to 14 new airports, taking delivery of its 100th aircraft during the half year.

EasyJet sparked concern earlier this month when it announced that chief executive Ray Webster, who steered the group through a stock market listing and the acquisition of rival budget airline Go, is retiring to return to his native New Zealand.

The company also said Stelios Haji-Ioannou, the airline's founder and still a major shareholder, will rejoin the company as non-executive director.

hkskyline

May 24th, 2005, 05:36 PM

Ryanair boss says summer bookings going well

BELGRADE, May 23 (Reuters) - Ryanair's summer bookings are going well, the budget airline's boss said on Monday, adding he was comfortable with an expected 246 million euro ($311 million) net profit for the year just ended.

"That's the general range of analyst expectations and we are not unhappy with that," Ryanair Chief Executive Michael O'Leary told reporters on the sidelines of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development's annual meeting in Belgrade.

Ryanair, which is due to publish results for the 12 months to end-March next week, had seen a "fantastic" start to its 2005/2006 business year in terms of summer bookings, O'Leary said.

"If you take the month of May, we expect to have a load factor of over 80 percent and we have said the load factor throughout the summer would be over 80 percent."

Ryanair said earlier this month it had filled 81 percent of seats on its flights during April.

O'Leary, who has been engaged in a long-running war of words with the Irish government in his bid to get a competing terminal built at Dublin airport, criticised plans announced last week to only partially privatise state-owned Aer Lingus [AERL.UL].

"What you are going to privatise is something that the government still hopes to control in some kind of completely screwed-up way ... If you want to privatise it, privatise the bloody thing and get the hell out of it."

hkskyline

May 25th, 2005, 05:22 AM

Central Europe, Baltics can treble air traffic annually: Ryanair chief

BELGRADE, May 23 (AFP) - Central European countries and the Baltic states recently signed up to the European Union have the ability to treble annual levels of incoming air traffic, Michael O'Leary, chief executive of Irish budget carrier Ryanair said here Monday.

But he stressed that "rapid growth" would be achieved only as long as governments reduced tax levels on tickets alongside better management of airports.

"You need government support for rapid growth," the airline boss told delegates and journalists attending the annual conference of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), which invests in a number of countries in central Europe and the Baltic states.

"Airports' management should not be out to make a quick profit," O'Leary added.

The animated chief executive said there was no reason why new EU members across the regions, including Poland and Latvia, could not replicate the success of Germany's Frankfurt-Hahn airport by attracting four million passengers over seven years.

They "can grow traffic very rapidly", O'Leary said, adding that their airports should be doubling or tripling air traffic numbers on an annual basis.

"If airports are not doubling or tripling passenger traffic every year, management should be shot," he said to ripples of laughter.

Ryanair recently announced it would begin flying to the Polish cities of Gdansk, Bydgoszcz, Szczecin and Rzeszow later in the year.

hkskyline

May 25th, 2005, 06:19 PM

EARNINGS POLL-Ryanair yr net profit seen at 248 mln euros
By Kevin Smith

DUBLIN, May 25 (Reuters) - Ryanair is expected to report a strong set of full year results next week on the back of significant route expansion and robust underlying passenger volume growth, analysts said on Wednesday.

Europe's biggest no-frills carrier is seen posting a net profit of 248 million euros ($312.5 million) for the 12 months to end-March versus 206.6 million the previous year, according to the median of 16 forecasts compiled by Reuters Estimates.

Revenue is seen at 1.29 billion euros compared with 1.07 billion in the prior period. Based on figures Ryanair reported for the first nine months of the year, that would equate to net income of 13.4 million euros in the fourth quarter and revenue of 276 million.

Earlier this week Ryanair Chief Executive Michael O'Leary said he was comfortable with net profit estimates of around 246 million euros and that the airline had seen a "fantastic" start to its 2005/2006 business year in terms of summer bookings.

Ryanair had set a full-year net profit target of 200 million euros, which it hit in the first half.

"Capacity growth I would see accelerating over the summer ... so the key focus will be on high oil prices and compensating for that with better yields (average revenue per passenger)," said Stephen Furlong, analyst at Davy Stockbrokers in Dublin.

He said the market would be looking for further evidence of unit cost reduction at the airline, which has been forced by intense competition in the no-frills sector to slash ticket prices, and for progress on ancillary revenue generation. Ryanair earns ancillary revenue from charging passengers for food, drinks, car hire and hotels, and has also looked at gambling, property and mobile telephone ventures for new sources of non-ticket earnings.

Kevin McConnell, head of equities at Bloxham Stockbrokers, said that looking forward, he expected Ryanair to maintain its aggressive strategy against any competitors showing signs of weakness and to continue building its route network and adding to its fleet.

"Ryanair will be suggesting to the market that they believe they're going to grow strongly even though the market may not grow that strongly," he said.

Ryanair is expanding aggressively in Europe and plans to double passenger numbers by 2012. Earlier this month it launched new routes to Poland and one to Slovakia, bringing the number of routes it operates to 229. It now has 12 European bases.

Following is a breakdown of analyst forecasts for Ryanair's full year earnings and revenue, due to be released on May 31.

(All figures in millions of euros)

Net Income Revenue
Median 248.0 1,292
Average 248.8 1,292
Highest Estimate 255.7 1,304
Lowest Estimate 243.9 1,277
Number of Estimates 16 18
Previous year 206.6 1,074

hkskyline

May 25th, 2005, 08:25 PM

Easyjet rules out surcharge despite rocketing fuel bill
By Alistair Osborne
25 May 2005
The Daily Telegraph

EASYJET yesterday said it had no plans to impose any surcharges on its passengers despite facing a near- pounds 60m increase in its fuel bill this year. The low-fare airline said net fuel costs rose by pounds 17.9m in the first half of its financial year to March 31 and would be expected to rise by a further pounds 41m in the second half at present exchange rates if the oil price remained at about $50 a barrel. The higher fuel price was a key reason seasonal first-half losses rose from pounds 27.3m to pounds 31.2m pre-tax, when passenger numbers increased 25pc to 13.5m year-on-year. Ray Webster, chief executive, said: "We have debated whether we put a fuel surchage on but we do not think we would get any revenue benefits. "At the moment we are getting the benefit of other carriers' fuel chargers.

They are generally applying pounds 6 surcharges on short haul flights and we believe we are getting revenue benefits of about pounds 2 per passenger.'' This is because more passengers were diverting to Easyjet, whose average fares rose last half by just 0.1pc to pounds 38.08. Easyjet has 22pc of its fuel hedged next quarter at no more than $36.2 a barrel and a further cap for 40pc of its fuel should the oil price top $60. Mr Webster, 58, who last week revealed he would be stepping down when a successor is found, reiterated that owing to the rising fuel bill, full-year profits were likely to be below last year's pounds 62.1m. The shares yesterday fell 10 to 238p. He said that total revenue per seat, though up 1.1pc in the first half, was expected to be flat year-on-year at about pounds 37.87 and was not unduly concerned by the consumer downturn. "It's tough, but we are managing,'' he said, adding that Easyjet's "controllable costs are being well managed''. Gross cash rose pounds 127m last half to pounds 637m.

hkskyline

May 25th, 2005, 08:30 PM

EasyJet Expands Basel Base, Adds Hamburg To Network
25 May 2005
Edited Press Release

LONDON (Dow Jones)--European low cost airline easyJet PLC said Wednesday that it would add more capacity to its base at EuroAirport Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg this summer and introduce an additional three new routes.

Thee daily services from EuroAirport Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg to Madrid and Hamburg commences on Aug. 11, whilst the daily service to Malaga commences on Aug. 12.

"This expansion is a continuation of the development of EuroAirport Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg as easyJet's second Swiss base and will increase the total number of routes offered to 13, with four aircraft operating through the airport," easyJet said.

Chief Executive Ray Webster said easyJet's expansion at Basel's EuroAirport is a further step in easyJet's commitment to intra European travel and reflects the airlines growth plans for Germany.

"The airline will now offer a choice of 13 routes from its new Basel base and Wednesday's announcement increases the number of German airports on easyJet's network to five," he said in a statement.

The new routes are in addition to six announced last month to Alicante, Barcelona, Naples, Nice, Palma and Rome starting on June 17.

Madrid and Malaga are currently served easyJet destinations that have proved to be very popular, whilst the Hamburg service adds a new city to the easyJet network taking the total number of destinations served to 62 and a total of 205 routes throughout Europe.

Seats are on sale now, with fares to Madrid and Malaga from EUR26.99 one way, to Hamburg from EUR18.99 one way.

hkskyline

May 26th, 2005, 02:50 AM

No-frills airline boss spares no expense to extend estate
Tom Felle
24 May 2005
Irish Independent

RYANAIR boss Michael O'Leary won't be allowed to build his own terminal at Dublin Airport, but he has applied for permission to extend his estate in Co Westmeath.

The multi-millionaire airline chief has applied for planning permission to build a number of stables and sheds and to make improvements to his farm beside his lavish Georgian Gigginstown House near Mullingar.

But despite his no-frills policy, he is sparing nothing when it comes to his horses.

He wants to build a stable for 12 horses, including storage rooms and toilets, an exercise arena, cattle handling facilities, a dry storage shed, a manure holding area and to upgrade the existing farm entrance at the Kilpatrick estate.

Mr O'Leary owns a large estate and has a herd of prize-winning cattle and top race horses.

But he is not in it for the love of farming.

According to accounts filed with the Companies office, his taxi and stud farm, Tillingdale, made a profit of almost €500,000 in 2004, and most of it was tax-free.

That is on top of his €800,000 annual salary as Ryanair chief executive.

Tillingdale, which owns the business name O'Leary Cabs, bought Mr O'Leary's taxi plate in 2003.

The company's main activity is as a stud farm.

It trades as Gigginstown House Stud Farm and owns a number of horses, including War of Attrition.

The 44-year-old is the sole shareholder of the company, while he and his wife Anita are directors.

The application was lodged in his and his wife's name on April 28 and a decision to grant permission is due on June 22.

This is not the first time that Mr O'Leary has extended his estate.

In 2001, he applied to build a lavish extension to his Mullingar home including a swimming pool, a rear two-storey wing and made repairs to the roof.

The work was completed just in time to hold the reception for his wedding in 2003.

Monkey

May 26th, 2005, 02:09 PM

Ryanair invades Poland
http://www.ryanair.com/site/EN/news.php?yr=05&month=may&story=rte-en-180505

60 YEARS AFTER VE DAY:
RYANAIR LIBERATES POLAND

5 NEW ROUTES TO POLAND & SLOVAKIA AT FARES FROM £3.99*

Ryanair, Europe’s No. 1 low fares airline, today (Wednesday, 18th May 2005) announced 5 new routes to Poland and Slovakia. From October 30th, 2005 Ryanair will operate daily flights from London-Stansted to Gdansk, Bydgoszcz, Szczecin, Rzeszow (Poland) and a twice-daily route to Bratislava (Slovakia). Bookings can be made on Ryanair.com today from just £3.99*.

Announcing Ryanair’s new routes in London today, Michael Cawley, Deputy CEO said:

“In 2004 Michael O’Leary said: “Who wants to go to Gdansk? There ain’t a lot there after you’ve seen the shipyard wall”. There he goes – wrong again. A big piece of humble pie later and it’s RE (Ryanair in Europe) Day as Ryanair liberates Poland from the tyranny of high fares. British Tourists can now discover Poland and decide for themselves what Gdansk, Bydgoszcz, Szczecin, and Rzeszow have to offer without paying the high fares of LOT and Easyjet.

“Today, we also add a new route to Bratislava in Slovakia, which has the added appeal of its proximity to Vienna, a destination which until today could only be accessed at prohibitively high fares.

“These five new routes mean British passengers will save over £60M on the high fares of other airlines and will benefit from Ryanair’s unbeatable punctuality and customer service”.

hkskyline

May 26th, 2005, 03:42 PM

Ryanair's O'Leary: low cost boom still not fading
By Paul Majendie

DUBLIN, May 26 (Reuters) - Ryanair Chief Executive Michael O'Leary, celebrating the budget airline's 20th birthday on Thursday, said he was confident the low cost airline boom in Europe had not run out of steam.

The flamboyant entrepreneur said fuel surcharges by other airlines had boosted business for his no-frills airline which he predicted would double its capacity to 70 million passengers in five years.

"We think the biggest driver in our numbers, certainly over the last six months if not 12 months, is fuel surcharges being levied by competition," he said.

Rival low-cost carrier easyJet Plc, which has also refused to introduce surcharges despite high oil prices, warned earlier this week that fuel bills would erode profits this year.

Nevertheless, O'Leary said that he was "just about comfortable" with analyst forecasts that Ryanair will post a 245 million euro ($308 million) profit for the year just ended when it publishes results next week.

"If anything, the low cost airline boom is increasing," O'Leary told reporters after blowing out 20 candles on a Ryanair birthday cake.

O'Leary, who ranks alongside Virgin boss Richard Branson as one of the most successful self-publicists in the airline business, said: "There is no competitor out there in Europe that threatens Ryanair at our present cost base."

The Ryanair boss, who dressed up as the Pope last year to publicise the expansion of the company's Italian business, forecast that western Europe would still be the biggest area of future expansion.

"Will we carry 70 million passengers in five years time ? Yeah, we will," he said.

Never one to miss a chance to knock his rivals, O'Leary boasted that later this year, Ryanair monthly traffic would top 3.5 million passengers, overtaking the total worldwide traffic of British Airways.

"The very fact that a Mickey Mouse Irish airline can start in a field in Waterford 20 years ago and in 20 years overtake the world's self-styled, self proclaimed favourite airline is testament to the almost unstoppable demand for low airfare travel around Europe," he said.

O'Leary has been locked in a long-running war of words with the Irish government of Prime Minister Bertie Ahern over a second terminal in Dublin which he said should be in competition with the current state-run terminal.

"The whole thing is a bloody shambles," he said of plans announced last week for a new terminal by the year 2009.

"It is a fight for truth and justice against the evil empire of Bertie Ahern and the bearded forces of darkness in the trade union movement."

hkskyline

May 27th, 2005, 04:00 AM

Ryanair recruitment ad violated Latvian law: competition watchdog

RIGA, May 26 (AFP) - A recruitment advertisement placed by Irish low-cost airline Ryanair in a Latvian business daily violated the Baltic state's laws, Latvia's Competition Council has ruled.

Ryanair published an advertisement in Latvian business daily Dienas Biznes in February, announcing a "pilot-luring day in Riga -- the native city of airBaltic national carrier", the advertising standards watchdog said Wednesday.

"In the newspaper advertisements, Ryanair used the abbreviated form of airBaltic four times. The Competition Council found that the name airBaltic was used without its owner's permission," the advertising standards body said.

Latvian advertising law prohibits the use of the "name, label or any other identification of another company without its permission, unless it is a comparative advertisement".

The ad promised airBaltic pilots "an opportunity to work for the number one cheap flights company in Europe" and "number one airline in terms of profit in Europe".

AirBaltic filed a complaint with the Competition Council on February 18, saying the purpose of the Ryanair advertisement was to lure away the highly skilled employees of another company.

Despite the ruling, Ryanair has not been punished, because the advertisement was published only one time, after the Irish company was made aware of the violation, the competition watchdog said.

Ryanair operates ex-Riga routes to London, Frankfurt and Tampere, Finland.

AirBaltic, founded in 1995, is majority-owned by the Latvian state, which holds 52.6 percent of the airline, and Scandinavian airlines SAS, with 47.2 percent.

The Latvian national carrier flies from Riga and the Lithuanian capital Vilnius to more than 20 European cities.

hkskyline

May 27th, 2005, 08:08 AM

No-frills giant Ryanair celebrates 20th birthday, predicts more growth
26 May 2005

DUBLIN, Ireland (AP) - Ryanair, the brash no-frills airline that has expanded rapidly across Europe, celebrated its 20th birthday Thursday by predicting it would soon overtake British Airways in the number of passengers it carries.

Ryanair took to the air two decades ago, operating a single daily route between London and the southeast Irish city of Waterford. Today it operates 220 routes in 19 countries.

Chief Executive Michael O'Leary blew out 20 candles on a cake in a central Dublin hotel -- then made a raft of typically cocky predictions about the airline's coming triumphs.

He said Ryanair this year would overtake British Airways' worldwide passenger load of 3.5 million per month. He expected Ryanair to be carrying 70 million passengers annually within the next five years.

"The very fact that a Mickey Mouse Irish airline can start in a field in Waterford 20 years ago and, in 20 years, overtake the world's self-styled, self-proclaimed favorite airline," he said, referring to British Airways, "is testament to the almost unstoppable demand for low-airfare travel around Europe."

Ryanair also announced it was selling 200,000 seats across its network for euro0.99 or 99 British pence in celebration of its birthday. Those fares, as usual in Ryanair promotions, exclude tax and other charges, meaning these tickets will really cost around euro25 (US$30) each way.

hkskyline

May 29th, 2005, 05:28 PM

27.05.05
Corporate Press Release
RYANAIR TO CARRY RECORD 380,000 PASSENGERS TO/FROM UK OVER BANK HOLIDAY WEEKEND

Ryanair, Europe’s No.1 low fares airline, today (Friday, 27th May 2005) announced it will carry a bumper 380,000 passengers on its 145 UK routes this Bank Holiday Weekend*.

Speaking on the record figures this morning, Ryanair’s Head of Communications, Peter Sherrard said:

“Bank Holiday weekends are a particularly busy time for Ryanair, and this one is no different. Hundreds of thousands of UK consumers are taking advantage of Ryanair’s low fares and jetting off this Bank Holiday Weekend.

“Ryanair’s will carry almost 380,000 passengers this weekend to and from UK, as we continue to be Britain’s favourite airline. This represents a 21% increase on the 313,000 passengers we carried over the same period last year.

“Demand for Ryanair’s low fares continues unabated - and that’s because Ryanair gives you the lowest fares coupled with the best punctuality and best customer service. This year, Ryanair will carry over 34 Million passengers on our 229 routes across 20 European countries”.

*Thursday 27th May – Tuesday 31st May 2005

hkskyline

May 30th, 2005, 05:17 AM

Ryanair must get ready for their next life after O'Leary
Dan White
29 May 2005
The Sunday Independent (Ireland)

ALTHOUGH still only 44, Michael O'Leary is the longest-serving boss of any of the 10 most valuable Irish companies. He has been Ryanair boss since the start of 1994 and was deputy CEO for three years before that.

CRH's Liam O'Mahony, AIB's Michael Buckley, IL&P's David Went and Kerry's Hugh Friel are also-rans merely trotting after O'Leary in the corporate longevity stakes.

During his 14 years with the company, Ryanair has grown from being a tiny, loss-making carrier on the brink of bankruptcy into the most valuable airline in Europe. In the process he has made himself at least €350m and restored the fortunes of the Ryan family, which originally founded Ryanair in 1985, following the collapse of aircraft leasing company GPA in 1993.

O'Leary's success at Ryanair has been based on ruthlessly eliminating costs. The frills which were once synonymous with the airline industry - in-flight meals, excessive airport charges, business class, frequent flyer programmes, fat travel agency commissions and gold-plated staff pay and conditions - have all been either drastically pruned or entirely dispensed with by Ryanair. By doing this, O'Leary has been able to cut Ryanair's fares to previously unimagined levels.

When Ryanair first flew two decades ago, the cheapest air fare between Dublin and London was £200 (€254). This week the Ryanair website was advertising flights to London for just 99¢ each way. Even when the various taxes and charges with which Ryanair loads its fares are added, the cost of flying has plummeted under O'Leary.

The results have been dramatic. Almost 28m people flew with Ryanair in the 12 months to the end of March. That's four times as many passengers as Aer Lingus carried last year, while full-year pre-tax profits for the year are likely to come in at over €270m.

Ryanair's explosive growth has made it a favourite with investors as well as passengers. Its market capitalisation of almost €4.7bn makes it Europe's most valuable airline, well ahead of the likes of BA and Lufthansa.

O'Leary has made an enormous contribution to the growth of Ryanair. He hasn't been afraid to roll up his sleeves and get his hands dirty. Whether it be bolshie trade unions, dithering politicians or expensive airports, O'Leary has never been shy about putting the boot in.

Since 1994 O'Leary has been a one-man publicity campaign. Who needs a marketing department when old motormouth can grab the headlines just about whenever he wants? In Ryanair's 2003 annual report O'Leary was famously photographed dressed as a French maid. It's a fair bet that no other Irish chief executive would willingly be photographed publicly in similar attire.

While some of O'Leary's japes have been merely juvenile, at times his instincts have been inspired. In the immediate aftermath of September 11, when most of the West's other airlines were grounding their fleets, O'Leary instead launched his 'Let's fight back' advertising campaign. By aggressively cutting fares O'Leary was able to persuade nervous passengers to start flying once again.

O'Leary's approach to politicians has also been unique. Not for him the low-key, discreet lobbying favoured by most other chief executives. When former Communications Minister Mary O'Rourke didn't deliver a second privately-owned terminal at Dublin Airport, O'Leary launched a merciless media campaign lampooning her.

Taoiseach Bertie Ahern has also been at the receiving end of O'Leary's invective. In the run-up to the Government's recent decision on a second terminal at Dublin Airport, the newspapers were full of Ryanair advertisements ridiculing 'dithering Bertie'.

However, with almost a dozen Fianna Fail seats north of the Liffey, there was no way Ahern was going to give O'Leary a privately-owned second terminal, no matter how much money Ryanair spent on attack advertising.

O'Leary's in-your-face approach has also failed to impress the European Commission. When the EC began legal proceedings against Ryanair for the sweetheart deal it had negotiated with the Walloon local government to use Charleroi airport south of Brussels, O'Leary went on the warpath.

Fat lot of good it did him. The EC refused to be intimidated and forced Ryanair to renegotiate the Charleroi deal. The spats with Ahern and the EU illustrate the limitations of the O'Leary approach. His no-holds-barred style needlessly turned potential friends into enemies.

Backed into a corner by Ryanair, Ahern was never going to concede to O'Leary's demands on the second terminal. Likewise, with the Commission actively signalling that it was open to a compromise on Charleroi, O'Leary instead gave it to the EC with both barrels.

If it hadn't been for O'Leary, Ryanair would never have been the success that it has become. For many years O'Leary was Ryanair. If he had walked under a bus any time over the past eight years, the share price would have collapsed.

Not any more. While it is still growing rapidly, Ryanair is now a big company. Over the next five or six years the 20 per cent annual growth rate in passenger numbers is going to slow dramatically.

The job of managing a small, rapidly growing company, at which O'Leary has excelled, is very different from that of managing a large, mature one. Somehow I cannot see O'Leary happy in an established company. It would be better for both Ryanair and O'Leary to prepare for an amicable parting of the waysbefore that happens.

hkskyline

May 31st, 2005, 06:47 PM

Irish budget airline Ryanair reports stronger-than-expected profits
By SHAWN POGATCHNIK
31 May 2005

DUBLIN, Ireland (AP) - Irish budget airline Ryanair reported better-than-expected profits Tuesday, citing its stringent cost controls and continued growth in passenger numbers and routes across western Europe.

For the full year ending March 31, the Dublin-based airline said its net profit rose 29 percent to €266.7 million (US$330.7 million) from €206.6 million in fiscal 2004 -- about 10 percent better than most analysts expected. Revenues rose 24 percent to €1.34 billion (US$1.66 billion) from €1.07 billion last year.

Chief Executive Michael O'Leary said European flag-carrier airlines were reducing their services "in markets where they compete with Ryanair." He said Ryanair also was expanding into eastern Europe and raising pressure on its main no-frills rival: the Luton, England-based easyJet.

"We have been most encouraged by the strong advance bookings at our new Luton and Liverpool bases, where passengers are looking for an alternative to easyJet's high prices," he said.

"Recently we announced five new routes from London to Poland and Slovakia and expect that these will be the first in a series of new route announcements over the coming weeks for next winter," he said.

O'Leary predicted an even better 2006 for the airline, which was launched 20 years ago operating a single route between London and the southeast Irish city of Waterford. Today it operates 220 routes in 19 countries.

"If our competitors continue to maintain (fuel) surcharges or continue to remove capacity from our markets, then yields should be more stable, even as we continue to expand," he said.

"Advance bookings for the summer months are strong, and we are raising our traffic growth forecast for the coming year from 34 million to 35 million," he said.

Ryanair's shares rose 5.6 percent in afternoon trade on the Irish Stock Exchange to €6.60 (US$8.20).

Analysts agreed that Ryanair appeared poised for continued growth and would benefit from unusually shrewd forward planning.

They cited Ryanair's February deal with Boeing for at least 70 new 737-800 aircraft -- locking in the U.S. dollar's near-record weakness versus the euro -- and the airline's advance purchase of 75 percent of its winter fuel requirements at rates equivalent to US$47 a barrel. Oil was trading Tuesday near US$52 a barrel.

"They're pretty good numbers all round. The trading statement is pretty bullish as well," said analyst Shane Matthews at NCB Stockbrokers in Dublin.

Joe Gill, an analyst for Goodbody Stockbrokers in Dublin, said Ryanair's "bookings are exceptionally strong. With their orders for Boeing already in, it's hard to see how they're going to show profits weakness over the next year."

hkskyline

June 1st, 2005, 02:39 AM

Passengers suffered mid-air oxygen crisis, probe reveals
Don Lavery and Allison Bray
31 May 2005
Irish Independent

FLIGHT crew aboard a Ryanair flight from Spain had to don oxygen masks while passengers were starved of oxygen as the aircraft cabin depressurised, an official investigation into the incident has been told.

Some flight crew members reported sharp pains in their ears and eyes, forcing them to don oxygen masks to fly the Boeing 737 loaded with 116 passengers and crew on its way to Dublin, which then had to make an emergency descent and land in Biarritz, on November 3, 2004. The passengers who showed signs of hypoxia - oxygen starvation - including laughing and dizziness, had failed to put on their oxygen masks, a company representative sitting in the cabin told an Air Accident Investigation Unit inquiry.

The report said the then 22-year-old plane had taken off from Reus in Spain in November 2004 and the captain was asked by Ryanair's ground-handling agent to speed up his departure because of the arrival of another Ryanair plane from Frankfurt.

The report found that an after-take-off checklist supposed to be completed by the flight crew was not fully accomplished, and the aircraft took off without being properly pressurised. However, the aircraft was able to land safely at Biarritz with no injuries to the crew and passengers. But the inspectors noted the incident was potentially very serious.

"When an un-pressurised aircraft climbs to altitude, the effects of hypoxia can be quite subtle and insidious as the body will attempt to acclimatise to the altitude change," the report read.

"A flight crew operating under a high workload on the flight deck may not fully appreciate or recognise the initial symptoms of hypoxia. It is therefore possible that judgment may be impaired to such an extent that corrective action associated with dealing with an emergency situation may lead to an incorrect or inappropriate response . . . The very nature of hypoxia itself is such that the pilot can become the poorest judge of when he or she is suffering from its insidious effects."

While corrective measures were taken during the incident to counteract the effect of depressurisation by making an emergency landing, the report noted extreme hypoxia - including convulsions, coma and possible death - can occur at an altitude of just 20,000 feet.

However, the report noted that the response by the cabin crew members to the emergency situation over Spain had been "appropriate and professional", and that Ryanair had been "pro-active" in heightening awareness of possible "traps" associated with the operation of the pressurisation system.

Ryanair said it had co-operated with the AAIU probe and immediately implemented its findings.

hkskyline

June 1st, 2005, 06:22 PM

Ryanair: Likely To Take Additional Options On Boeing Jets
31 May 2005

LONDON (Dow Jones)--Irish budget airline Ryanair Holdings PLC (RYAAY) is likely to exercise options on additional 737 airplanes made by Boeing Co. (BA), Chief Executive Officer Michael O'Leary said Tuesday.

"I expect we will be taking additional options," O'Leary said at a news conference in London. Under an existing plane contract with Boeing, Ryanair has options for about 20 more aircraft for delivery in 2007 and 2008.

O'Leary said a final decision on whether to take the options will be made by June.

At the end of March 2005, Ryanair had just over 90 planes in its fleet and this is expected to rise to around 115 by the end of March next year.

hkskyline

June 2nd, 2005, 05:59 AM

We'll fly more people than BA this summer, says Ryanair
Andrew Clark
01 June 2005
The Guardian

Ryanair has predicted it will fly past British Airways' passenger numbers this summer in a "very significant milestone" for the 20-year-old budget airline.

Already Europe's largest low-cost carrier, Ryanair has experienced a surge in demand recently as travellers have sought to avoid fuel surcharges imposed on tickets by its rivals.

The airline yesterday announced a 30% rise in annual pre-tax profits to euros 295m (pounds 200m) and increased its traffic forecast for the year to March 2006 from 34m to 35m passengers.

Michael O'Leary, the chief executive, said monthly traffic figures for Ryanair's network of 229 European routes would pass BA's headcount for its entire global operation. "This will be a very significant milestone for a small Irish airline that only started flying in 1985," he said.

According to the two airlines' latest statistics, BA's passenger numbers fell by 3.4% year-on-year to 2.92m in April, while Ryanair's traffic jumped by 24% to 2.65m. BA, however, pointed out that Ryanair includes "no shows" in its statistics, which are typically as high as 8% of customers industry-wide, while other airlines leave them out. A BA spokesman said: "We only count people who actually travel on our airline."

Ryanair's profits appeared to show its policy of avoiding any fuel surcharge on its tickets has paid off. The airline's average fare edged up by 2% to euros 41, suggesting it was filling seats without having to offer too many rock-bottom prices.

Mr O'Leary said the strength of demand had "somewhat surprised" him: "We attribute much of it to competitors' fuel levies. We've also been tremendously heartened by the rapid traffic growth at the new bases we've launched this year."

The airline said route launches had been particularly strong from Liverpool and Luton, where Ryanair is competing head-on with easyJet. Its shares rose by 2.8% to euros 6.49.

Stephen Furlong, an airlines analyst at Davy Stockbrokers in Dublin, said: "BA's fuel levy of pounds 6 on every ticket amounts to more than 20% of Ryanair's average fare. It is a consideration for travellers."

Ryanair's fleet will grow from 92 to 115 aircraft this year. The airline intends to announce at least one additional base, adding to its existing 12 hubs. Mr O'Leary predicted that Ryanair would overtake the recently merged combination of Air France and KLM by 2012, to become the biggest airline in Europe.

Mr O'Leary renewed his attack on BAA's plans to spend pounds 4bn expanding Stansted airport.

He described the proposals as "absolute bloody lunacy", suggesting a second runway and additional infrastructure could be built for pounds 400m.