Traveling in a pressurized tube more than 33,000 feet above
the ground, the familiar warning announcement of no smoking while on board the
plane came loud and clear through the speakers.
Still, I debated seeking the attention of the flight attendant passing
down the aisle selling duty free packs of cigarettes on board the plane. With such a great deal walking through, it was
tempting to not let this opportunity pass me bye. However, I did pass only to wait for the next
flight attendant who was selling scratch off tickets. In an industry of unprofitability and
cut-throat competition, Ryan Air has mastered the add-on fee and raised new
proposals to save money and deliver low cost fares to customers. Apart from introducing a charge for oxygen
when the pressure masks fall or tactics like circulating the smell of popcorn
through the air to stir an appetite, Ryan Air has been the most talked about
airline for introducing cost-saving ventures, and it was now time for me to
experience first hand why 80 million passengers per year choose to travel with Ryan Air.
Searching for a flight to visit Dublin for a weekend, I came across an
extremely low fare from Ryan Air. After
selecting the flights, I was then asked if I would like to purchase additional travel
insurance and check luggage, which I declined.
Then an offer for a text message, followed by Ryan Air talk, an airport
transfer, and finally, an offer to purchase actual luggage. Proceeding to the next page had another
offer, “Play to Win”, which for 3 Euro, I could be entered to win back the cost
of my flight. After finally given the
chance to enter my credit card information, for an additional fee, and because
the site recognized I had a US address, an offer for a “guaranteed” exchange
rate of 10% higher than the actual rate which Ryan Air highly recommended, I
was finally able to purchase my ticket.
Additional offers for hotels, meals, and tours followed once my ticket
was confirmed. And, as part of Ryan
Air’s policy, you must check-in online and print your boarding pass prior to
arriving at the airport. Should you
forget to check in, or lose your boarding pass, you will be charged an
additional 60 Euro. To ensure you did
not make an error earlier when booking, as you check in for your flight, you go
through the same tempting offers as you did when you paid for your flight.
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Arriving to the airport about 1 hour before my flight, with
my boarding pass in hand, I lined up to board the plane. Under a very watchful gate attendant, each
bag was checked to ensure it was proper size, or else an additional checked
baggage fee would apply. Boarding the
plane was by far the quickest and most efficient process I have even been apart
of. Boarding a jet parked away from the
gate, using both the front and rear doors, and no assigned sears, it took just
under 15 minutes to board and we were up in the air in no time. While you are constantly bombarded with
offers to purchase items, or advertisements on the overhead bins and seat
backs, the airline met my main objective, which is take-offs equals landings (proper landings as water landings do not count). Ryan Air is an extremely popular travel
option within Europe, and very convenient from the Bratislava airport. Fliers willing to tolerate a little hardship
and potentially high fees if the rules are not followed will find very reliable
travel options. As one of the only
profitable airlines around, and with packed planes, it is hard to argue against
their business model.
Finally, I cannot complete this entry without mentioning other
ideas proposed by Ryan Air.
1. To flight rising fuel costs, Ryan Air introduced
proposals to lighten its load. Magazines featured thinner paper, safeties
manuals were printed on the back of each seat, and even carried less ice on
board. But those marginal changes are
benign compared to Ryan Air's weight-reducing proposal:
Encouraging flight attendants to shed excess pounds.
2. After initially proposing coin-operated bathrooms, Ryan
Air then considered replacing two of the three restrooms installed on each jet
with six additional seats. As quoted by
the CEO, "We very rarely use all three toilets on board our aircraft
anyway".
3. With a constant focus on passenger safety, Ryan Air
suggested that the flight attendants be trained to fly. While this sounds like a fantastic proposal,
it was suggested to mitigate the risk of flying the plane with only one pilot
meaning that the standard allotment of two pilots per plane is one too
many. In this case, if the computer was
not able to set in to fly the plane, the flight attendants could step up in
cases of emergency.
4. Naturally luggage adds a lot of pounds to any aircraft, and
to recover some costs, many airlines have begun charging fees to limit weight
and promote carry-on only bags. Ryan Air took it one step further by suggesting
that passengers haul their check-in luggage to the plane's belly, to save the
airline the costs of paying baggage handlers and check-in personnel.
5. Finally, spending a couple of hours crammed in an airplane
seat, with the seat in front of you reclining into your face, and passengers
using your seat as an assistant to help stand and balance, is no one's idea of
fun. Why not eliminate standard seats in
favor of standing-only "berths"?
Instead of seat belts, Ryanair proposed passengers would use
"handrails and straps" to secure themselves, thus removing last 10
rows of seats and replace with 15 rows of standing berths.
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