Ryanair Cancellations March28 and April 4

[jimd17]

I have a question about  Ryanair and their response to the

industrial action in France today Tuesday 4th April.  Does anyone agree

that only Ryanair flights appear to have been cancelled across the

board ( as far as I know ).? I checked BA flights to Paris, Nice and

Bordeaux, etc on the BAA arrivals webpage and they  seemed to be

flying today. So the air traffic controllers were working as well as

baggage handlers, ground staff, etc. However, Ryanair flights to La

Rochelle, Paris,  Poitier, Bergerac, Carcassone etc. were

cancelled as also happened on Tuesday March 28. This has caused

considerable expense to my daughters travelling on connecting flights

from Scotland who have had to rebook these flights to Stansted. What

could be the reason ? Should one be cynical or maybe there is a good

reason somewhere?

[Iceni]

Perhaps it is done to promote the sale of travel insurance ?

John

not

[Baz]

There is noway that Ryanair would cancel flights without a very good reason. They are a highly profitable business and cancelling the number of Flights to both France and other European destinations would not have been taken lightly as the cost of lost revenue will have amounted to ten of thousands of £. Whilst, this is very inconvenient to passengers booked to fly today at least they should have most of their aircraft in the right position to recommence their normal service tomorrow. The BBC main news as well as BBC East was giving far more details for the reason of the cancellations.

Perhaps, we should look at the cause of the disruption as these French strikes are becoming regular events  every time when a democratically elected government wants to make any changes which certain sections of the population do not like. I just wonder how this will effect the coming spring and summer holidays and the harm it will have on the tourist trade as well as businesses.

Baz

[Eslier]

All Ryanair's flights to France - about 80 in total - were cancelled today.  Although it might have been possible for them to operate some services this might have lead to planes being stuck in French airports not being able to move on. The implications of this to Ryanair's scheduling could have been huge and might have taken days to get back on track.

[Gardian]

I have a feeling that the actual impact on Ryanair's services down here today was less than initially broadcast. Their website suggested that (by mid-afternoon) only a handful were being delayed or cancelled.

Certainly, the effect on the Nimes services over the last week or so has been zero. The tower is run by the French Navy and the ground staff employed by the local Chamber of Commerce. The latter know, given the threats to the continued operation of the airport, 'which side their bread is buttered'. Provided Ryanair can get an ATC slot down through France, they will always get in to Nimes.

Usual media over-dramatisation I suspect, though there will doubtless have been some problems.

[Sprogster]

I believe virtually all the Ryanair services to France were cancelled today. Whereas most if not all BA flights to France operated eventually.

The reasons come down not surprisingly to one of cost, in that it is cheaper for the lost carriers to cancel their flights at the outset as their only contractual obligations under those circumstances are to refund your money. Otherwise they risk compensating delayed passengers with food vouchers under the new EU regulations, with the knock on effect throughout their network

With the full service scheduled carriers such as BA there are greater contractual obligations to their passengers to get you to your destination I believe. Also BA from my experience, still put passengers up in hotels when flights are cancelled and you are not at your home airport, and they have the ability to endorse your ticket over to another full service scheduled airline if they decide that is the best way to get you home.

At the end of the day you get what you pay for, as Ryanair themselves quite rightly point out!

[Gardian]

Apologies 'Sprogster'. You're quite right - just had a quick look on the Ryanair website & the Flt Info shows them as operating in & out of France, but there is a separate list as long as your arm of the cancelled flts, including ones which appear in the other bit as 'on time'. 

[Tresco]

[quote user="Eslier"] The implications of this to Ryanair's scheduling could have been huge and might have taken days to get back on track.
[/quote]

I know someone who should have travelled to France early today (Tuesday) on Ryanair, but can't get back until Saturday. 

That is inconvenient at best.

[Ron Avery]

Eslier is absolutely right, Ryanair took a sensible decision, as any train or plane operator knows  it is better to have all your planes in place to operate a normal service after a disruption than have a protracted disruption over a number of days with planes scattered all over the world, unlike many BA flights Ryanair's planes fly to many destinations in a day so at least the rest of the flights went off on time

I have felt very sorry for those using Rodez though, it only flies Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday this time of year, and last Tuesday's was cancelled and then Thursday's also , Saturday's flight was full by thursday with the overflow and the next flight, today was also cancelled, a mate of mine had to go to Pau last Thursday to meet his wife or she would still be in the UK waiting for a Rodez flight, but who is to blame?  Unelected stuidents and selfish union leaders who cannot see any further than the end of their gallic noses, that is who, not Ryanair. 

[andyh4]

[quote user="Tresco"]

I know someone who should have travelled to France early today (Tuesday) on Ryanair, but can't get back until Saturday. 

That is inconvenient at best.

[/quote]

 

Of course if they had taken out proper travel insurance.......

 

The problem is that because the flight only costs 30€ we all think we don't need insurance because we only have 30€ to lose.  Good insurance should have paid for alternative travel and a return latest today.

[BJSLIV]

Of course if they had taken out proper travel insurance...

In many (even most?) cases they would have still been stuck, as policies usually give some token cover if Departures are delayed, nothing for the return leg!

[Iceni]

[quote user="Sprogster"]

The reasons come down not surprisingly to one of cost, in that it is cheaper for the lost carriers to cancel their flights at the outset as their only contractual obligations under those circumstances are to refund your money.

[/quote]

In the current circs I would expect Ryanair to argue "force majeure" and thus NOT have to repay.

John

not

[Sprogster]

Iceni,

Fortunately, EU regulations require scheduled airlines to refund or re-book cancelled flights, even if the cancellation was outside the airlines control.

The major acceptance to the effectiveness of this consumer protection, is if the airline has gone bust and out of business. 

[andyh4]

[quote user="BJSLIV"]

Of course if they had taken out proper travel insurance...

In many (even most?) cases they would have still been stuck, as policies usually give some token cover if Departures are delayed, nothing for the return leg!

[/quote]

 

Just checked Ryanair's own insurance and guess what?  If you do not accept an alternative ticket from Ryanair (say half a week later than planned), then you have alternative travel cover up to a maximum of 300GBP or 435€ with no excess.

http://www.ryanairtravelinsurance.com/goto/ryanair/documents/14032006121912Gold_Policy_Web.pdf

 I have to admit that I am as bad as the next man in such cases, so this is certainly not an "I'm better than you" posting, but maybe we should all think a bit more seriously about our travel insurance - particularly when you add in the impact of becoming ill when abroad.  Living in Germany we have seen friends who have only had E111 cover (European health whatever it's called now) who have been taken ill and have had horrendous bills to pay.  OK eventually you get it back from the UK health service, but in the mean time you can be thousands (no not a misprint) out of pocket.

[Stefan]

[quote user="Ron Avery"]

unlike many BA flights Ryanair's planes fly to many destinations in a day so at least the rest of the flights went off on time

[/quote]

 

Ron

Ah good old Ryanairs P.R. ("more efficient than BA", "work harder .")...These days BA operates in much the same way as Ryanair, e.g the three times a day TLS/LGW is done by three different aircraft/crews who do the round trip as part of their days work, which often starts or ends elsewhere in Europe...hence a strike has the potential to disrupt BA just as much as Ryanair .  However  BA made a calculated decision to continue to get their customers to and from the French destinations, Ryanair decided not to. 

[Ron Avery]

Ah good old Ryanairs P.R. ("more efficient than BA", "work harder .")...

I have nothing to do with Ryanair's PR , so please do not put your words into my mouth, my comments are just based on observation and turn round times.  I don't see how three different aircraft and crews flying to Toulouse show how efficient BA are, the inferencer that can be drawn from your example is that the first plane flies to Gatwick and the crew and plane are then so tired by their two hour flight,  they have to have the rest of the day off. and another plane and crew have to do the next trip and then the same thing happens to crew 2 and plane 2..  Perhaps a better example of BA efficiency would be where plane 1  goes after landing at Gatwick?   Do you know if BA made the right decision though stefan, were all the LGW-TLS flights on time?

[Stefan]

Hi Ron

  First an apology - I didn't mean to put words into your mouth, and perhaps my initial comment was badly worded....However you did state quite categorically that "unlike BA flights Ryanairs's planes fly to many destinations a day", so perhaps you can understand my confusion regarding P R[:)]

.In answer to the points you raise:

  I'm not sure why you think it could be inferred from my post that the BA crews might just do an "out and back"  - I did say the French return trip was typically done "as part of their days work.." so no,  the BA Crews do not just fly to/from France and have the rest of the day off. If they do an early out and back to France they will almost certainly doing another destination later in the day, on the other hand the crews on later Flights may well have been elsewhere in Europe first; exactly the same pattern as the LoCos use.  One big difference for BA is the late flight into a European destination may well nightstop - almost  unheard of in the LoCos, because they don't want to pay for crew hotels- and that is the reason why you rarely, as yet, get an early morning flight with the UK/Irish LoCos to the UK though that is changing as the LoCos set up European bases run with local crews.......      

  You mention your observation of turnround times - I would agree that BA turnround times are often worse than the LoCos - that is due in no small part to the airports BA use - I challenge anyone to make a 30 minute turnround at LHR., LGW or CDG...which is the very reason most of the LoCos avoid major airports like the plague...EZE to their credit do TLS-LGW and from my observations their turnrounds on that route take about the same time as same as BA ( and I remain to be convinced of the efficiency of "free seating", but that's probably an issue for another thread). On the other hand Ryanair choose to avoid Toulouse and use Carcassonne instead.

  You ask if the LGW-TLS flights were on time? - I don't know, I don't have that information but given the circumstances on the day I would regard being "on time" as a real bonus.   I do know that BA did at least actually operate all services to/from TLS and many other French destinations on both the strike days and even managed a reduced service into CDG, whereas as we know some of the LoCos indulged in mass cancellations. 

Anyhow thats enough drivel from me - it still looks bad after multiple edits -I'm off to bed.

Regards

Stefan

 

 

 

 

[Ron Avery]

Stefan I actually said many BA flights,  not all, but I appreciate the explanation about BA's european schedules, in these sort of situations an operator has to make a decision for the greater good and stand by that, perhaps BA have more flexibility in their operations and schedules to cover planes delayed in and over France wheras I suspect Ryanair and the other LoCo's work on tighter margins, where one flight late has a knock-on throughout the schedules.

 It is interesting that you talk about Toulouse, BMI Baby used to do a cheap flight to E Midlands from TLS with a 25 minute turnround,  they abandoned that for some reason not really explained, but continue to fly to Manchester under the BMI banner, that also has a 25 minute turnround, I accept that with the big international airports it can take 10 mins or more just to get to a gate.  Let us hope that this strike culture in France wanes and people are allowed to fly to their chosen destinations in France by the carrier of their choice.  Oh and that Ryanair introduce seat booking to stop the pre-flight scrum, BMI baby can do it, why cannot Ryanair?

[Gardian]

This has got sfa to do with the original thread, but it has just a hint over the 25 min turnrounds & seat allocations.

Friends travelling back recently. Scrum had duly taken place and everyone mostly settled. Loud Brit, wife, babes, pushchairs and all the usual excess cabin baggage - late boardings.

"I demand to be seated!" (meaning, "We want to be all together, despite turning up close to the wire") Result: poor Ryanair F/E's trying to cajole people to move for this cretin and his brood. Late departure.

In truth, it probably wouldn't be any different with the so-called flag carriers & seat allocation, but don't you just hate people like that?

[Stefan]

Ian

A colleague of mine came up with this idea to solve the free seating "problem". Each flight would be allocated a retired SNCO or W/O.  AT boarding time his (her?) job would march the passengers onto the aircraft and issue them with "instructions" as to where they should sit.................I guess he/she could also come up with suitable suggestions as to where passengers could put that one extra bit of handbaggage  they failed to show the check-in staff [:)]

I reckon there are some suitable candidates for the job on this forum..... 

Rgds

Stefan

 

 

[Gardian]

Stefan ............

Couldn't agree more with both suggestions: Ryanair et al don't know what they may be missing. A ready, willing and available labour resource ......... at the right price.

And that's where it ends.