The shape of things to come from Ryanair... ---------------------------------------- The boss of Ryanair has declared all-out war on luggage by pledging to price passengers out of bringing bags on flights — and even hinting at fees for hand baggage. To coincide with the summer getaway, Ryanair has raised its charge for checking in a bag by between £10 and £20 to “seasonal” rates of between £25 and £45, depending on the size of the bag and the route. Those who forget to pay online are charged up to £140 at check-in. Michael O’Leary, the Irish airline’s famously outspoken chief executive, said: “We will keep increasing charges until we get rid of [hold] bags.” He even suggested that Ryanair could ultimately emulate an eastern European airline, Wizz, by introducing fees for hand baggage. “It’s unlikely in the short term but probably inevitable in the long term,” he said, suggesting that a charge for carry-on bags could be highly lucrative. “There may be a revenue stream over time if you implement it on an honest basis.” Wizz, a Hungarian airline which operates routes between the UK and eastern Europe, requires passengers to pay €15 for larger bags brought into its aircraft cabins. Mr O’Leary said he had considered copying this model but that it would be tricky to police, because Ryanair was attempting to do away with check-in desks to the greatest extent possible. Over the past four years the proportion of Ryanair passengers paying to check bags into the hold of planes has fallen from 80 per cent to 19 per cent, in response to steadily rising prices. Mr O’Leary said: “I suspect we’ll never eliminate bags completely but we could get them down to 10 per cent from 20 per cent.” He added that fees had taken the sting out of family arguments over excess packing — because everybody agreed they were not worth paying. “The husbands of the world have united to build a statue to me because I have relieved them of the duty of trying to persuade their wives to take less luggage on holiday,” said Mr O’Leary. Ryanair also announced that it was increasing the frequency of its flights between the UK and Dublin by adding an extra daily return service from Stansted, Manchester, Birmingham, Edinburgh and Bristol from November. The airline is famous for its cost-cutting measures. Earlier this week, Ryanair revealed it was asking its pilots to fly more slowly to cut back on the amount of fuel burnt by its aircraft. In the past Mr O’Leary has attempted to grab publicity by offering fares for as little as £1 without taxes and fees, by claiming to ban head office staff from charging their mobile phones at work and by publicly mulling the idea of imposing a fee for using in-flight lavatories. thetimes.co.uk/tto/business/industries/transport/article3830528.ece
Posted on: Wed, 31 Jul 2013 15:47:30 +0000
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