Ryanair seeks female crew to strip down for calendar

By: JAMES O'BRIEN

From: http://www.irishcentral.com/

The lovely ladies of Ryanair pose for a promo shot

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Irish airline Ryanair is on a Europe-wide search for sexy female cabin crew to strip down for its 2011 calendar.

Despite complaints from women’s groups across Europe, the airline is determined to line up female cabin crew members to pose semi-naked for the calendar.

A Ryanair spokesperson said that despite women’s groups criticism of the calendar idea, a recent poll indicated female staff as the popular choice.

"Overwhelmingly people still want female cabin crews,” he said.

"We wanted sexy passengers to be in it but they said no they wanted cabin crew 50,000 passengers voted and said they wanted it to be female.

"We've come in for some criticism in the past from some women's groups so we decided to let passengers tell us what they want."

The spokesperson said that fewer Irish girls apply to take part in the calendar than other nationalities, and there are no guarantees that an Irish girl will make the cut.

All proceeds go for charity. Last year’s calendar raised $130,000.

Ryanair’s biggest competition is the Irish Fire Brigade calendar, which sold 20,000 copies in 2009 making it the most popular calendar in the world.

The firemen are already hitting the gym.

"We have ten and we're short of two bodies at the moment. They're fine fellows, and they were chosen because they work out and they look good.

"Everyone likes to see firemen with their tops off," a spokesperson for the Fire Brigade calendar told the Herald.

The Irish Fire Brigade charity calendar is set to launch in October. In keeping with a long-standing tradition, the handsome firemen will be selling the calendars out on the streets of Dublin in time for Christmas.

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Ryanair to sell £5 tickets for standing-room only flights

Ryanair is planning to run flights where passengers stand during the journey at a cost of just £5 per ticket.

By Laura Roberts

From http://www.telegraph.co.uk/

Link to this video

Michael O'Leary, the airline's chief executive, will set out proposals today that include charging customers to use the loo.

A standing area with "vertical seats" will be introduced at the back of its fleet of 250 planes.

He said that charging customers £1 to make use of facilities would encourage travellers on one hour flights to use lavatories at the airport instead of on the aircraft.

The Irishman said he intended to introduce coin-operated loos and added: "The other change we've been looking at is taking out the last 10 rows of seats so we will have 15 rows of seats and the equivalent of 10 rows of standing area."

A Ryanair spokesman said that Boeing had been consulted over refitting the fleet with "vertical seats" which would allow passengers to be strapped in while standing up, which would cost between £4 and £8 per person.

Safety testing will be carried out next year.

However, a spokesman for the Civil Aviation Authority said the plans would struggle to meet safety requirements.

He said: "It's aviation law that people have to have a seat-belt on from take-off and landing so they would have to be in a seat. I don't know how Mr O'Leary would get around that one. During turbulence passengers also have to have a seat-belt on."

Mr O'Leary was interviewed for ITV's How to Beat the Budget Airlines which airs on Thursday night at 7.30pm.

Ryanair introduces toilet tax and family tax. Has it gone too far?

Sarah Coles

From: http://www.walletpop.co.uk/ 

Ryanair is the ultimate test of the power of irritation. The stealth charges, the obnoxious announcements and the cheek with which they consider things like luggage and a sip of water as optional extras people should be forced to pay for. They are enough to bring out the fury in even the most mild-mannered traveller.

However, at the same time, the airline remains competitive - forcing us to choose whether to opt for cheap and cheerless and live with the irritation, or pay more for the flight.

It's a tough call, but Ryanair has just announced new stealth charges which could tip the balance.

It will introduce a charge for using the toilet. It'll cost you £1 or 1 euro to spend a penny, and the toilets will be coin operated. To add insult to injury they are also cutting the number of onboard toilets, to just one. So if you're caught short not only will you have to pay for the privilege of using the loo, but you'll also have to queue with the other 180 odd passengers first.

The charge will be introduced after the summer holiday rush.

This charge particularly rankles, because unlike other stealth charges, like the overpriced food or paying with a credit card, you can hardly avoid paying this tax through taking extra care. You could dehydrate yourself, or bring a small bottle and a blanket, but you run the risk of serious illness or arrest for indecency - neither of which seem worth it in order to save £1.

Ryanair has also announced it will boost the charge for checking in luggage from £15 to £20 during the summer holidays. Spokesman Stephen McNamara said: 'We are determined to incentivise passengers to travel light this summer by increasing our checked-in baggage fees for the months of July and August only."

This is just charming. Clearly the families travelling at this time are the ones who need luggage. You can hardly go away with young kids toting a small handbag and a change of clothes. They'll get through the first change of clothes rolling around the floor in the departure lounge.

So what can you do about it?

Same as always. Shop around for your flights and be sure to factor in all these charges when you do. Then you have a decision to make. Do you live with the irritation in the hunt for a bargain, or do you vote with your feet?

Personally I walked away from Ryanair years ago, opting to fly less rather than allow irritation to destroy the first day of the break, and finish a holiday on a low note. But what do you think? Has it gone too far this time?

European Airline Brings Back the Smoking Section

• By Jason Paur

It’s been a long time since passengers have been allowed to smoke on an airliner in the United States. It’s the same story in Europe. But now the smoking crowd across the Atlantic have an option when the nicotine comes calling.

Ireland-based Ryanair is selling smokeless cigarettes on all the company’s flights. Ryanair says a survey showed more than 24,000 passengers would like the option to smoke during flights and that was enough of an incentive in these lean times to try and gain some market share as well as some extra income. So as long as you’re at least 18 years old, the company will sell you a pack of smokeless smokes for 6 euro (about $8.75).

Ryanair is a discount airlines that flies throughout Europe and North Africa and is no stranger to using a gimmick to bring in some business. The company says the cigarettes can’t be lit and deliver the nicotine through inhalation.

For those who fear the old days when the difference between the smoking section on an airplane and the non-smoking section was simply whichever way the air was flowing inside the cabin, the smokeless cigarettes do not emit any toxins or chemicals to nearby passengers. Company spokesman Stephen McNamara believes when smokers can get their nicotine, everybody wins, “as these cigarettes are smokeless, they cause no discomfort to other passengers and can ensure a more enjoyable and stress-free flight for all passengers as non-smokers will no longer have to cope with moody smokers in need of nicotine.”

Photo: Ron Layters/Flickr

Tags: Airliner, airlines

Airline appears serious about pay toilets

by Karen Datko

Travelers on European budget carrier Ryanair will likely have to start paying for bathroom use, and may wish they had a wooden (think hollow) leg.

Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary told the Guardian newspaper in England that he's serious about charging for toilet access -- an idea he had earlier bandied about -- and also plans to reduce the number of bathrooms on his Boeing 737-800 jets from three to one.

Those bathrooms will be replaced with six more seats -- "which means more passengers will stand in line longer for the privilege of paying to potty. This can't be good for beverage cart sales," wrote Rob Manker at ChicagoTribune.com.

O'Leary said he's asked Boeing to look into placing credit card readers on bathroom locks in new Ryanair planes and making that seat adjustment. The price to potty would be £1, or about $1.60, when it takes effect within two years.

"We are flying aircraft on an average flight time of one hour around Europe," O'Leary said. "What the hell do we need three toilets for?"

Hmm. Perhaps because the 737-800 seats 162 to 189 passengers, depending on the seat configuration, not including O'Leary's extra seats.

Carl Unger at Smarter Travel commented, "To be fair, I can see his point. Ryanair essentially acts as a bus service in the sky .... Of course, your average 737 carries three times as many passengers as your average long-distance bus."

Seeing may be believing when it comes to O'Leary, who the Guardian says is known as "O'Really" because he doesn't always mean what he says. However, it's true that O'Leary has never met an airline fee he didn't like.

In fact, ChicagoTribune.com says, "There are reports O'Leary is also tossing around the idea of requiring passengers to load their own luggage onto jets, so that the airline can cut costs by not having baggage handlers."

Stateside travelers aren't immune from rising fees. Starting Wednesday, June 10, United Airlines customers who don't pay their checked-baggage fees online will start paying an extra $5 at the airport, ChicagoTribune.com says. That will amount to $20 for the first bag and $30 for the second. US Airways will follow suit in July.

Ryanair set for £8 flights to US

Ryanair plans to undercut its struggling competitors on prices

Budget airline Ryanair is to offer flights to the US for eight pounds, by buying planes from struggling rivals.

The plan will be revealed when chief executive Michael O'Leary announces the firm's quarterly results on Monday.

"Economy class will be very cheap, around 10 euros, but our business class will be very expensive," he said in a newspaper interview.

Ryanair's second quarter profits are expected to fall, due to higher fuel prices and its decision to cut fares.

Mr O'Leary is expected to announce plans to buy more than 50 extra aircraft, as part of plans to beat the recession by undercutting more expensive rivals.

"We'll just have to keep flying more aircraft, opening up more routes and offering people more cheap flights," Mr O'Leary said.

Profits down

The flights - which could begin by the end of next year - would be available for those booking early. Passengers would pay airport taxes on top of the fares.

The transatlantic flights are likely to go from Stansted and Dublin airports to New York, Florida, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Boston.

Meanwhile, it is expected that Ryanair's quarterly profits will drop significantly.

Royal Bank of Scotland is forecasting net earnings of 145m euros (£115m; $184m) for Ryanair for the second quarter, down from 260m euros last year.

While the oil price has come down lately, analysts say Ryanair is still suffering because it insured against changing fuel costs at too high a price.

Mr O'Leary has said he expected the airline to make a profit for the full year as long as oil stays below $70 a barrel.