Xela Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 I spent 8 months working at an aero engine maintenance facility (primarily on a GE90 test bed) and that was an eye opener. They dealt with engines from airlines based all over the globe. All I can say is that the engines arriving for maintenance from BA and Virgin were already in a better condition than those leaving to be re fitted for many other airlines. I think the biggest surprise was the pop riveted patch repairs, dents, pitting and general tired appearance of the budget airlines and asian airlines. Ok they may be able to boast that they buy new aircraft, but don’t ever ever let them tell you the servicing regime is the same as the expensive airlines. You want to know at least part of the reason it’s cheaper to fly some airlines, engine service history. What Asian airlines? Aren't the majority of the Skytrax 5 star airlines Asian? I can't imagine Singapore, Cathay, Malaysia or Asiana skimping on servicing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bickster Posted October 25, 2011 Moderator Share Posted October 25, 2011 Ryanair are no better or worse than Easyjet or BMIBaby. You get what you pay for, simple as that. Disagree, I find EasyJet offer far better service than either of the other two. Having said that I have to fly Ryanair on Friday to Dublin with work and for a flight of that distance it doesn't bother me in the slightest. I will avoid BMI like the plague though at least Ryanair's flights don't get cancelled with the alarming regularity that BMIBabys have in my experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MMFy Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 never had a problem with ryanair, you pay for what you get. gets you to your destination, normally on time and cheapThis. Flying buses, fine for short haul. This. Plastic chairs, no leg room, not very comfortable but extremely cheap. I have used Ryanair to fly to Poznan and Marrakech this year and I accept being treated like cattle for a couple of hours - if it knocks £100+ off a short break. I'd rather have two short breaks flying Ryanair than one flying with BA. And can anyone tell me how many Ryanair flights have ever crashed? None? Air Travel is still statistically the safest form of travel, and Ryanair do not have a compromised safety record... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisp65 Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 What Asian airlines? Aren't the majority of the Skytrax 5 star airlines Asian? I can't imagine Singapore, Cathay, Malaysia or Asiana skimping on servicing? Agreed, it wasn't the likes of Singapore, it was from memory (so apologies if I've got it wrong), the likes of Air india and Pakistan Air etc.. I'm far from being an expert and I know external condition is cosmetic. But those things looked like they'd been rolled down the road not transported by flat bed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thetrees Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 What Asian airlines? Aren't the majority of the Skytrax 5 star airlines Asian? I can't imagine Singapore, Cathay, Malaysia or Asiana skimping on servicing? Agreed, it wasn't the likes of Singapore, it was from memory (so apologies if I've got it wrong), the likes of Air india and Pakistan Air etc.. I'm far from being an expert and I know external condition is cosmetic. But those things looked like they'd been rolled down the road not transported by flat bed. For a period a few years back most of Pakistan International's fleet were banned from flying to Europe over maintenance irregularities. They gave since re-equipped, so most aircraft used now are relatively new. I don't recall any issues with Air India, although there were concerns about Indian Airlines, the nationalised domestic carrier that AI eventually took over. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CI Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 Two words Garuda Indonesia Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Risso Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 I just refuse point blank to use Ryanair. I'd rather not go somewhere than have to fly with them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterms Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 how can they charge to go to the toilet or even worse not have any on board? surely that has to be illegal. if you need to pee then what? be very disgusting experience espically to those who have urological problems I completely agree. This is why I am happy to sponsor Ryanair's new and innovative approach to managing issues of urination on short-haul flights. Sincerely yours, G. Depardieu Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyh29 Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 I just refuse point blank to use Ryanair. I'd rather not go somewhere than have to fly with them. this though if I can I avoid the budgets full stop , i just don't get how they are allowed to advertise a flight as being £25 which then comes in at something £140 with all the add-ons & tax Lot of the time when i've flown the main airlines can be are cheaper than Easyjet with all their Add-ons anyway .. i still recall how when the UEFA cup final was on (Fulham) Easyjet pushed their prices up to £500 for a return to Hamburg .. outrageous behaviour , we flew to Dusseldorf instead and hired a car and did it all for £140 a person Did use Virgin Blue around Oz/ NZ but they don't really compare with our budget airlines as they offer a decent level of service Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
villa4europe Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 They aren't too bad as long as you are going on a short enough trip to get away with hand luggage from my experience all budget airlines up the costs as you go through (making the whole process utterly pointless) to be fair none of them seem to be mind blowingly cheap anymore, I got Dublin return for £35 for the villa, can't seem to find anything anywhere near that kind of price anymore Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BennettVilla Posted October 26, 2011 Share Posted October 26, 2011 regardless of what you say, its the most profitable airline in the world..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thetrees Posted October 26, 2011 Share Posted October 26, 2011 I just refuse point blank to use Ryanair. I'd rather not go somewhere than have to fly with them. this i still recall how when the UEFA cup final was on (Fulham) Easyjet pushed their prices up to £500 for a return to Hamburg .. outrageous behaviour , we flew to Dusseldorf instead and hired a car and did it all for £140 a person Did use Virgin Blue around Oz/ NZ but they don't really compare with our budget airlines as they offer a decent level of service I can beat your £500. On the eve of the Rugby world cup final in Paris, BMIBaby offered a seat from East Midlands to Paris for £980 before tax and charges !( that was one way). To this day I wish that I had taken a print screen of it. The daddy of all the low-cost carriers ar Southwest Airlines in th US, and they are great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drat01 Posted October 26, 2011 Share Posted October 26, 2011 regardless of what you say, its the most profitable airline in the world..... No they are not Profitability may be easier to gauge. According to latest data from Air Transport World’s ‘World Airline Report’, the top 10 airlines in terms of annual net profit are: 1. Qantas 2. Lufthansa 3. Turkish Airlines 4. Singapore Airlines 5. LAN (Chile, Peru, Ecuador) 6. Emirates 7. Aeroflot 8. Southwest Airlines 9. Air New Zealand 10. COPA (Panama) The 20 biggest airlines in the world, ranked by RPKs by the same source and excluding regional subsidiaries are: 1. The new United (the pending merger between United and Continental) 2. Delta Air Lines 3. American Airlines 4. Air France/KLM (counted together because of ownership, though they operate separately) 5. Lufthansa 6. Southwest Airlines 7. British Airways 8. Emirates 9. US Airways 10. Cathay Pacific 11. Singapore Airlines 12. Japan Airlines (JAL) 13. Qantas 14. China Southern 15. Air Canada 16. Air China 17. All Nippon Airways (ANA) 18. THAI Airways 19. Ryanair 20. Korean Air As for measuring quality, the world authority is generally considered to be SkyTrax, an independent British-based organisation that ranks carriers and airports after exhaustive scrutiny. It ranks airlines from five stars to one star. Five-star carriers at the moment, the cream of the world’s skies according to SkyTrax, are: Asiana, Cathay Pacific, Kingfisher Airlines, Malaysia Airlines, Qatar Airways and Singapore Airlines. Four star carriers are: Hainan Airlines, Japan Airlines, JetBlue Airways, Korean Air, Lufthansa, Porter Airlines (a Canadian carrier), Qantas Airways, Silk Air, South African Airways, Swiss International Air Lines, Thai Airways, Turkish Airlines, Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Blue. SkyTrax lists the bulk of the world’s carriers (including virtually all US airlines) as three-star, which it defines as denoting a satisfactory standard of core product across most travel categories – “but reflects poor or less-consistent standards of staff service/product quality in selected onboard or airport features”. Continuing on down, two-star airlines include the likes of Air Malawi, Air Slovakia, Biman Bangladesh, Bulgaria Air and Cubana Airlines. JetStar Pacific, bmibaby and Ryanair sit uneasily in this category, among other two-star carriers like Ghana International, Macedonian Airlines, Nepal Airlines, Siberia Airlines, Sudan Airways, Tajikistan Airlines and Yemenia Yemen Airways. Finally, one-star. Air Koryo of North Korea is the only contender. This state-owned national flag carrier flies an aging fleet of Russian-built, Soviet-era aircraft. Little is known about its service standards, but given that it is the only airline in the SkyTrax listings to hold the less-than-coveted one-star ranking, it is probably best avoided. Then again, at least Air Koryo possesses one star, signifying “some very poor standards of product across the ranking sectors, with poor, inconsistent standards of staff service delivery in onboard and airport environments”, according to StarTrax. That’s still a lot better than many unclassified airlines. The unclassified category covers airlines that are either still subject to a Star Ranking review, and airlines that have been dropped or suspended from the Star Ranking program. The latter includes carriers banned by the EU from operating in European airspace. This fearsomely long list includes Siem Reap Airways International of Cambodia, Benin Golf Air from the Republic of Benin, Bravo Air Congo from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kartika Airlines from Indonesia, Air Trust Company from Kazakhstan, Golden Rule Airlines from the Kyrgyz Republic, Transglobal Airways Corporation from the Philippines and many more. Written by Peter Needham Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidlewis Posted October 26, 2011 Share Posted October 26, 2011 The A14, Stanstead Airport and Ryanair all in one day has to rank as one of the most painful experiences in life The Radisson at Stansted ranks for me as the best on site airport hotel in the UK. Good restaurant and room service and hotel to check in desk in just 5 minutes. Bristol airport has to be the most ridiculous airport to get to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derryvillan Posted October 26, 2011 Share Posted October 26, 2011 Kinda off topic,but flying back to NZ in a few weeks for a holiday.Flying Cathay Pacific for the 1st time.Anyone flown with them? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YLN Posted October 26, 2011 Share Posted October 26, 2011 how can they charge to go to the toilet or even worse not have any on board? surely that has to be illegal. if you need to pee then what? be very disgusting experience espically to those who have urological problems We're just letting this slide then yeah? Daily Mailitis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meath_Villan Posted October 26, 2011 Share Posted October 26, 2011 how can they charge to go to the toilet or even worse not have any on board? surely that has to be illegal. if you need to pee then what? be very disgusting experience espically to those who have urological problems We're just letting this slide then yeah? Daily Mailitis This story stinks ......eh ....eh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amsterdam_Neil_D Posted October 26, 2011 Share Posted October 26, 2011 Would never fly **** RyanAir or Easy Jet or any of them. Virgin or BA, and I don't mind paying the extra. Same here. I will use KLM or BA as a rule. The rest of them are utter scum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LondonLax Posted October 26, 2011 Share Posted October 26, 2011 I just refuse point blank to use Ryanair. I'd rather not go somewhere than have to fly with them. this though if I can I avoid the budgets full stop , i just don't get how they are allowed to advertise a flight as being £25 which then comes in at something £140 with all the add-ons & tax Lot of the time when i've flown the main airlines can be are cheaper than Easyjet with all their Add-ons anyway .. i still recall how when the UEFA cup final was on (Fulham) Easyjet pushed their prices up to £500 for a return to Hamburg .. outrageous behaviour , we flew to Dusseldorf instead and hired a car and did it all for £140 a person Did use Virgin Blue around Oz/ NZ but they don't really compare with our budget airlines as they offer a decent level of service I don't get the anger people have towards budget airlines. Like you say, if you find a cheaper way of travelling then you do it. It's not a big deal though, it's just basic supply and demand. So what if they tried to charge £500 for a cup final flight (or £1000 or £10,000 or £1,000,000 or whatever number you chose) you either think it is worth paying or you find a different option for travel. No reason to refuse to ever fly with them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GarethRDR Posted October 26, 2011 Share Posted October 26, 2011 I'm not angry at budget airlines. I'm angry at Ryan Air. Specifically when they nearly stranded me in Germany in August, and engaged in what was tantamount to blackmailing £80 out of me. C*nts, to a man. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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