Ryanair to increase prices for all flights

Ryanair said today that it is to introduce a €2 levy for its passengers from next Monday.

Ryanair said today that it is to introduce a €2 levy for its passengers from next Monday.

The Irish carrier claimed that the move is to fund the cost of its obligations under an EU law which states that airlines must cover the reasonable expenses of passengers delayed for reasons beyond their control.

Ryanair said that flight cancellations and delays to more than 15,000 flights affecting over 2.4 million passengers last year had cost it €100m.

The airline said that the majority of these claims arose in three periods during which Ryanair was prevented from flying by the failure/inaction of third parties including: the Icelandic volcano airspace closures, the snow closures of many EU airports during November/December 2010, and more than 15 days of national air traffic controller strikes.

Ryanair also confirmed that if the EU261 regulations are reformed, to include an effective right of recovery clause and a non discriminatory “force majeure” clause then it will reduce and/or eliminate this levy altogether as Ryanair’s cancellation and delay costs reduce over the coming years.

"The EU261 regulations are clearly discriminatory in the way they are applied to airlines, by making airlines responsible for delays, cancellations and right of care expenses during force majeure events such as volcanic eruptions, the snow closure of airports and the frequent ATC strikes across Europe," said Ryanair’s Stephen McNamara.

"Despite repeated calls, the European Commission and EU Governments have still failed to make Europe’s ATC services an essential service, which (like their U.S. ATC counterparts) should not have the right to strike.

"It is clearly unfair that airlines are obliged to provide meals and accommodation for passengers (for days and weeks in some cases), simply because governments close their airspace, or air traffic controllers walk off the job, or incompetent airports fail to clear their runways of snow.

"When the EU261 regulations were first introduced, airlines were assured that they could recover the cost of these cancellations and delays from those parties who caused them. However the airlines have no right of recovery from Governments (when they close airspace), ATC unions (when they repeatedly walk off the job), or airports (who can’t even clear snow off their runways).

"It’s a crazy situation that travel insurance companies paid out nothing during the volcanic ash crisis last year (because it was an “act of God”), yet the airlines were forced to pick up weeks of delays, cancellations, hotel and restaurant costs.

"While we regret the imposition of this €2 EU261 levy, the extraordinary costs which have been imposed on us by delays and cancellations under these discriminatory regulations must be recovered from passengers."

more courts articles

Man (25) in court charged with murdering his father and attempted murder of mother Man (25) in court charged with murdering his father and attempted murder of mother
Man appears in court charged with false imprisonment of woman in van Man appears in court charged with false imprisonment of woman in van
Man in court over alleged false imprisonment of woman Man in court over alleged false imprisonment of woman

More in this section

DUP Hold Crunch Meeting To Decide On Return To Stormont Jeffrey Donaldson steps down as DUP leader amid ‘historical’ sex offence charges
Berlin UKB Hospital Is Among Germany's Most Modern Nearly 10,000 people left waiting on trolleys across country in March
Spring weather Mar 28th 2024 Here's what to expect from weather and travel this Easter weekend
War_map
Cookie Policy Privacy Policy Brand Safety FAQ Help Contact Us Terms and Conditions

© Examiner Echo Group Limited