Ireland’s budget airline regularly makes the headlines, and here are some of Ryanair’s worst scenarios.
Ryanair is Europe’s leading budget airline and the airline we all love to hate, but Ryanair is why many of us can jet off at the drop of a hat, thanks to their mega promotions.
Now, while they allow us the gift of travel, the chance to reunite with family and friends, and the opportunity to embark upon a winter break, they are also not shy about betraying their loyal passengers.
If you thought you’d heard it all, sit back and look at five times Ryanair made news headlines for all the wrong reasons.
- Ireland’s budget airline regularly makes the headlines, and here are some of Ryanair’s worst scenarios.
- 5. Ryanair to charge passengers to use the toilet – one that never took off
- 4. Ryanair charges couple €90 to bring pastries on board – it left a bitter taste
- 3. Ryanair trolls passenger over check-in rules – yet another brutal reply
- 2. Ryanair charges elderly couple to print boarding passes – a simple mistake
- 1. Ryanair proposes ‘fat tax’ for obese passengers – breaching the law
5. Ryanair to charge passengers to use the toilet – one that never took off
Almost 14 years ago, Ryanair made news headlines, declaring that they were considering charging passengers to use the toilet onboard their aircraft. This bizarre and outrageous statement sparked fury among the public, who claimed the bathroom is a fundamental right aboard any aeroplane.
Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary stated they were looking at options such as a swiping mechanism on the toilet door, which would accept credit cards for the £1 payment.
He added that this would reduce unnecessary visits to the toilet, which annoy many passengers, and he described the idea as “cutting-edge” and innovative. However, it never took off!
Read the full story here.
4. Ryanair charges couple €90 to bring pastries on board – it left a bitter taste
If you thought you’d heard it all regarding the Ryanair scandals, let us tell you about this extraordinary situation, which baffled many. When boarding a flight from Palma de Mallorca, a couple were charged €90 to take two Spanish pastries onboard.
Ryanair argued that the couple had exceeded their baggage allowance and needed to pay a fee to take the pastries on the flight.
To the couple’s shock, Ryanair demanded €45 each for the sweet treats, known as ensaïmadas, something many of us would not think twice about taking onboard.
Rather than pay the fee, or eat the snacks, the couple said their goodbyes to the ensaïmadas and boarded the plane treat–less, and news of the situation sparked anger among Spanish officials and the local pastry makers association.
Read the full story here.
3. Ryanair trolls passenger over check-in rules – yet another brutal reply
If you know anything about Ryanair, you will see that they take their social media accounts very seriously. When we say seriously, we mean the social media team can sometimes be brutal.
While many of the replies by Ryanair’s witty social media team can be downright hilarious, this situation did not get many laughs.
It is always risky to tag Ryanair in your tweets, yet one unwitting passenger decided to do just that, and in return, he received a brutal and downright cheeky reply.
Having complained that the Ryanair check-in policy often catches him off-guard, Ryanair replied to Twitter user @PJH1974 with a photo encouraging him to set a reminder on his phone, with the caption, “adulting is hard”.
Some find Ryanair’s Twitter presence funny, others are incensed. But their savage responses continue to this day.
Read the full story here.
2. Ryanair charges elderly couple to print boarding passes – a simple mistake
One of the worst times Ryanair made news headlines was when they charged a sweet elderly couple a whopping £110 to check in at the airport.
The couple mistakenly downloaded their return tickets rather than their outgoing tickets, and Ryanair jumped at the chance to charge the couple a fee to avail of the printing service at the airport.
As well as being charged £55 each to print two pieces of paper, the couple in their late 70s and 80s were forced to pay the famous Ryanair fee to sit together. Unsurprisingly, this headline caught the attention of many!
Read the full story here.
1. Ryanair proposes ‘fat tax’ for obese passengers – breaching the law
Yes, one of the worst times Ryanair made news headlines for all the wrong reasons was when they proposed a ‘fat tax’. As if they didn’t have enough taxes and charges, Ryanair had plans to charge overweight passengers a fee for, well, being overweight.
According to the budget airline, the plan was to charge a fee to anyone who was seen to be over the “average weight”.
Unsurprisingly, this headline got people talking, and it quickly became a hot topic, not only across Ireland or Europe but across the world. Not only were these plans outrageous, but they were said to breach discrimination laws before the plan ever came into play.
In addition, this so-called ‘fat tax’ came about following a poll of passengers on the airline website. Ryanair boldly claimed that this levy would hopefully encourage passengers with extra weight to lose a few pounds before embarking on a flight.
Read the full story here.
