Travel Light Or Pay Up On Ryanair

Hot on the heals of increases in fees for excess luggage, Ryanair are slapping its passengers with a charge of ?5.00 for checking-in luggage. They claim that this measure will encourage its passengers to travel light and help save the company ?20m in baggage handling costs. In effect they are penalising passengers into leaving their own frills at home.

Ryanair claims the move will ease the check-in process for most passengers, and says it is dropping flight fares by nine per cent, or an average of ?2.50, so those who travel with hand luggage only, estimated to be 25 per cent of passengers, should pay less. Meanwhile it claims those who travel with checked luggage but register bags in advance (an estimated 50 per cent) will pay the same as before, with the ?2.50 luggage fee cancelled out by the ?2.50 drop in fares.

For many who need to carry more than an overnight bag, travelling light is not an option. It will also penalise young families and could add hundreds of pounds onto the cost of their journey.

This is not the first time O'Leary has caused consternation. Last March it transpired that the airline was selling 'bottled' tap water, the same water pumped into thousands of homes from the Thames, at ?4.00 a litre!

Before that he was bent on stripping any 'frills' he could find. Frills facing the chop are reclinging seats to save on repair costs (saving ?1.3m), window blinds (saving ?130,00 for each plane), velcro head rests (saving ?100,000) and seat pockets (saving on cleaning costs).

Michael O'Leary remains unapologetic, but with his constant cost-cutting schemes he may one day clip his own wings.

Luggage Guide on Ryanair
- Hand luggage weight allowance per person : 10kg
- Children do not have a luggage allowance so their luggage is included in their parents' allowance
- Checked-in luggage allowance 20kg
- Luggage weight can no longer be pooled between passengers

Fees
- Check-in Luggage - charge ?5.00 (or ?2.50 online but you must have an EU passport)
- Luggage weighing more than 20kgs will attract excess baggage fees of ?5.50kg - pooling no longer allowed.

What Other Airlines Offer

British Airways allows 23kg per person, which can be pooled between passengers travelling together as long as no single bag weighs more than 32kg

Both Bmi and Easyjet allow an unlimited number of pieces of baggage that weigh up to a total of 20kg per passenger

Flybe allows check-in baggage of up to 25kg per passenger, but charges ?2 per bag for bags registered in advance of check-in, or ?4 per bag if it is registered at the airport
 

28 January 2006