I just found it interesting to see "Ryanair" and "sponsorship" in the same sentence. It was on the BALPA site so that's what made me take notice.
It wouldn't be a huge surprise if they did join. They've committed to Boeing for 737-800's for the forseeable future, 100 on order since mid-2003, delivery already well underway, slowly gonna phase out the 15-200's they've had for years as well as the 6-300's they got when they took over Buzz. All about minimal maintenance etc.
Did you read that article in the UK Sunday Mirror about them not having seat pockets or reclining seats (I like that idea actually) to minimise cleaning (and thus turnaround time) and seat maintenance? Gonna charge for using the overhead bins as well if they get it approved.
(I'm sure this has been discussed in other forums, my apologies for mentioning it here again)
I think the most interesting aspect is the competitiveness between Ryanair and Easyjet. Ever look at the news section of Ryanair.com? Every month, they publish performance comparison reports and Ryanair come out on top each time. (If their figures are to be believed, and why shouldn't they?)
It'd be VERY interesting to see EZY's reaction if FR did join.
Still, if they offered me a job I'd take it, as long as the pay was in line with EZY and TCX.
Anyone else waiting to hear back on Stage 1a? Only sent mine last Friday (13/08/2004) so not expecting reply til mid-week, but like people on the earlier schemes, it'd be good to know where people are at.
Simon.