Originally Posted by
davidjohnson6
If FR were to order a large (100+) number of Russian aircraft, would it be credible for Ryanair to receive political favours ? As an example, if FR orders a very large number of aircraft, the Russian Govt grants FR the right to set up a Russian subsidiary (Ryanair owning at leas 51% of the shares) with Russian crew, and with a Russian AOC, similiar to Easyjet in Switzerland, allowing FR domestic Russian traffic rights ?
Yes, that seems a plausible scenario, though whether the state would give up a majority stake is questionable. A stroke like that would give FR a direction for expansion, a home for the older 737s, and ultimately a place to try out the new aircraft before unleashing them on the wider network. If that's how things end up turning out, you need to claim paternity of the idea!