Safety at Ryanair
I'm very disappointed to hear that Ryanair have fired the Captain who appeared in the CH4 documentary. Perhaps their safety culture would be more inspiring if they had listened to him instead. I am curious if there are indeed certain aspects of Ryanairs operation that I am told differ quite significantly from other carriers: I would welcome comment from Ryanair pilots confirming whether or not these differences are indeed the case - they are all things I have been told by ex-Ryanair colleagues:
I have been informed that Ryanair use photocopies of approach and departure plates, everyone else uses originals. The photocopies according to an ex Ryanair colleague aren't always legible.
I'm told Ryanair don't pay for SID/STAR data in their FMS like other airlines do so pilots are manually keying in waypoints which is a potential area for error in the very busy airspace around airports. This would explain why Dublin always ask you for the first point in your FMS route?
I have also heard that some Ryanair pilots are apparently sleeping in cars before operating at Stansted because they are so broke during line training they can't afford to rent a room.
It's a fact that Ryanair are turning jets around in 25 mins when most other companies allow 40 mins or more. The question you have to ask is - is 25 minutes enough time to do everything properly? - the walk-around, the set-up, cross checking the selected route in the FMS or is it pushing people to work so fast they are more likely to make errors? Same goes for the fact that they report only 45 mins before pushback where other airlines report at least 1 hr before or more which allows 30 mins to read weather, notams, decide on fuel policy and have a safety brief with the crew and then another 30 mins to fire up the aircraft, walk around, run the tests, check the route and board the pax.
Do Ryanair position crew or put them in hotels when they require them to work in remote bases or are you responsible for getting there and back yourself? How do you ensure adequate rest pre-flight?
Does the fact Ryanair apparently charge crew for tea/coffee/water at passenger rates and provide no crew food mean sometimes you are flying when hungry or thirsty?
Does flying into less popular airports with more complex approaches rather than a major airport with an ILS increase the risk of incident?
A colleague of mine who flew there for three years maintains that they're pushing the limits so hard all the time in so many areas they've been lucky so far.
It's a fact that many of us as professional pilots hear such stories and I for one would like to know if they're just rumour or fact...