It's Not Over Yet !!
This report by Katrina Manson
Edited by Susan d'Arcy - Directions
The Sunday Times - Travel
Warning on new Ryanair routes
An airline watchdog is warning travellers against booking tickets on 12 routes advertised on Ryanair’s website.
The routes were formerly operated by Buzz, which Ryanair has been negotiating to buy since January. The deal hinges on approval from the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), which has until April 30 to decide whether or not to refer the takeover to the Competition Commission.
The Air Transport Users Council (AUC) has accused Ryanair of jumping the gun by offering departures from May 1 to Bergerac, Berlin, Brest, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Grenoble, Jerez, Limoges, Murcia, Poitiers, Toulouse and Tours.
It says Ryanair “is trying to plan for something that is not yet in its gift to give. The only advice we can give to people is not to book.”
It adds that if the OFT refers the takeover to the Competition Commission for a ruling, the flights could remain grounded for another six months.
Ryanair says it expects the OFT to rule very shortly, and that people holding bookings for May “need not worry”. However, it refused to comment on whether or not it would reimburse customers should approval not be forthcoming by next month.
More than 170,000 customers have already been adversely affected by the cancellation of Buzz routes by Ryanair during this transition period. Some former Buzz customers intend to sue Ryanair for damages for expenses incurred because of the axing of the routes. There have also been complaints about difficulties booking a special offer Ryanair ran for Buzz customers.
Moley.