Originally Posted by
Capetonian
Or maybe it's just another publicity stunt.
Surely not?
Perhaps closer to the truth, reported comments from about-to-retire Michael Cawley,
speaking in Shannon yesterday:
At a Shannon Chamber of Commerce business breakfast at Dromoland Castle yesterday, Michael Cawley also poured cold water on the airline’s transatlantic plans and admitted that last year the airline “lost families in a big way” on its routes.
On press reports yesterday morning concerning Michael O’Leary talking about possible €10 Ryanair fares to the US, Mr Cawley said that his boss had given him ‘a hospital pass’ talking about the €10 fares to America.
Mr Cawley said: “I can say whatever I want because I’m leaving in four weeks' time, but the so-called ‘Ryanair transatlantic project’ is not something that sits within Ryanair as such.”
He said: “There is a business there of a low-cost option possible from many secondary airports around Europe.”
However, Mr Cawley identified challenges to Ryanair mounting any transatlantic business including immigration, licences and not having the advantage of a 25-minute turnaround time.
He said: “It is something that we haven’t worked on for a long time, it is something that is there. At some stage there was enthusiasm for it, but now we are so busy immersed in allocating the 175 new aircraft we have around Europe there is just no time for it.
Mr Cawley said that Ryanair’s transatlantic business “is something that is not imminent, but there is a business there we reckon”.