EU Reject Ryanair takeover of Aer Lingus

[Jack1985]

MoL will win eventually, he'll end up acquiring EI for a song when it becomes worthless, or it will simply disappear and he'll fill the vacuum. Very sad, but I can't see the Irish government having the will or the resources to keep the carrier going for ever.

Frankly a laughable statement.

[Ernest Lanc's]

Ryanair are going to take the EU Commission to court for political bias.

I am no lover of MOL..This is what Irks people against the EU..It's not their business...

[Tooloose]

If you are correct that it is none of their business then a lot of people have been wasting a lot of time and resources. can you please explain the basis for your statement?

[Ernest Lanc's]

The EU are very good at wasting money..I that they cannot be surpassed.

I will tell you who it should be up to..Ryanair who own 29.4% or Aer Lingus, and 25.4% ..In the hands of the Irish government..

It's up to MOL and the Ireish bureaucrats and all shareholders, to sort who owns Aer Lingus, not the EU.

then a lot of people have been wasting a lot of time and resources

Yes: That's my point..What EU interference does not wast time and money?..I am not keen on MOL, but Aer Lingus could probably do worse, than take up the Harp.

[Tooloose]

If it were left up to the Irish Govt FR would not take over EI. At least the EU gives FR a hearing. Most people familiar with the issues know that the remedies proposed by Ryanair were a transparent charade to allow FR to liquidate EI and most likely BE too having stripped all the assets by, for example, pocketing over €900m in cash selling LHR slots to BA etc.

[jdcg]

Of course it's the EU's business. It's thanks to the EU that we have pan European open skies etc so the onus is on them to ensure that companies don't abuse that opportunity to create unfair monopolies. Whether this constitutes an example of that is for them and the courts to decide.

[Epsomdog]

For those of you struggling to find a reason why Ryanair want to takeover EI.

The DUB - LHR route is the highest density route between IRE & the UK with in excess of 400,000 pax in the last year. Mol has no interest in operation into LHR but wants to force all those pax onto his own point to point services within Europe.

Woe betide anyone that wants to fly long haul eastbound! They'll have to put up with a 2/3 hr transfer to LHR or pay BA mega bucks. No wonder Ryanair managed to get BA onside!

[Tableview]

Much as I despise his business ethics, or lack of, O'Leary could outsmart the whole of the EU in his sleep. And he will. Wait.

[The SSK]

And I disagree with you Tableview. I believe that if he gets heavy with DG COMP, he will get his backside kicked from here to kingdom come. They are sitting on two dozen state-aid cases involving Ryanair airports, so far they haven't shown much inclination to move against him. He will discover that the people he calls bad names carry very big sticks.

[PAXboy]

bluecode

Both are business pscyhopaths, both prone to litigation, both use people for their own ends and dispense with them without thought when no longer useful. Both are charismatic in person and deadly as enemies.

Exactly my assessment.

Having observed MoL from his first emergence and been in (many) lines of business since I started work in 1978 (including internationally and the City of London) I have seen others like him. In this, he will either win or be dead (from natural causes I hasten to add).

I do not wish him ill but I do not wish to travel on his airline. I have done so on a couple of occasions, when I had no other easy choice..

[CPL593H]

God, your all a bunch of complete Luddites. High fare airlines have no future, and you are only denying the inevitable. I'm sure some of you would be content that flying reverted to be a luxury that only the rich could afford. This is 2013, not 1953. The lack of consideration being made on this thread about the customer is appalling.

[Aerlingus231]

I'm sure some of you would be content that flying reverted to be a luxury that only the rich could afford. This is 2013, not 1953. The lack of consideration being made on this thread about the customer is appalling.

I think in fact you'll find that most people on here were actually against this takeover bid and against the resulting high prices that Ryanair would have offered had it a monopoly on 80% of the traffic out of Ireland.

Very few on here wanted the high prices associated with this bid going through.

Also, there is indeed a market for high service carriers and the resulting higher fees. It's certainly not as big as that for low cost, but it's there all right, and clearly Aer Lingus is making it work.

[CPL593H]

The amount of MOL bashing on this thread, along with most threads, is unbelievable.

You all seem to be forgetting that this is a man who has created the most flight crew jobs in Europe. He has enabled many with low hours to get a foot in the door in aviation, and many more in the future as Ryanair grows. Hopefully I will be one of them.

On top of that, Ryanair has the lowest fares which has enabled many people on lower incomes the chance to holiday abroad in destinations once only for the rich, rather than spend summer in somewhere miserable like Blackpool. Lowest fleet age. Most efficient service.

And yet, you berate this man on the fact that he is a successful businessman and treat the fact that he wants to compete and knock **** out of other airlines as if it were some sort of abnormality in the business world. Some of the regular flyers on here have just got an axe to grind because either they felt ripped off paying £3 for a tea or because their bum hurt from sitting on Ryanair's standard seats.

[Aerlingus231]

And yet, you berate this man on the fact that he is a successful businessman and treat the fact that he wants to compete and knock **** out of other airlines as if it were some sort of abnormality in the business world. Some of the regular flyers on here have just got an axe to grind because either they felt ripped off paying £3 for a tea or because their bum hurt from sitting on Ryanair's standard seats.

Read back again and I think you'll see that most people on here all acknowledge how great a business man MOL is. He has indeed made travel far far cheaper for all of us. He's an amazing business man, so good that you'd be mad not to think that if he had a monopoly on traffic too and from an ISLAND that he wouldn't milk every last opportunity out of it. Fare's would skyrocket, if they didn't then MOL is an eejit and an awful business man. FR isn't here to bring down fares, it's here to make a profit. I don't see how anyone can't see that without competition Ryanair's prices would be high.

[CPL593H]

@AerLingus231

Oh yes, because Aer Lingus are currently providing stiff competition to Ryanair in terms of fare prices Idiots with too much money and idiots who have been hurt from some 'dreadful' Ryanair experience where the tea was too cold, opt for Aer Lingus on the similar routes just because it isn't Ryanair. People want cheap fares, and if you can't provide that, sorry you have no place in the future of aviation.

To quote MOL in reference to British Airways:

'Eventually there'll be one last British Airways flight with a bunch of old toffee-nosed snobs on it but all the kids of the toffee nosed snobs will be flying on Ryanair'

(Michael O'Leary, Plane Speaking, Edited by Paul Kilduff, 2010)

[CPL593H]

@AerLingus231

If Aer Lingus were put in it's grave, and Ryanair had dominance of the routes in and out of Ireland, I highly doubt that prices would 'skyrocket'. They wouldn't be any more than what Aer Lingus are currently charging. Considering most passengers travel for pleasure, putting up the price significantly would mean that many won't bother to travel at all. You would simply drive away custom. Where's the sense in that? Of course them who must travel, say between London and Dublin for work would obviously be forced into paying the higher fares. But it would be killing off a massive customer type base.

[Aerlingus231]

Oh yes, because Aer Lingus are currently providing stiff competition to Ryanair in terms of fare prices Idiots with too much money and idiots who have been hurt from some 'dreadful' Ryanair experience where the tea was too cold, opt for Aer Lingus on the similar routes just because it isn't Ryanair. People want cheap fares, and if you can't provide that, sorry you have no place in the future of aviation.

If Aer Lingus weren't providing proper competition then no one wold fly on them and everyone would fly on Ryanair, but seeing as Aer Lingus has over taken them to become Ireland's largest carrier again, clearly they're putting up a good fight and getting the customers back that they lost in recent years. I also don't think you realise that some people want more than just a cheap flight, but also connections, easy ways to change their ittinery, a loyalty system, flying to central airports etc. There is obviously a market for both the cheap and cheerful type flights, and the more expensive flights to central airports with associated higher levels of service that go with it.

If Aer Lingus were put in it's grave, and Ryanair had dominance of the routes in and out of Ireland, I highly doubt that prices would 'skyrocket'. They wouldn't be any more than what Aer Lingus are currently charging. Considering most passengers travel for pleasure, putting up the price significantly would mean that many won't bother to travel at all. You would simply drive away custom. Where's the sense in that? Of course them who must travel, say between London and Dublin for work would obviously be forced into paying the higher fares. But it would be killing off a massive customer type base.

Aer Lingus are not an expensive airline, you don't seem to realize this. On some flights they are able to charge more because people are willing to pay the premium for the higher level of service, but on a lot of flights Aer Lingus are the same, or in some cases cheaper than Ryanair when compared to each other.

If MOL held a monopoly and didn't raise prices considerably then he's an awful business man. And the money in this world is in the business travel to the likes of London, Frankfurt, Paris, Amsterdam. That's where the big bucks are, and if he's the only one flying those routes then you can bet that he'll charge high prices as business people will have to travel on those routes.

[CPL593H]

@Aerlingus231

Are you seriously suggesting that there is a future in business class travel on flights of two hours or less? Not buying that argument buddy.

I have already agreed, yes those that need and must travel between Ireland and these cities are going to pay any price that is applied to the ticket. BUT in the process of raising fares, MOL will lose his core flyers, those flying for pleasure. They don't have to fly. They can stay at home and play chess over summer or dig the garden, rather than fork out ridiculous sums of money to visit landmarks in Berlin or Paris. You don't encourage sales by putting up the price. Yes MOL can exploit the business class who have no choice, but he couldn't survive on them alone.

You will find that most people would do pretty much anything, and put up with pretty much anything, to get a cheap flight. Who want's to pay three, four or even five times the price of what Ryanair is offering simply to land at a more central airport or get a free glass of wine on-board?

[mart901]

MOL has created the most cabin crew jobs? Really? Or has he created a nice nest egg from training cabin crew, charging them for training, uniform, even visiting the swimming baths for assessment. The average cabin crew lasts 18 months, many are pushed out long before then with never ending targets, upselling, long hours only paid for inflight, no right of union membership....and thats for the ones who make it, many are charged for training etc then told there is no work for them. Its fairly easy to recruit from low wage eastern european economies, try dealing with the rest of the world and treating them well. EZY, EI, BE, MON etc can, why not FR? Just remember folks, that cheap seat cost someone dear, training and uniform, scam I think springs to mind. If LCC is the only way forwards why are EI doing so well and managing to out do FR on many Irish routes? Mind you, I would imagine living in Prestwick there is a fairly FR only viewpoint.

[Jamie2k9]

CPL593H Aged 22 I think another BA-LHR with little intelligence

Oh yes, because Aer Lingus are currently providing stiff competition to Ryanair in terms of fare prices

More often than not Aer Lingus are cheaper than Ryanair so when you do some research and know how Aer Lingus fare structure works then come back and make the same statement. There is a long list of routes that FR/EI serve that FR have pulled or reduced when EI have increased.

People want cheap fares, and if you can't provide that, sorry you have no place in the future of aviation.

So you are suggesting Ryanair will be one of a few carriers left in Europe in the next few years?

I highly doubt that prices would 'skyrocket'

Clearly you haven't studied economics and when you have a masters in Business and Economics come back here and I will have an intelligence debate on that matter.

I'm sure you believe that Ryanair have done a fantastic job at you local airport Prestwick.....