Ryanair and Charleroi

Michael O'Leary seems rather annoyed about the rulings by the European Court on illegal state subsidies.

He probably has a point!

On the other hand, he puts far too much emphasis on low fares, especially when that means flying to an obscure airport some miles from where you actually want to go!

But if subsidies are so important to him, how come he can fly virtually empty planes at some times to Genoa with perhaps a dozen people on them! I've flown that route several times and never felt crowded!

But cost isn't everything.

Take the weekend after New Year, where we are going to a wedding in Edinburgh.

There are three choices :-

1. EasyJet to Edinburgh. This works out if I booked today at £26.99 up and £71.49 down. (I could save a bit if we got up at five after the reception. No!)

This works out at just under £200 for two.

2. Ryanair to Glasgow. This looks to be £14.99 up and £49.99 down. (I could save a bit, but I could also pay a lot more.)

This costs just under £130 for two.

But we then have to get from Prestwick to Edinburgh. This takes about two and a half hours on a train with usually two changes.

3. GNER to Edinburgh

This is actually from Peterborough, which is only about twenty minutes further from our house than Stansted. As parking is cheaper, the cost of getting there is about the same.

A double ticket with reserved seats costs £156.

So it is really no contest.

GNER is almost as quick as EasyJet, as you don't have any security to fight through, you can arrive ten or so minutes before departure and you don't have to get in from the airport. All baggage can be wheeled the short distances involved with no buses.

Ryanair may appear cheaper, but by the time you've paid for the train tickets from Prestwick to Edinburgh, there is little in it. It's also at least two hours longer.

But the real clincher is that GNER is first class, with free tea, coffee, snacks and reserved seats!

So Mr. O'Leary are the cheap airlines really that cheap?