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Ryanair pushing ahead with $6 standing room only seats and paid bathrooms
Last year, Ryanair first mentioned their concept for several rows of standing only seats. The idea back then was to install special standing seats and offer them for a reduced fee. The new seating innovation has not been implemented yet, but Michael O'Leary wants everyone to know that he is still very serious about it, and hopes to pay for the new seats with proceeds from the paid bathrooms he also hopes to install soon.
If there is one thing I've learned about Ryanair, it is that even though most of their ideas sound like crackpot ways to generate some free PR, they take their silly ideas quite seriously.
Ryanair knows that there is virtually no limit to the inconveniences passengers will put up with in exchange for crazy low airfares. When your flight is just a few hours out of a one week vacation, the savings on airfare leave you with more money for food, booze and tacky souvenirs.
With the new seats, between 40 and 50 extra passengers can be loaded on the planes, pushing things to the absolute maximum the plane is approved to carry. Still, the big question is whether you'd be willing to pay an insanely low fare in exchange for a standing seat on a flight of several hours.
| Yes | |
|---|---|
| No |
[Image from AFP/Getty Images]
Filed under: Europe, Airlines, Airline Reviews
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Unexpected Traveller Jul 1st 2010 10:41AM
Ryanair love ripping people off ... I'm not convinced that their low fares make things worthwhile but obviously, many other people still do. One word of warning to wanna-be Ryanair passengers: Don't take the priority boarding option: http://unexpectedtraveller.wordpress.com/2009/10/26/first-past-the-post/
CJ Jul 5th 2010 4:37AM
Safety issues are a major factor,eg, flight attendants will have a reduced ability to care for the safety of their passengers. Flying induces dehydration which will make drinking necessary liquids a challenge. I guess the cattle concept might work for the budget minded but it will reduce air travel to Greyhound bus standards. I will not travel on any cattle flights!
Al Schrader Jul 5th 2010 5:25AM
They used to be here in the USA only it was called Eddies Airways.
I built jets for Boeing for 19 years. Here's the insider scoop: An airplane is not a toy. Lives are in the balance. Just like electricity, gasoline, etc it is a servant of man, but treated with dis-respect & it's another story. Overloading a plane is not advised....Alfred-
Nancy Jul 4th 2010 8:16PM
Would the $6.00 be worth it when you get some turbulence?
D.C. Jul 5th 2010 12:43AM
What I can't imagine them being able to get around with this "strap 'em to a board method" is the FCC regulation about "crash landings," and putting your head between your knees. Yeah, lets see them try that strapped to a board! Seems like at some point the FCC would step in and tell these guys to get a clue.
Not Cool Jul 4th 2010 8:28PM
"Standing" "Seat" look them up. Unless we are reinventing language "Standing Seat" is only "marketing ploy". Didn't these people go to College? Why not just come clean and say "Standing space". If I pay for a "seat" on an airplane, there better damn well be a "seat".
Dunk Jul 4th 2010 10:32PM
$6 ? That's one dollar for every hour you sit on the tarmac in their plane when there's a problem.
Jason Jul 5th 2010 12:18AM
Seriously? You need to look them up. No, it's not standing space. While you are technically standing, you would be leaning on a padded board, with a slanted leaning seat. You would also be strapped in and have access to computer space etc like a normal seat.
CC Jul 4th 2010 8:51PM
What about FAA regulation what all passenger must have seat belt on and fastened ? Hard to figure out how to do that if standing - just sounds truly dangerous and illegal.
Jason Jul 5th 2010 12:20AM
Look it up on google. There's pictures of what this would look like, and yes, you'd have a seat belt. You'd basically have a leaning board with a slanted seat to rest your butt on.
Harry Jul 5th 2010 1:30AM
what's illegal is your mind....what does the FAA have to do with an Irish airline dingbat?
wvcorgi Jul 5th 2010 3:33AM
FAA? We're talking about RyanAir. They do not operate in the USA, and so are not subject to any FAA regulations.
Lita Jul 4th 2010 9:22PM
What they aren't telling you is that if you buy this $6.00 seat, you will be required to stand there with a rope around your neck. Essentially, you will replace the in-flight movie as entertainment for the "real" passengers, and they don't have to go the expense of getting the rights to show movies nor purchase the equipment to show them. Of course, these cargo-passengers will be standing behind a plexiglas enclosure, since fierce turbulence could yank off the occassional head, which would leave the head and body to bounce around the cabin separately. Good luck with that, Ryanair (which, come to think of it, sounds kind of like diarrhea).
BONAN Jul 4th 2010 9:31PM
No, I wouldn't pay $6.00 to stand; however the last time I flew I paid $500 for round trip first class. At the time I though there needs to be a class between first and coach. Coach at the time was $180 round trip. Due to a knee injury I cannot stay cramped up for very long without being in agony. I do not need nor use most of the extras you get with first class but my knee needs guaranteed extra space. I would gladly pay extra for seat with a little more leg room.
skinner Jul 5th 2010 1:26PM
Amen--Give me a seat that I fit in without all the kiss up service of first class! At 6' 8", I'd buy the $6 "seat" in a heartbeat, just so I could stand the whole flight without hearing the attendants tell me to go back to my seat that I literally cannot get back into without the person in front sitting back up. Outside of first class, the most comfortable spot on the plane is standing between the lavatories. Pardon me if I'm in your way as you pass with the beverage cart.
jacquie Jul 4th 2010 9:59PM
My thoughts as well, CC. How is it okay or legal for passengers to stand when all passengers must be belted during take-off, turbulance, etc. I'm also sure that over-loading a plane is unfair to those who have paid full price for a seat. Bad idea all around.
Jason Jul 5th 2010 12:23AM
Again, before you post look it up. Read the above comments
Bob Jul 4th 2010 10:00PM
Is anyone aware of any other business where oversight, safety and control were traded for profit? Make that businesses.
I suggest that the international/ national safety communities are to allow this maniac to continue then passengers ought to at least be required to sign a letter of understanding describing the dangers of injury and death that they have chosen and that they waive the right to sue any regulatory agencies or rescue personnel. They may sue Ryanair.
Laura Lynn Jul 4th 2010 10:00PM
I'm scared to fly as it is, but reading about Ryanair airline terrifies me.
David Jul 4th 2010 10:58PM
What the heck is a "standing seat"? A chair/sear that rears up on its back legs? And how would one approach it? Backward, sideways...how? It sounds like the wierdest and most uncomfortable concept I've ever heard. I live in New York, and I can only imagine taking the "red-eye to Los Angeles. If I flew to LA, standing up for eight hours or so, without any change in my pocket to use the toilet, I can only imagine the sort of condition I'd be in upon arrival in LA...Broken back, bloody red and tearing eyes and wet pants. Lovely. I'll take the bus, thank you, sitting down for three or four days.