Ryanair isn't subsidized. It's a bad airline that doesn't need to fail because it makes money. It's one of the airlines in Europe with the worst customer service track record. The same is true for lots of other compenies with terrible customer service.
On the other hand, there are many state-owned or subsidized airlines that have very good customer service.
So whether or not United needs to fail, I think the problem runs far deeper than subsidies.
Ryanair isn't a bad airline. It's a fairly good airline in terms of moving passengers around. They are completely honest, even proud, to offer literally no customer service and comfort.
Not one is about Ryanair failing to deliver the service they've sold (as the article is very much about United failing to) - they're all about people being disappointed about a £25 flight on an airline that prides itself on not caring one bit about your comfort ... not caring about their comfort. All of the extra charges complained about are loudly and clearly announced as part of the ticket buying process. Don't bring a 20 kg bag on a flight when your ticket clearly says "max 15 kg, excess charges apply", then complain about excess charges being leveraged.
If you want service, comfort and flexibility, fly BA and pay for it (or EasyJet, they're usually very good IMO, and usually priced in the sweet spot between Ryanair and "proper" airlines). If you want to get to the beach in the cheapest possible way, everything else be damned, fly Ryanair.
Agreed. People only feel "screwed" by Ryanair because the are used to flexibility, and Ryanair are not flexible. "Oh I'm 2kg over, but that's not a lot, so they'll let me away with it.... What do you mean I have to pay €40?" "Oh they'd have to let me take my handbag, so I'll bring a massive one... what do you mean only one cabin bag?"
double agreed. however, it does bug me charging on weight for baggage when fat people pay the same price as extremely lightweight people. Someone who's 105 pounds with a 52 pound bag gets charged extra, while someone who's 290 pounds but has a 49 pound bag pays no extra charge. Dunno quite how they'd ever get around it, but it does bug me. And I say this as someone who's got a few extra pounds of his own :)
"Proper" airlines generally aren't very picky about the weight of your luggage, so it probably wouldn't apply to them, only to airlines like Ryanair that are.
I don't think it's a good solution, but I can relate to to bitterness of being charged for a 2 kg overweight and then getting stuck in half a seat because the person next to you is the size of a cow.
Ryanair makes it possible for a work colleague of my sister to commute from Cork to Liverpool (4 day work week, digs while in Liverpool). You get what it says on the packet.
My wife and I once flew the length of the UK return for under £4 on one of their sales deals.
No typo there, under £4.
And I used to commute Glasgow to London once a week and would regularly pay for for the train from the airport to the centre of town than for the flight.
And if you take the train from London to Glasgow, it is currently £120 for a single ticket, whereas I can book on British Airways for a flight tomorrow for £74.
Should probably be a bit fairer to the train as you can get better deals than that and pay a lot more on BA. I've paid £80 for a first class return and I've paid more than £250 return on BA (both London - Glasgow).
But yes, the train can be terrifyingly expensive if you can't pick and choose your time (though I also find it more productive - no putting away your laptop for take off, no security, just sit down and do stuff).
Actually, there have been numerous cases where Ryanair has decided to not cover expenses for cancelled or delayed flights, something they are required by EU law to do. (You'll find posters stating those rights put up by the aviation authorities at most airports, and most other airlines abide by them.)
Many of the fees and extra charges can't be avoided (like an internet booking fee and credit card fee) yet they're usually not included in the advertised price.
And many of the extra charges (like if you forget to print your boarding pass but have it on an iPad) seems almost designed solely to get more money out of people.
What are you talking about? Ryanair is great, it's pretty much always on time, you get what you pay for (which is little, it's a knife that cuts both ways) and because there are only a few people operating each flight (from checkin to trollying around peanuts, which you pay for, so that you don't pay for you neighbour's peanuts if you don't want any) so it's always clear who to ask when you have something to ask.
Think of Ryanair as the libertarian airline. Them fucking over the passengers not clever enough to figure out the rules or causing exceptions makes it a particularly joy to fly with them as you do not subsidize others' inefficiency.
On the other hand, there are many state-owned or subsidized airlines that have very good customer service.
So whether or not United needs to fail, I think the problem runs far deeper than subsidies.