News: Ryanair to ground seven aircraft at Stansted this winter
Flights > News > # 1401 (01/08/2007)
Ryanair will ground seven of its aircraft at Stansted this winter.
The no-frills giant’s chief executive, Michael O'Leary, blamed a doubling of landing fees at the BAA-owned Stansted to £6 per passenger for making it "more profitable to ground these aircraft during the winter rather than fly them".
Ryanair denied that the real reason for its move at Stansted was that it had ordered too many aircraft for the current market, and that it could not postpone new plane deliveries without paying penalties to Boeing.
O’Leary’s deputy, Howard Millar, said: "It's not a matter of financial penalties. It's a reflection that we are being stiffed with higher charges by the BAA and we are not prepared to pay them."
A BAA spokesman hit back, claiming Ryanair paid only £5.50 per passenger at Stansted, while for years it was charged just £2.80. "Ryanair has enjoyed some of the lowest fees in Europe. We helped him (O'Leary) build his business."
Reiterating his calls for the break-up of BAA, Mr O'Leary said: "The current service provided by the BAA at Stansted is nothing short of appalling.
"Many of the 17 security machines are regularly unmanned during peak morning periods, and understaffing at passport control continues to cause long queues and frequent passenger delays." Facilities were "abject", he said, while prices were "extortionate".
Ryanair expects to fly 50m passengers this year, up from 42.5m in 2006-2007, with the fleet rising to 163 aircraft.
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