June 17th, 2008
European budget airline Ryanair currently has a free flights winter sale for travel between October 2008 and January 2009. The sale runs until midnight Thursday 19th June (and has actually been running for 2 weeks having been extended 3 times already…)
The “free flights” are actually free, meaning no taxes/charges are payable. The trick to keeping your flight cost low on Ryanair is not to check-in any luggage…you will then only have to pay a credit card fee (£3.20 per person) or debit card fee (£1.20 per person) for your payment. If you have a Visa Electron card then payment is free.
Note, the cabin baggage allowance is 10kg with maximum dimensions of 55cm x 40cm x 20cm. Also check with your airport for restrictions on carrying liquids on flights departing the EU/EEA.
Ryanair also allows you to purchase an extra seat for comfort (must be booked with the name Mr Extra Seat) but no more baggage allowance is gained.
Ryanair’s fees are as follows per segment:
Airport Check-in £4 (online check-in free for pax with no luggage)
Priority Boarding Fee £4
Infant (under 2) Fee £16
Checked bag up to 15kg £8
Checking in 2 bags up to 15kg £24
Checking in 3 bags up to 15kg £40
Excess baggage fee £12 per kilo
So by checking in one piece of luggage on a return flight would cost an additional £24.
Note, the sale is available for selected flight routes all over Europe, not just from the UK and Ireland.
Tags: ryanair
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June 16th, 2008
It’s been a bad few months for small independent airlines, particularly those in the all-business class segment. With oil prices well over $130 per barrel and predicted to rise further, as well as the tightening credit conditions, airlines are struggling to turn a profit.
The first all-biz airline to stop operations was actually OzJet in 2006, an Australian start-up which served the business market between Sydney and Melbourne. Unable to grab a good share of the market it shut its doors after a few months. The airline was sold and resurfaced as a charter outfit.
Maxjet was a budget all-business class airline based at London Stansted and served New York, Washington DC, Las Vegas and Los Angeles. Fares were cheap (premium economy levels) and the airline managed to survive just over 2 years. On Christmas Eve 2007 the airline shut down. The name was sold on and will now become a charter service for US college athletes.
EOS Airlines, a first class operation using 48 seat 757s to serve Stansted and NYC survived for 2 1/2 years before closing in April 2008 unable to attain additional funding. EOS prices had been dropping but with fuel costs rising and only 48 potential revenue seats on board, market conditions caught up with the carrier.
Silverjet, the British all-business class airline based at Luton which flew to Newark and Dubai went under last month after operating for less than 18 months. Flying 25 year old fuel inefficient 767s meant it was running at a loss and investors pulled the plug on finance.
This year has also seen the demise of Oasis Hong Kong Airlines, the budget operator which flew from Hong Kong to London Gatwick and Vancouver. Oasis operated both an economy class and a business class service on its 747s. Whether the budget long-haul model is sustainable only time will tell – Air Asia X and the likes of Zoom Airlines are still in business.
The only all-business class airline currently operating transatlantic is L’Avion, from Paris to Newark. It has signed a marketing agreement with British Airways who will soon operate their own 3 class ‘OpenSkies‘ service from Paris to New York.
Privatair operates various all-business class flights on behalf of Lufthansa, Swiss and KLM.
It seems only those services backed by major airlines can survive the current market conditions. We are likely to see a lot more consolidation in the general aviation industry especially if oil continues towards $200 per barrel.
Tags: All Business Class, eos, l'avion, maxjet, silverjet
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May 8th, 2008
This year’s UEFA Champions League final on May 21st is an all ‘English’ affair. It is expected that 40,000 fans from Chelsea and Manchester United will travel to Moscow.
With direct flights from London to Moscow being limited and around the £1,000 mark for those dates, football fans are scrabbling to book flight and travel itineraries. And flights through central Europe are filling up fast.
Let’s look at a few different options where you can currently get from London to Moscow for under £400. Note you will find cheaper flights leaving Moscow on the 23rd, as everyone seems to want to leave on the 22nd:
Fly with Ryanair up to Riga in Latvia which depending on dates will currently cost from £130 return. You could take the gruelling 18 hour train journey to Moscow which will cost around £100 return. Or get a round-trip with Aeroflot from Riga to Moscow for £219 (departs 20th, returns 23rd) for a total price from £349.
Another alternative is to fly via Istanbul on 2 separate return tickets. You could fly London to Istanbul with Turkish Airlines for £163 (out 19th, back 24th) and book a separate return ticket Istanbul – Moscow on Aeroflot for £204 (out 20th, back 23rd) for a total cost £367.
Fly from London Luton to Budapest for £87 with Wizz Air (out 19th, back 24th) and then get a return with Aeroflot to Moscow for £215 (out 20th, back 23rd), total price £302.
Another route is to fly down to Barcelona (can be done via Girona from £25 on Ryanair) and use Spanish budget Clickair to fly to Moscow for 130 euros which lands at 6am on the 21st. Note budget airlines can have delays so this could be risky! Total one-way cost approximately £130. There is a very reasonable one-way flight back to London from Moscow on SAS (via Stockholm) for £136 on the 23rd. Total price will be around £266.
Alternatively you could hire a private jet from an air charter operator or through a broker. For a listing of top UK companies see UK Charter Guide.
Don’t forget to do your homework concerning visa requirements.
Tags: aeroflot, champions league, flights, london, moscow
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May 7th, 2008
With the recent demise of all-business Maxjet and EOS Airlines, let’s take a quick look at what deals you can get for June 2008 in business class on flights between London and New York.
Silverjet offers its twice daily service from Luton to Newark. Prices are currently quoted from £1,299 return on Silverjet’s website (£999 has been frequently available, but it looks like they have put the price up with EOS and Maxjet out of the way – however watch for special offers). Also check the major online agents like Travelocity as you may find slightly cheaper deals – we found a price of £1,200.
If you are a Skyteam member, then Delta Airlines have return business class flights from LHR to NYC available from £1,250.
Icelandair have flights in their ‘Saga Class’ (business class) priced from £1,097 return all-in. Note you have to make a stop in Reykjavik, but their booking engine makes it very easy to find the cheapest fare.
On a more ‘offbeat’ note, Kuwait Airways have non-stop flights from London Heathrow to New York JFK using Boeing 777s. You can find business class flights priced from just £860 or fly in first class from around £1,200.
Air India also flies non-stop between LHR and JFK on Boeing 777s. Return tickets in ‘Executive’ (business class) can be found for just over £1,100, with first class at £1,750.
Tags: air india, eos, kuwait airways, london, maxjet, new york, silverjet
Posted in All Business Class, Deals | Comments Off
