Ryanair Commercial

Norwegian scoops major deal with the Danish Government

 

Chosen as one of the main operators for several long-haul routes.

The Danish government has chosen to extend and expands its cooperation with Norwegian in a new deal that was secured this week. Norwegian has been chosen for a number of key destinations, like Aalborg, Oslo, Stockholm and London.

Extended cooperation with long-haul routes
Most notably – and new for this year’s deal – is that Norwegian has been chosen as one of the Danish government’s main operators for several long-haul routes. These include our direct routes to Bangkok and Los Angeles. In addition, Norwegian has also been chosen as the preferred airline to fly government employees directly to New York – a route that is also operated by our main competitor in Scandinavia, SAS.

"We are very pleased that the Danish government again has chosen Norwegian as one of the main suppliers on flights and extended our cooperation. Norwegian has been selected to operate a number of the state's most important destinations, which we are very proud of. The fact that we have been selected again clearly shows that the Danish government prioritizes the fantastic product we have on offer and environmentally friendly aircraft at a low price," says .

London shopping tips, by Kristin Gjelsvik

 

   Amid the smoke, the sparks and the beeping alarms, the 71 passengers of Air Canada Express Flight 8481 scrambled out after the plane made an emergency landing at Edmonton International Airport last week. Among them, dazed, bruised and suffering from a concussion, was a woman in a window seat, Christina Kurylo. It was only afterward that she would realize she could have died in the accident.
A propeller blade had snapped off the right-side engine and smashed right into the window next to her seat.
“All of the sudden, something came crashing through the window and I got hit in the head,” Kurylo recalled in an interview Sunday.
Her memory of what happened next remains fuzzy. She credited her seatmate, whom she only knew as Mike, an employee for Encana Corp., with getting her out of the plane.
“I’m lucky it wasn’t worse,” she said.
New details of the event that emerged this weekend reveal that the landing was a more serious, dramatic ocurrence than first reported.
The plane, a Bombardier-built twin-engined Q400, was leaving Calgary on Thursday evening, heading for Grande Prairie, Alta, about 560 kilometres north.
Kurylo and a friend, Melissa Menard, were aboard as part of a group of employees from the Rock 97.7 radio station in Grande Prairie.
As the plane took off, “all of the sudden there was a big bang,” Ms. Menard said.
Shortly afterward, the captain announced that they had blown a tire and that they would try to land in Edmonton.
When they approached Edmonton, she could see emergency vehicles and firetrucks positioned near the runway.
Ms. Menard was sitting on the left side, in row 15. Kurylo sat further up in the cabin in a window seat on row 7 on the right side.
When the right landing gear deployed, Kurylo saw that the tire was “shredded and flapping.”
Ms. Menard said the landing initially seemed normal and passengers hadn’t been told to brace into a crash position.
Then the plane suddenly started rattling as they went down the runway. The right landing gear collapsed and the plane started tilting to the right. Ms. Menard felt as if she was in a car about to roll over.

Sparks lit up as the right-side undercarriage dragged on the runway. The lights inside had been dimmed for the landing, but the sparks were bright enough to illuminate the inside of the cabin.
When the propeller blade struck Kurylo’s window, her eyeglasses flew off and she was covered in broken plexiglass.
“After I got hit, I was kind of confused … It’s bits and pieces for me.”
Suddenly, the plane came to a halt.
There was a moment of silence before everyone cheered, whistled or clapped in relief. But as the cabin filled with smoke, they hurried out.
Kurylo heard someone yell, “Get off the plane, it’s on fire!” and Mike pulled her out.
Afterward, Ms. Menard found her friend waiting in an ambulance, her face bruised and studded with bits of plexiglass. A paramedic showed Kurylo a photo she had snapped of the propeller jammed into the window.
“She just wanted her to know how lucky that she was to be alive,” Ms. Menard said.
Kurylo was discharged from hospital after six hours, having suffered a concussion, sore neck and bruises on her head and shoulders.
Ms. Menard said she was surprised Air Canada didn’t acknowledge that it was a serious incident. “That propeller was inches away from killing someone.”
Manon Stuart, a spokeswoman for Jazz Aviation, which operates the flight for Air Canada, said all four passengers who were sent to hospital were treated for non-life-threatening injuries.
In 2007, the manufacturer, Bombardier, had to deal with several landing-gear failures in Q400 planes operated by Scandinavian Airlines. The problem was blamed on corrosion.
The plane that carried Flight AC8481 was, however, a relatively new aircraft. Transport Canada records show that the plane, a DHC-8-402 model, was manufactured in 2012.
“At this point, there is no reason to question the safety of the Q400 aircraft. The cause of this incident is still unknown,” Ms. Stuart said.
Both Ms. Stuart and Bombardier spokeswoman Marianella de la Barrera said the Q400 is considered a robust, reliable aircraft.

Ryanair claims to be Europe's 'number one customer service airline'

As complaints fall by 1%, Ryanair claims to be Europe's 'number one customer service airline' ... just weeks after being named one of the worst brands in the world

• 92% of 50,000 Ryanair flights in October arrived on time 
• No-frills airline 'received less than one complaint per 1,000 travellers'
• Despite improvement, carrier still voted second worst brand in the world

 

   Controversial Ryanair chief, Michael O'Leary, recently admitted it was time to put customers first.

And now, the carrier once voted second worst brand in the world, not to mention Britain's least favourite airline, is claiming to be Europe's number one for customer service.

The airline has announced that more than 92 per cent of more than 50,000 Ryanair flights in October arrived on time – a one percent improvement on the same month last year.

 

The no-frills airline carried 8.4 million passengers in the month and claimed to have received fewer than one complaint per 1,000 travellers.

A statement on its website added that 'more than 99 per cent of complaints were answered within seven days'. 

Ryanair said the passenger statistics for last month confirm it as Europe's 'number one customer service airline'.

This follows a website relaunch, mobile app, allocated seating and the ability to carry a small second bag on board flights.

Ryanair Head of Communications, Robin Kiely, said: 'Ryanair carried 8.4m customers in October with over 92 per cent of our 50,000 flights arriving on-time as we continued to improve our customer experience.

All Ryanair customers may now bring a small second bag on board, make faster bookings and register their details on our easier to use website and brand new app, travel with mobile boarding passes, enjoy "quiet flights" and allocated seating, and use their personal electronic devices at all stages of their flight, as Ryanair continues to deliver so much more than just the lowest fares in every one of our markets.'

Despite recent efforts to transform its reputation, the budget airline was one of the worst-performing brands overall in Siegel+Gale's 2014 simplicity index.

In a survey of more than 12,000 customers in eight countries, Ryanair was named the second worst-ranked brand, based on ease of customer use of a company's products, services, interactions and communications.

 

Monarch Airlines has agreed a rescue deal

   Monarch Airlines has agreed a rescue deal that will result in Switzerland’s Mantegazza dynasty, who started the business with just two aircraft in Luton in 1968, selling up completely. 

Family patriarch Sergio Mantegazza is understood to have become impatient with the airline’s financial troubles after Monarch asked for a third bailout in July despite already injecting £75m into the business in 2011, just two years after putting £45m into the business.

Investment firm Greybull Capital has now agreed to pump £125m of permanent capital and liquidity facilities into Monarch, which has been anchored by a £50m investment.

As a result Greybull, which sees the deal as a "long-term investment", will own 90pc of the airline, with the remaining 10pc held by Monarch’s pension protection fund. The carrier’s pension fund reportedly has a deficit of more than £300m by some calculations.

Andrew Swaffield, Monarch chief executive, said: “I am delighted to welcome the Greybull team as the new owners of the Monarch Group. We have a shared vision for the strategic direction and prospects for the business, and I am looking forward to working with them to implement the exciting plans for building our future.”
 

Greybull’s investment was contingent on Monarch’s turnaround plan being sucessful. The airline has already axed 700 jobs out of its 3,000 employees and reduce its aircraft fleet to 34 from 42. The airline will now recfocus solely on short-haul European flights and ditch charter flights.
The terms were agreed on Friday night at law firm Freshfield’s offices, just hours ahead of Monarch’s licence with the Civil Aviation Authority expiring.
Monarch required as much as £60m to shore up its finances, but the situation was considered so dire that restructuring specialists KPMG were waiting in the wings in case a search for a new investor failed.
The search for a new financial backer by Dean Street Advisors, the boutique advisory firm founded by investment bankers Mervyn Metcalf and Graeme Atkinson, and aviation advisory firm Seabury Capital drew interest from private equity investors and venture capitalist Jon Moulton’s Better Capital.
Greybull Capital was founded in 2010 by financier brothers Nathaniel and Marc Meyohas, who were pushed into the spotlight as one of the backers of Comet, only for the electricals chain to collapse months later with 7,000 jobs lost. Greybull’s structured financing meant that it recouped most of its money after the collapse.
Sergio Mantegazza is worth $4.7bn (£2.8bn), according to Forbes magazine.
Commenting on behalf of the selling shareholders, Fabio Mantegazza said: “We are very proud to have created one of the most loved aviation brands in the UK over the past 46 years. We think that now is an appropriate time to allow new shareholders to take Monarch into the future, with secure financial backing and clear strategic goals and we wish the Group every success.”

Norway's first ever BIOFUEL flight!

Norway’s first ever biofuel flight takes off today

                             
Take-off from Bergen at 4.20pm with Norway’s Climate and Environment Minister on board.

Today, Norwegian is proud to facilitate Norway’s first ever flight with biofuel. Norwegian’s flight DY631 from Bergen to Oslo will take off with almost 50 percent biofuels in its tank. Norway's Minister of Climate and Environment, Tine Sundtoft, will be among the passengers on board this very special flight.

Emits 40 versus 74 grams
The aircraft is filled with sustainable fuel and will emit a total of 3178 kg or 40 grams per passenger kilometer. Older aircraft with traditional fuels emit 5786 kg, which is 74 grams per passenger kilometer on the same stretch.

“At Norwegian, we are keen to make aviation more environmentally friendly. We have a clear goal to reduce CO2 emissions by 30 percent per passenger in the period 2008 to 2015. The most significant improvement is our new aircraft, and Norwegian's fleet is among the newest and most environmentally friendly in Europe. But this is not enough. Sustainable biofuel is also an important measure. The flight with biofuel from Bergen to Oslo is an important milestone in the industry's shared commitment to make sustainable biofuel more easily available for airlines,” says Norwegian’s CEO Bjørn Kjos.

Through the development of new technologies and frameworks, Norwegian wants to help make aviation carbon neutral by 2050.  

Norwegian received with a water arc on its first flight to La Palma.

Norwegian received with a water arc on its first flight to La Palma.

Norwegian Air Shuttle, the Europe's best low cost airline, has started its first flight to La Palma, Canary Islands this 1st of November. It was received, as usual, with the typical water ar. The Norwegian carrier will connect the British airport of London Gatwick with the island once a week, Saturdays, for approximately 80 Euros return in the beginning. All passengers will enjoy as usual, the free WIFI on board, excellent customer service and a great catering, also new from the 1st of November.

   For regular travellers, explorers or if you want to enjoy of a great weather, excellent food and great hospitality from the locals. La Palma is considered as one of the most beautiful island of the archipelago. Due to its position, further to the occident of the islands, the climate there is more humid, temperature with an average of 25 degrees all year around, it is the perfect combination for a green island full of life.   

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