I flew Ryanair with my family - 5 adults and one 14 month old child - in October, Gatwick/Portugal return. Tickets all bought at the same time, and we declined to pay extra so none of us were sitting together (aside from the toddler on mum’s lap) despite the plane being only two-thirds full... We decided to sit in the designated seats for takeoff, and take a wander during the flight to group up where possible.
Some passengers decided to swap seats before takeoff, but with variable success: some were sent back to their original seats by the flight attendants, others seemed to get away with it. One lady in front of me was ordered back and told she HAD to sit in that particular seat “to balance the plane”... I burst out laughing, and so did everyone else in earshot - and it sparked a lively discussion on the ludicrous physics, and whether we’d all been surreptitiously weighed at check-in, while the attendant pretended not to hear any of it. Hilarious.
The thing is, I couldn’t decide what was worse - if the flight attendant really believed that statement (had she been told this during training in the same way apprentices are sent to ask for ‘long weights’ or ‘stripy paint’?), or whether Ryanair are making them repeat this rubbish because they think we’re stupid enough to believe it (when we all know they’re doing their utmost to force you into paying extra to sit together).
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
One or two people changing seats won't unbalance the plane. But if everyone was free to move say back to front, or all to one side, then it might.
But I think the primary reason for insisting everyone sits in their assigned sets for take-off / landing is an attempt to know exactly who is onboard if there is a discrepancy with numbers between check-in / gate / onboard headcount, and/or to aid with identification in the event of a disaster. Anyone not sitting in their assigned seat for take-off potentially runs the risk of having any checked baggage unloaded!
Having booked my first ever Ryanair flight, I’m keen to avoid any extra charges at the airport.
I bought priority boarding, with 2 carry on bags. My understanding is I’m allowed 1 small bag (sizes defined but no apparent weight limit) that must fit under seat. Also a larger bag (size defined) with a 10kg max weight. This must fit inside overhead locker.
I’m also told it’s important to have boarding pass printed or on smartphone, or there’s a substantial charge.
Does that sound right? Any other tricks I should watch out for please? Is breathing during the flight free?
Remember to have some loose change on hand as the toilets are coin only.
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
ropetow wrote:
Remember to have some loose change on hand as the toilets are coin only.
ONe euro for a pee and two for a dump.
Also, if you don't book ahead you are charged by the gram.
After all it is free
After all it is free
Wife got a FREE bottle of water out of Ryanair yesterday, by having her traditional take-off breakdown. *Almost* makes up for having to buy a new flightbag to fit their new carry-on size limits.
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PeakyB wrote:
Having booked my first ever Ryanair flight, I’m keen to avoid any extra charges at the airport.
I’m also told it’s important to have boarding pass printed or on smartphone, or there’s a substantial charge.
?
Yep, check in online, (up to 2 hours before your flight) and get your boarding pass. Otherwise pay £50 at the airport. Due to having the day from hell on Tuesday (long before the car breakdown issue) I got stung. But I did realise I would earlier in the day, just could not realistically do anything about it!
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
@ropetow, @GlasgowCyclops,
No breakfast or liquid before the flight for me then.
Thanks all for info.
Bad luck @CaravanSkier, that’s a very unfair charge.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
PeakyB wrote:
@ropetow, @GlasgowCyclops,
Bad luck @CaravanSkier, that’s a very unfair charge.
I`m not sure it is, you do know you will be charged that amount if you don`t check in online. And lets face it most of us can do that these days. It did mean that because I was the only person needing to do it the lady on reception was able to print my boarding card very quickly, all be it she had to shift other staff out of the way to get to the printer because there was only 2 mins left for her to be able to do it.
I haven`t worked out yet whether I will be able to, or bothered to claim on my travel insurance, for some or all of the additional expenses.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
Amunah wrote:
One lady in front of me was ordered back and told she HAD to sit in that particular seat “to balance the plane”... I burst out laughing, and so did everyone else in earshot - and it sparked a lively discussion on the ludicrous physics
Weight distribution is actually an important part of pre-flight stuff, so I'm glad you're not the pilot
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
martinm wrote:
Amunah wrote:
One lady in front of me was ordered back and told she HAD to sit in that particular seat “to balance the plane”... I burst out laughing, and so did everyone else in earshot - and it sparked a lively discussion on the ludicrous physics
Weight distribution is actually an important part of pre-flight stuff, so I'm glad you're not the pilot
Absolutely BUT mainly in the way they load the hold bags. If it made a difference to actual people in seats, you wouldn’t be allowed to pre-book seats without providing your weight. This they make gross allowances for in flight planning.
You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
@CaravanSkier, you’re very philosophical about it and yes, they publish the rules on DIY boarding passes well enough.
I still think £50 is punitive for the tiny amount of work involved for them to print a boarding card. That’s one way they make a hefty profit I guess.
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
NickyJ wrote:
martinm wrote:
Amunah wrote:
One lady in front of me was ordered back and told she HAD to sit in that particular seat “to balance the plane”... I burst out laughing, and so did everyone else in earshot - and it sparked a lively discussion on the ludicrous physics
Weight distribution is actually an important part of pre-flight stuff, so I'm glad you're not the pilot
Absolutely BUT mainly in the way they load the hold bags. If it made a difference to actual people in seats, you wouldn’t be allowed to pre-book seats without providing your weight. This they make gross allowances for in flight planning.
I was once weighed pre flight for that precise purpose, along with the rest of the 15 passengers on a small internal flight in Fiji back in the 1990s
Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Some time ago I had the pleasure of talking with a man who was CEO of Southwest Airlines when it made its transition into a budget carrier.
They were a small, loss making, traditional airline. At a board meeting to discuss what they could do to save the company many options were debated and rejected: Fly the planes faster? You can't - they are designed for a certain cruising speed. Make more flights! You can't - the airports have curfews and your staff have hours they can't exceed for safety reasons, etc.
The only two things they could do were to decrease the time on the ground and to reduce the money spent on ground crew. Ditch the catering, which takes money, time to restock and causes cleaning issues. Make the check in process as 'self service' as possible, make checked bags self-funding by charging for them. We've seen all these with RyanAir, EasyJet and other budget carriers that have followed on. The £50 boarding passes are more to reduce the requirement for check-in staff than they are to pay for the process.
In the early days they had trouble with passengers not taking their seats quickly enough, so they encouraged the tractor drivers that towed the aircraft away from the gate to give the plane a jerk to persuade passengers to take their seats.
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
NickyJ wrote:
martinm wrote:
Amunah wrote:
One lady in front of me was ordered back and told she HAD to sit in that particular seat “to balance the plane”... I burst out laughing, and so did everyone else in earshot - and it sparked a lively discussion on the ludicrous physics
Weight distribution is actually an important part of pre-flight stuff, so I'm glad you're not the pilot
Absolutely BUT mainly in the way they load the hold bags. If it made a difference to actual people in seats, you wouldn’t be allowed to pre-book seats without providing your weight. This they make gross allowances for in flight planning.
...and you would not be allowed to go to the toilet!
The trim on a transport category plane continually changes, as people do move around, fuel is burned off, with altitude and speed changes. After being set for take off, it is thereafter generally managed by the autopilot, but can be manually adjusted.
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
"The trim on a transport category plane continually changes"
"The trim on a transport category plane continually changes"
What's the trim?
Basically balancing the difference between the centre of gravity and the centre of pressure. A good explanation at http://youtube.com/v/1uqSHXx4NHU
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Hand baggage worked just fine today. No bun fights, enough space, arrived on time
After all it is free
After all it is free
Bergmeister wrote:
Amunah,
We flew with Easyjet a couple of weeks ago on a half empty plane.
Just before take off the captain asked all passengers to remain in their allocated seats - to balance the plane....
I don’t disagree with the principle of generally balancing out a half-empty plane - laterally and fore/aft - but the lady trying to swap seats with a stranger in order to sit next to her friend was of ‘normal’ size, and highly unlikely to cause the plane to unbalance...
We had obediently sat where allocated, but by talking to our neighbours and working out who’d also been allocated seats deliberately splitting out THEIR families, a seating compromise was feasible: my point was that Ryanair’s policy appears to deliberately seat those travelling together as far apart as possible.
I’m willing to hold my hands up and accept that I’m ignorant and wrong, and I am certainly no pilot (thankfully), but I just can’t believe that it is possible (or necessary) to finely balance a 737 to a seating plan if it does not ask every passenger how much they weigh when booking (and checking the real weight and that of their carry-on luggage at the boarding gate)...
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@Amunah, agreevre the balance largely . Me and MrHL were 3 rows apart, both on aisle seats. I can manage without sutting next to him for 90 minutes the same as if we are on a bus or train
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