Consumer watchdog ranks Ryanair second-worst short-haul airline

RYANAIR has been named as one of the worst airlines for customer satisfaction in a survey conducted by a leading consumer watchdog.

The Irish airline emerged as the second-worst short- haul carrier in the views of passengers in a poll carried out by British-based Which? magazine.

The survey of more than 5,000 air travellers saw Ryanair receive an overall approval rating of just 43% – just ahead of Thomas Cook Airlines.

“In the battle of the no-frills giants, EasyJet did significantly better than Ryanair. The Irish airline only narrowly missed out on last place thanks to a truly abysmal showing from Thomas Cook Airlines,” said a Which? spokesperson.

Ryanair received below average marks for its baggage allowance, cleanliness, leg room, cabin staff and dealing with delays. The only category in which it received an average mark was for “value for money”.

The consumer watchdog criticised Ryanair and other budget airlines for the scale of their hidden charges.

Which? condemned Thomas Cook Airlines for requiring full passenger details before disclosing the full ticket price.

The influential consumer watchdog claimed many low-cost airlines failed to make the true extent of their charges clear to passengers.

In particular, it criticised credit card fees based on individual flights and passengers rather than per transaction. Fees for a return flight for a family of five cost €50 with both Ryanair and Aer Lingus.

However, Aer Lingus was named as the second-best airline in the short-haul category with an overall approval rating of 71% receiving above-average marks in most categories.

The national carrier was narrowly beaten for top position by one point by Swiss International Air Lines.

“Our rigorous research shows that while the cost of flights is important to customers, it’s things like friendly cabin staff and reasonable luggage allowances that leave a lasting impression,” said Which? spokes-woman Rochelle Turner.

In the survey of long-haul airlines, Air New Zealand emerged as the favourite of passengers followed by Singapore Airlines. South African Airways was the least popular.