Irish-based discount airline Ryanair will add transatlantic flights and plans to sell some seats for $15 each way.
The services, approved by the company’s board on Monday, won’t happen for about four or five years, depending on how long it takes to
get the necessary aircraft, RTE News reported. The company currently is in discussions with aircraft manufacturers.
Ticket prices would vary, with most costing much more than the cheapest seats and some premium seats available.
"European consumers want lower cost travel to the U.S. and the same for Americans coming to Europe. We see it as a logical development in the European market," the company said in a statement.
Ryanair hopes to increase passengers by 50 percent by 2019 and order
380 new Boeing airplanes, The Irish Times reported.
A jet designed for transatlantic flight costs more than $100 million, and the airline likely would need 20 to 30 of them, making it unlikely to see the new service before 2019 or 2020, The Irish Times said.
The airline also will face challenges in adapting to a different business model. Long-haul flights offer different challenges from Ryanair’s current low-cost, short-haul model, which relies on fast turnaround and offering bare minimum services onboard.
The idea of $15 fares may sound better in concept than reality. Charges for taxes and services could
add hundreds to the amount travelers ultimately pay, CNN said.
Twitter users shared mixed reactions.
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