Dogfight of Europe: Ryanair (a)

DOGFIGHT OF EUROPE: RYANAIR (A)

Background and Ryanair's New Endeavor

After success of running a small 14 seat aircraft from southeast Ireland (Waterford) to Gatwick Airport outside of London Ryanair in 1986 decided to expand services and take on the Dublin to London route which traditionally had been dominated by larger carriers Aer Lingus and British Airways.

Competition: British Airways (BA) and Aer Lingus

Following is an evaluation of the services offered and the status of the Ryanair's main competitors around the time they decided to introduce their new service.

British Airways in 1986

• Served 145 destinations, 68 countries

• Nearly 80% of passengers passed through London's Main Airport at Heathrow

• . Besides turboprop (44 seat) had a fleet of 163 aircrafts including the Boeing 747 that could hold up to 400 passengers.

• Heathrow catering on flights and provides own maintenance and engineering

• Brand recognition

Aer Lingus 1984-1985:

• Modest return on domestic and European routes

• Operating losses on trans-Atlantic flights

• Needs to Replace ageing jets

• Brand recognition-(touts national development , jobs, contribution to Irish society)

• Provides services such as maintenance and engineer training to other airlines

• Diversifying into other industries to offset losses in other business units

R1ynair's launch strategy:

Ryanair hoped to gain foothold in the market by offering the following:

• Offer meals and amenities comparable to what Aer Lingus and British Airways provided

• Distinguish itself from the flag carriers by delivering first rate customer service

• Charging a simple single fare for a ticket with no restrictions

1.) My assessment is Ryanair has a good launch strategy. In theory if they could offer the same amenities and first rate customer service at a lower price they will be very successful in this endeavor. They hope to capture part of the market away from their rivals by offering tickets at approximately 50% less (down from 208 pounds to 98 pounds) with no restrictions. Their competitors due offer a one month advance fair of 99 pounds however with restrictions which leaves less flexibility to the consumer. Flexibility and price are the key points that give Ryanair competitive