Cheltenham – a special week March 5, 2015 BILL ESDAILE TAKES AT LOOK AT THE BEST OF THE BOOKMAKERS’ CHELTENHAM FESTIVAL SPECIALS WITH only days to go until the start of the Cheltenham Festival, bookmakers are falling over themselves with generous offers to attract new clients. Champion Chase sponsors Betway have pledged to refund all losing bets on their sponsored feature race next [...]
Ryanair order book gets a bit more crowded March 4, 2015 DISCOUNT airline Ryanair is expanding its fleet, with three additional Boeing 737-800 planes ordered, it said yesterday. It also has 200 Boeing 737 Max-200 aircraft on order. The 737-800s have a list price of $280m (£183m), and will allow 160m passengers to be flown a year by 2025.
Ryanair charm offensive continues with launch of eight-point “customer charter” March 3, 2015 Ryanair – the airline that once considered charging extra for people to use the toilet – has issued an eight-point “customer charter”. Among the points are the promise of “the lowest fares”, to make sure travelling is “an enjoyable experience”, to be “Europe's most reliable airline” and alarmingly for an airline “to make your travel [...]
IAG approach for Aer Lingus turned down by Irish government February 24, 2015 The Irish government has turned down a bid from the International Airlines Group (IAG) for Aer Lingus, saying it was not willing to sell its stake in the airline without further assurances. The government wants commitments on growth prospects and the safeguarding of jobs, before it considers selling its 25 per cent stake. Willie Welsh, [...]
Ryanair claims breach of human rights as it appeals to top court February 12, 2015 RYANAIR is taking its legal challenge over Aer Lingus to the UK Supreme Court, yesterday claiming it is a human rights issue. The budget airline had previously been told by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to sell off its 29 per cent stake in Irish flag carrier Aer Lingus, reducing its stake to no [...]
Balder looks primed to give Alan King a second Ascot Chase success February 12, 2015 BILL ESDAILE PREVIEWS THE BEST OF THE WEEKEND RACING ACTION WITH just over three weeks to go until the start of the Cheltenham Festival, the excitement is really starting to build. Most of the key protagonists have now had their prep runs but there are still a couple of decent trials to look forward to, [...]
Road to Cheltenham February 12, 2015 THE purpose of this column is to find horses that are going to turn up at the Festival at a shorter price and the Ryanair Chase has an attractive look to it from a betting perspective. Don Cossack is the 4/1 favourite, but I’m keen to take him on. He’s four from four this season, [...]
Ryanair takes Aer Lingus challenge to UK Supreme Court as a human rights issue February 12, 2015 Ryanair is taking its legal challenge over Aer Lingus to the UK Supreme Court, claiming it is a human rights issue. The budget airline had previously been told by the Competition and Markets Authority to sell most of its 29 per cent stake in Aer Lingus, reducing its holding to no more than five [...]
TUI on course for profit growth after merger February 10, 2015 The figures Tui Group has reported a 23.5 per cent jump in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation in its first quarter, and a 5.4 per cent jump in revenues – in line with expectations. Hotels and resorts performed particularly well during the period, it added. The newly formed entity, forged through a merger [...]
Aer Lingus loses passengers but wins EU lawsuit February 5, 2015 BOTH Aer Lingus and rival EasyJet have posted disappointing passenger numbers for the first month of 2015. The Irish flag carrier said mainline passenger numbers fell 4.5 per cent year-on-year in January to 546,000. Aer Lingus, which is subject to a potential takeover bid from British Airways owner International Airlines Group (IAG), said its long-haul [...]