Virgin Galactic crash: Has Virgin lost its innocence? November 7, 2014 To this day, my mother laments the moment I discovered girls. Before then, she forgave me nearly anything. A broad smile, cheeky shrug of the shoulders, and hey presto – I was out of trouble. She could overlook my many antics with an easy smile and a clear conscience. Kids will be kids. But [...]
Being nice pays off for Ryanair as profit soars by 32 per cent November 3, 2014 Budget airline Ryanair is finding that being nice really does pay off, after it revealed its half-year net profit rose a whopping 32 per cent to €795m (£621.6m) The company embarked on a customer service overhaul about a year ago, when chief executive Michael O’Leary vowed to stop “unnecessarily pissing people off”. Since then the [...]
FTSE dragged down by HSBC and utilities – London Report November 3, 2014 BRITAIN’S top equity index broke a four-day rise yesterday as a drop in major utility stocks and in global banking group HSBC dragged the UK stock market lower. The blue-chip FTSE 100 index closed down by 0.9 per cent at 6,487.97 points. Last week, it had extended a rebound off 15-month lows reached in October. [...]
Michael O’Leary: Ryanair CEO’s four lessons for business leaders November 3, 2014 Ryanair’s boss proves that plain speaking needn’t hold you back. Ryanair, the no frills budget airline, known for its hard-headed attitude to customer service, raised its profit forecast yesterday, after its half-year profits rose by a third. The news followed a profit warning a year ago, when guidance was slashed. Consistently low fares and [...]
Ryanair share price rises as it hikes profit forecast and lands 200 new planes November 3, 2014 Shares in budget airline Ryanair opened nearly two per cent higher after it posted pre-tax profits of €907m (£709m) for the half-year ended 30 September, a substantial rise on the €685m (£535.5m) the company enjoyed last year. Passenger numbers in the first half rose four per cent to 51.3m and revenue climbed nine per cent. [...]
Air France-KLM share price opens lower as pilot strikes cut profits in half October 29, 2014 Shares in Air France-KLM opened 3.6 per cent lower at €6.41 this morning, after third quarter operating profit fell by half . Profit for the three months to 30 September in 2014 was €247m, compared with €641m during the equivalent period last year. The company put the fall in profit down to September's [...]
Ryanair hit with €8.3m French fine over staff contract dispute October 28, 2014 Budget airline Ryanair is facing an €8.3m (£6.55m) fine in France after a court ruled the carrier had breached its labour laws. The appeal court turned down the airline’s bid to have the decision overturned, after French authorities fined it for avoiding social security payments in the country by putting workers on contracts in Ireland. [...]
Ryanair’s share price drops as the budget airline locks Michael O’Leary in for five years October 24, 2014 Ryanair chief executive Michael O'Leary might wind up some of his customers, but the board clearly love what he's doing for the budget airline. O'Leary – whose quotes include comparing the BA/Iberia merger to a pair of drunks leaning on each other and once admitted that passengers are “bombarded” with offers the minute they [...]
Lufthansa pilot strike sparks long haul chaos as 1,511 flights are cancelled October 20, 2014 Lufthansa has cancelled 1,511 flights as a result of a strike being held by pilots that runs until midnight today, a spokesman said yesterday. It is the equivalent to around 65 per cent of the 2,333 flights it would normally operate during the strike. Pilots’ union VC had initially planned to strike only on short-haul [...]
This Virgin America ad is six hours long and it’s the most boring ad ever made October 16, 2014 A new ad for Virgin America is likely to take the prize for the most boring ad ever made, coming in at six, yes six, hours long. The online campaign is a bizarre jibe at the depressing cattle like conditions of its rivals, which it dubs BLAH airlines. The ad recreates a flight from Newark [...]