Ryanair told to find passengers new flights

RYANAIR has been ordered by regulators to offer hundreds of thousands of customers with cancelled flights alternatives with other airlines by the end of today.

Under a set of demands by Civil Aviation Authority, the troubled airline will have to tell customers they can claim compensation for hotels and other expenses they have incurred as a result of cancellations.

The CAA on Wednesday accused Ryanair of breaking EU laws as the email it had sent customers did not sufficiently tell them about their rights.

If Ryanair does not comply and recontact customers, it faces court action which could result in a multi-millionpound fine. Ryanair has also been told it must issue a clear statement at the top of its website with a link to relevant information about consumer rights.

Yesterday, angry customers took to social media to call for a mass boycott of Ryanair after boss Michael O’leary was accused of “cancelling Christmas” by wrecking the plans of 400,000 more passengers over the winter.

It also emerged that Ryanair had withdrawn its offer of a £12,000 pilot bonus just one day after cancelling a further 18,000 flights.

In an internal letter to staff, Michael Hickey, its chief operation officer, yesterday told pilots that from November it would no longer need them to work a week of their holiday allowance in return for the lump sum.

While some pilots who already applied for the scheme will still

qualify, others will instead be offered a separate bonus scheme which will not require them to take annual leave.

Ryanair has denied it is short of pilots, saying: “We currently employ over 4,200 pilots. This is a ratio of over 10 pilots per aircraft. Only four pilots are needed per aircraft per day.”

Industry sources claim that as many as 1,000 of its pilots are recruits who cannot yet fly commercial planes.

According to reports, Ryanair needs to hire at least this many pilots every year, a quarter of its workforce, if it is to keep up with staff departures and maintain its growth.

The Daily Telegraph can disclose that Ryanair gave the Government an assurance that there would be “no further disruption” before announcing the cancellation of 18,000 flights.

Lord Callanan, the aviation minister, said: “Despite assuring me there would be no further disruption, it is alarming that Ryanair has announced that more flights will be cancelled. Airlines must fulfil their obligations to customers and ensure they are fully compensated when they face disruption.”