Ryanair's €100 'missed-departure' fee now in force, including on flights to and from France
The airline wants to prevent last-minute arrivals causing delays
A single late passenger can cause knock-on delays across the flight network
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A ‘missed departure’ fee from low-cost carrier Ryanair is now in force, aimed at travellers who turn up late for their flight.
The €100 fee has been in place since May 1, applying to those who arrive at the check-in desk less than forty minutes before their scheduled departure time, causing them to miss their flight.
The fee is levied if the passenger asks to be put on the next available flight.
Note this applies to checking in at the physical check-in desk with hold luggage.
The fee applies to those who turn up “less than 40 mins before and up to 1 hour after flight departure time,” Ryanair says on its website.
“Also available to customers who arrive at the ticket desk up to an hour after their flight departure to move to the next available flight.” it adds.
The Ryanair terms and conditions state that passengers “should be at the boarding gate for (their) flight at least 30 minutes before the departure time. The boarding gate will close 20 minutes before departure.”
“If you arrive at the boarding gate later than this, you will not be allowed on the plane. If you want to travel on a later flight, you will have to pay the appropriate fare for that flight,” it adds in section 6.7. This presumably will now also include the missed departure fee.
Attempts to combat lateness
The fee is seen as an attempt to combat late-arriving passengers causing delays to airline schedules across Europe.
A single delay to one plane can cause knock-on effects not only for the airline in question, but to the airports of departure and arrival, which itself can cause further delays across the entire network.
While Ryanair has had strict policies for late arrivals for several years, passengers who attempt last-minute arrivals can still cause delays as their checked baggage must be put on the plane.
“If you’re not at the gate on time, you’re holding up everyone else,” the airline’s CEO Michael O’Leary is quoted as saying in media outlet EuroWeekly News.
“We need passengers to respect the schedule — it’s non-negotiable,” he added.
The company is looking to make a number of changes this year, including the requirement for all passengers to use online check-in so that it can remove physical ticket desks in airports.
The online check-in requirements will come into force from November 3, the start of the airline’s winter schedule.
