Tony Ryan, the founder of Ryanair died yesterday at the age of 71. His airline, which started with one small plane 23 years ago, revolutionized the way Europe travels, even if sometimes it only seems good for ferrying Brits to southern Spain. And, strange as it is to heap praise on anyone involved with airlines these days, even the Prime Minister of Ireland had nice things to say about the billionaire:
The establishment of Ryanair and its subsequent rise to become one of the leading carriers in Europe is one of the greatest Irish economic success stories and will be rightly regarded as perhaps his greatest legacy.
While Ryanair and its founder are glorified, though, airlines in the US are taking a beating. Mostly because only 72% of flights arrived on-time in August, barely better than they did in June and July. How long until there's a "congestion" surcharge next to the fuel surcharge on our tickets?
The rest of the day's airline news:
· Tony Ryan's Obituary [IHT]
· More Airline Delays in August [AP, via Google]
· US Airways Slashing Service to and from Pittsburg [PRNewswire]
· Virgin America Launch Has Sparked a Major Fare War [Reuters]
· Brazilians, Not Americans, Responsible for Mid-Air Collision [NYT]
[Photo: Aidan Crawley / EPA file]]]>