Latest Abusive Attempt by Air France!

[White Cap]

Ryanair News
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News Release
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13.06.06
Ryanair Responds to Latest Abusive Attempt by Air France to Block Competition in France

Ryanair, Europe’s largest low fares airline, today (Tuesday, 13th June 2006) announced that it has filed a further complaint to the European Commission on Air France’s latest attempt to block competition from low fares airlines in France. Last month, Ryanair announced that it would base 2 new aircraft at Marseille Airport, which will serve 13 routes and deliver almost 1 million additional passengers annually to the airport, which equates to a €100 million in savings to French consumers and visitors to France off the high fares of Air France. However, Air France announced today that it had filed an action in the French Conseille d’État against Marseille Airport in an attempt to block Ryanair’s use of this new low cost terminal - despite the fact that the tariff for using this facility is published and has been agreed by the French Civil Aviation Authority.

Commenting today on this latest abuse by Air France, Ryanair’s Head of Regulatory Affairs, Jim Callaghan, said:

“This is the latest in a long line of abuses by Air France to protect their strangle-hold on the French market:

Air France succeeded in blocking competition from Ryanair on the London to Strasbourg route. The result has been predictable, Air France is again ripping off consumers with €800 return fares and passenger numbers have plummeted from 20,000 per month to just over 2,000.
Air France also blocked competition from easyJet in Bale-Mulhouse by again resorting to the local courts.
Now Air France is trying to prevent Ryanair from using lower cost facilities in Marseille Provence Airport, which were offered to Air France but were rejected.
“Ryanair has therefore today submitted a further complaint to the European Commission against Air France on the basis of an abuse of dominance under the European competition rules. In no other European member state does the national airline hold such a dominant position and engage in such abusive practices in order to block competition.

“Last month, Ryanair filed a complaint to the European Commission regarding approximately €1 billion worth of state aid that Air France has received from the French Government in the form of subsidised domestic landing and passenger fees. This illegal state aid has enabled Air France to dominate the French market and force smaller competitors off the market.

“If Jean-Cyrille Spinetta is truly concerned about “equality”, then he should:

have accepted Marseille Airport’s offer of lower cost, efficient facilities instead of abusing the French Court system to prevent competition.
stop ripping off French consumers and start charging the same fares as Ryanair.
start paying the same landing fees on domestic traffic as Ryanair has to pay on international flights instead of receiving illegal subsidies from the French Government.
“We are calling on the European Commission to put an end to Air France’s abusive practices in the French market and to promote competition from low fares airlines, which have been successful in bringing low fares, competition and choice to every other European Member State, except France!”

Editor’s Note:

Ryanair has announced 13 routes to commence from Marseille Airport in November 2006 – Brussels Charleroi; Eindhoven; Karlsruhe Baden; Frankfurt Hahn; London Stansted; Rome Ciampino; Dublin; Glasgow Prestwick; Porto; Fez (Morocco); Marracech (Morocco); Oujda (Morocco); and Oslo Torp.

[Diego A. Maradona]

Tja die Franzosen! Alles an sich reißen - Nehmen, nehmen, nehmen und bloß nicht geben...Vive la France! Le Grand nation!

(War jetzt nur Polemik-trift es aber garantiert im Kern)

[NiesiausBo]

Das heißt: "La Grande Nation"

Und nachdem mir in Paris all mein Geld, Kreditkarten etc. geklaut wurden und mir verdammt viele Leute dort wirklich weitergeholfen haben, mag ich dieses Land!

[Diego A. Maradona]

Den einzelnen Franzosen werde ich garantiert auch mögen. Aber es gibt auch ein nationales kollektives Auftreten und Erscheinungsbild! Und das war damit gemeint!

[NiesiausBo]

Ach, da ist unser aber auch nicht viel besser

[Diego A. Maradona]

Doch!

[NiesiausBo]

Stimmt auch wieder

[Diego A. Maradona]

Meistens...dafür haben die Franzosen das bessere Hochgeschwindigkeitsnetz!