Whats going on with Monarch ?

[mybrainhurts]

[quote=IforBThen add in some increased costs thanks to Brexit stuffing up the GBP/USD excahnge rate, then it's just been a bad year and there just isn't the cash available as needed.
[/quote]

FFS...have you never noticed exchange rates going in both directions for many different reasons?

[IforB]

mybrainhurts said:

FFS...have you never noticed exchange rates going in both directions for many different reasons?

Yes, but never that quickly. We had to absorb millions a month in additional fuel cost thanks to Brexit and the small issue that the aviation industry buys most things in dollars.

Or should we be happy about that and simply "suck it up." Obviously, we are fully able to control the economic environment around us at all times and when bad things happen, we are completely immune to them, like everyone else in business...

Sorry if our facts don't match the reality that you wish to paint for yourself.

[Composite Guru]

Eric M:Dc said:

Composite Guru said:

I remember doing a rear engine change on that thing. Used some rickety scaffolding thing to get up to it to get it unhooked. Lowering an engine from that height was quite unnerving.

I presume you are referring to the DC-10 and not the 757

Haha yeah. Although the APU replacement was a nice little job on the 757. Lots of room unlike the 737.

[steve-5snwi]

mybrainhurts said:

....you mean the Ryanair that abandoned my son on Corfu two years ago? Cancelled the flight and told passengers to make their own way home? That Ryanair?

I know a lot of people who regularly fly Monarch and not one of them has a bad word to say about them.

I guess that's the risk you run but I wouldn't put much more faith in Monarch, Jet 2 however are very good. A few years ago we had our flights cancelled when departing Lanzarote due to cross winds. Jet 2 were organised, bus transfers were arranged quickly and we were put in a all inclusive hotel within 1 hour of the airport stopping flights. Oh and on that flight the wife broke her foot the day before and they were great with moving seats although that was arranged by the insurance company.

Ironically the only movements were Ryanair .... They do seem to be changing their ways too. But yes I would have my doubts if the flight was cancelled.

[IforB]

steve-5snwi said:

I guess that's the risk you run but I wouldn't put much more faith in Monarch, Jet 2 however are very good. A few years ago we had our flights cancelled when departing Lanzarote due to cross winds. Jet 2 were organised, bus transfers were arranged quickly and we were put in a all inclusive hotel within 1 hour of the airport stopping flights. Oh and on that flight the wife broke her foot the day before and they were great with moving seats although that was arranged by the insurance company.

Ironically the only movements were Ryanair .... They do seem to be changing their ways too. But yes I would have my doubts if the flight was cancelled.

,
We would never treat passengers in the way you describe. Of all the airlines I've worked for, Monarch is the one where I've seen ground staff and crew go out of their way to help passengers.

We suffered a great hit to our On Time Performance this year and last because we refused to cancel flights when things were dodgy with French ATC on strike. There were delays galore, but we just got on with it and managed a full programme, whereas RYR and EZY binned flights left right and centre. Guess who doesn't have to pay compensation as they aren't late then...

It is a company policy to not cancel flights in this way. Our space in the market is defined purely by our customer service attitude. We might not always get it right, but we try a shed load harder than any others I've ever worked with.

[valiant]

IforB said:

steve-5snwi said:

I guess that's the risk you run but I wouldn't put much more faith in Monarch, Jet 2 however are very good. A few years ago we had our flights cancelled when departing Lanzarote due to cross winds. Jet 2 were organised, bus transfers were arranged quickly and we were put in a all inclusive hotel within 1 hour of the airport stopping flights. Oh and on that flight the wife broke her foot the day before and they were great with moving seats although that was arranged by the insurance company.

Ironically the only movements were Ryanair .... They do seem to be changing their ways too. But yes I would have my doubts if the flight was cancelled.

,
We would never treat passengers in the way you describe. Of all the airlines I've worked for, Monarch is the one where I've seen ground staff and crew go out of their way to help passengers.

We suffered a great hit to our On Time Performance this year and last because we refused to cancel flights when things were dodgy with French ATC on strike. There were delays galore, but we just got on with it and managed a full programme, whereas RYR and EZY binned flights left right and centre. Guess who doesn't have to pay compensation as they aren't late then...

It is a company policy to not cancel flights in this way. Our space in the market is defined purely by our customer service attitude. We might not always get it right, but we try a shed load harder than any others I've ever worked with.

Have to agree with the above. We got caught up in the French ATC strike and while Monarch were running late by a few hours - they WERE running.

Pity those who'd booked Ryanair and Easyjet. They're flights were mostly cancelled with their passengers told to go to the flight desks to claim their refunds! I don't think a £50 refund or whatever will get you that far from Faro. It was carnage. After witnessing that, I vowed never to use them.

[RWD cossie wil]

Cheap budget airlines offer worse service than flag carriers shock.....

Monarch & Ryanair exist because the public gets what the public wants...

The problem with the general public is generally that they are thick, greedy selfish morons. The rise of the "comp-un-say-shun" culture does not help, what's hard to understand about that occasionally, mechanical & electrical things break, weather happens, other incidents happen that may inconvenience your selfish little parasite arse for a few hours, generally because teams of people are working hard to make sure that you get to where you are going safely, and not spearing into the sea at 450 Knots... But you can't teach pigs to sing, so the race to the bottom will continue!

[carreauchompeur]

Yep, fully agree that expectations run high, having spent the best part of a year using South American airlines the presence of budget airlines is something to really appreciate!

Over here you've just got the choice of the flag carriers and international airlines for the most part and the prices are sky-high, without the service to match it.

I've managed to get a flight back from NYC to London in December for £180 on WestJet. Really, look at the price of other things you'll buy and it's incredible value for money. I expect nothing other than a safe seat, and getting to the UK broadly on time.

[pushthebutton]

RWD cossie wil said:

Cheap budget airlines offer worse service than flag carriers shock.....

Monarch & Ryanair exist because the public gets what the public wants...

The problem with the general public is generally that they are thick, greedy selfish morons. The rise of the "comp-un-say-shun" culture does not help, what's hard to understand about that occasionally, mechanical & electrical things break, weather happens, other incidents happen that may inconvenience your selfish little parasite arse for a few hours, generally because teams of people are working hard to make sure that you get to where you are going safely, and not spearing into the sea at 450 Knots... But you can't teach pigs to sing, so the race to the bottom will continue!

carreauchompeur said:

Yep, fully agree that expectations run high, having spent the best part of a year using South American airlines the presence of budget airlines is something to really appreciate!

Over here you've just got the choice of the flag carriers and international airlines for the most part and the prices are sky-high, without the service to match it.

I've managed to get a flight back from NYC to London in December for £180 on WestJet. Really, look at the price of other things you'll buy and it's incredible value for money. I expect nothing other than a safe seat, and getting to the UK broadly on time.

[LotusOmega375D]

My best childhood flight memory was return to Catania, Sicily on a Monarch 720B ca. 1978.

Just returned from there the other week for the first time since. This time with my kids, but on BA.

[-Moley-]

I've used Monarch several times in the past and have always been impressed with them.
I have flight booked with them in December and June, so hopefully everything will turn out ok.

They have always provided a great service..... unlike Ryanair who i refuse to fly with

[J4CKO]

RWD cossie wil said:

Cheap budget airlines offer worse service than flag carriers shock.....

Monarch & Ryanair exist because the public gets what the public wants...

The problem with the general public is generally that they are thick, greedy selfish morons. The rise of the "comp-un-say-shun" culture does not help, what's hard to understand about that occasionally, mechanical & electrical things break, weather happens, other incidents happen that may inconvenience your selfish little parasite arse for a few hours, generally because teams of people are working hard to make sure that you get to where you are going safely, and not spearing into the sea at 450 Knots... But you can't teach pigs to sing, so the race to the bottom will continue!

Fair points and extra Internet points for squeezing a Jam lyric in !

With the cheaper carriers there isnt the cash to ego massage the customer when things go awry, perhaps pay Etihad 12 grand for a First Class seat if you want more in the way of touchy feely customer service, these carriers offer you a seat, on a plane and thats it, like you say, sometimes with the best will in the world it goes wrong, I would rather the budget airlines spend money on safety than hot towels and that extra inch of legroom and Monarch have an exemplary record.

I think the compensation culture is pretty rank, a guy at work was crowing about getting £800 for a delay, he is the same bloke that will only venture in to the office when there is free food, he is not poor in any way but the grasping attitude is very unpleasant.

[Robertj21a]

-Moley- said:

I've used Monarch several times in the past and have always been impressed with them.
I have flight booked with them in December and June, so hopefully everything will turn out ok.

They have always provided a great service..... unlike Ryanair who i refuse to fly with

Have you ever flown with Ryanair ? - I have, about 150 times, and never had a problem.

[wjwren]

only been on ryanair once and they have the youngest or one of the youngest fleet I think but the planes feel old and are like buses. But you get what you pay and their tickets are dirt cheap.

[-Moley-]

Robertj21a said:

Have you ever flown with Ryanair ? - I have, about 150 times, and never had a problem.

Only twice, but that was more than enough.

Monarch however have always been fantastic (as have EasyJet to be fair)

[surveyor]

wjwren said:

only been on ryanair once and they have the youngest or one of the youngest fleet I think but the planes feel old and are like buses. But you get what you pay and their tickets are dirt cheap.

Average fleet age of 6.6 years. Compare with BA at 12.7 years (luckily they ordered the A380/Dreamliner to get their fleet age up)...

[briang9]

Robertj21a said:

Have you ever flown with Ryanair ? - I have, about 150 times, and never had a problem.

problem with Ryanair is that its not really about the flight experience, but they seem to be at the bottom of the scale re what they charge you for, ie you cant check in for a return flight at the same time as the you do for the outward one if its over 4 days without paying extra (easyjet allow this), hold baggage charges etc etc, oh and O'Leary is a if that helps

[RWD cossie wil]

wjwren said:

only been on ryanair once and they have the youngest or one of the youngest fleet I think but the planes feel old and are like buses. But you get what you pay and their tickets are dirt cheap.

I'm a professional licenced aircraft engineer, Ryanair are a horrid c**t of an airline to work for, most of the flight crew are paying to fly the jet!!! Some of their practices are mean to the point of ridiculous, i.e. a good friend got a written warning for charging his mobile phone up at work, for stealing company electric!!!

I'm not a huge fan of their approach/landing methods either, usually clean configuration until the last second, dump all of the flaps/gear down in one go, then slam it into the runway & use brakes only, no reverse thrust (someone somewhere has worked out its cheaper to replace brake units than the extra fuel burn of using reversers!!)

Never use them unless it is the last turkey in tescos! Oh & MOL is a tt as well!

[IforB]

Robertj21a said:

Have you ever flown with Ryanair ? - I have, about 150 times, and never had a problem.

And there is the rub of it. RYR are absolutely fine when nothing goes wrong. They operate a safe and reliable service, but the minute anything goes wrong, then you find out that they have no customer service ethos at all and travelling with them changes from acceptable to something more troublesome.

They have no flexibility and their staff have no authority to "do the right thing" by passengers who find themselves in a bit of a fix. If you play by their rules, it's fine, but add in any complication and any behaviour you might deem reasonable goes out of the window.

That's their business model and it works for them.

[Neonblau]

IforB said:

And there is the rub of it. RYR are absolutely fine when nothing goes wrong. They operate a safe and reliable service, but the minute anything goes wrong, then you find out that they have no customer service ethos at all and travelling with them changes from acceptable to something more troublesome.

They have no flexibility and their staff have no authority to "do the right thing" by passengers who find themselves in a bit of a fix. If you play by their rules, it's fine, but add in any complication and any behaviour you might deem reasonable goes out of the window.

That's their business model and it works for them.

Got to agree with that. A few years ago I travelled weekly between Dublin and Edinburgh or Prestwick for a couple of years. Usually okay but even the slightest hitch seemed to turn into chaos and and Ryanair staff soon went MIA. A few unplanned overnight stays in Dublin at considerable cost as a result. Another poster likened them to buses and that's exactly what they are like. That and the constant selling of scratchcards, duty free, transfer tickets and god knows what else meant there wasn't a moment's peace on a short flight.

Would never use them for non business travel and even for business I'll always use another carrier if possible. And don't get me started on Prestwick, an utter dump of a place miles from anywhere.