Ryanair's New Boarding Policy: No Waiting for Late Passengers

Ryanair's new policy is designed to prioritize passengers who are at the boarding gate on time, O'Leary explained. 'Our priority is to those passengers who are at the boarding gate when boarding starts,' he said.

Passengers who are not at the boarding gate when boarding finishes will not be allowed to board the plane. 'If you're not at the boarding gate when we finish boarding, the plane is going without you,' O'Leary warned.

The airline will not delay flights for passengers who are stuck in passport control queues, O'Leary added. 'We're not delaying our flights for people who are stuck in passport control queues,' he said.

Passengers are advised to arrive at the airport earlier and be at the boarding gate on time to avoid missing their flight. 'They have to show up at the airport earlier [and] be at the boarding gate, otherwise they're not flying,' O'Leary stressed.

The new policy is part of Ryanair's efforts to improve punctuality and reduce delays. O'Leary believes that the policy will benefit passengers who are at the boarding gate on time and reduce the stress caused by late passengers.

O'Leary also addressed the issue of passenger misbehavior, particularly due to excessive alcohol consumption. 'The real issue we have to recognise is an industry problem of misbehaviour, and the misbehaviour is getting worse,' he said.

He suggested that airports should limit the amount of alcohol sold to passengers before flights. 'Why do you not serve tea and coffees until 11 o'clock or 12 o'clock in the afternoon?' he asked.

O'Leary also proposed that airports should limit the amount of duty-free alcohol that passengers can buy. 'But the critical thing here is we limit the amount of people, duty-free, can buy — [we] say, show your boarding pass,' he said.

He criticized airports for passing the problem of passenger misbehavior to airlines. 'The airports don't care. They just passed the problem on to the airlines, and the poor old dumb airlines are diverting planes,' he said.

O'Leary emphasized that passenger misbehavior can cause real upset to fellow passengers onboard. 'Like it causes real upset to fellow passengers onboard. When you've aggressive people, they're shouting and screaming and drunk and disrupting our crews,' he said.

He suggested that limiting the amount of alcohol sold to passengers before flights could help reduce misbehavior. While Ryanair does not publicly disclose specific policies regarding the maximum number of alcoholic drinks a passenger can purchase on board, O'Leary stated, 'No problem with it. I mean very few passengers on board our aircraft would buy more than two drinks anyway, but if the quid pro quo was the airline’s limited to two drinks? Done. In a heartbeat.'

O'Leary's comments come as the airline industry faces increasing pressure to address passenger misbehavior. The issue has been highlighted by several high-profile incidents in recent years, including an incident in Greece where a passenger was partly sucked out of a broken window after a piece of engine broke off and smashed it, and a Malta 737 depressurization incident involving an engine failure and damage to a passenger window.

Ryanair's new boarding policy is part of the airline's efforts to improve the passenger experience and reduce delays. The policy is designed to prioritize passengers who are at the boarding gate on time and reduce the stress caused by late passengers.

The airline's decision to limit the amount of alcohol sold to passengers before flights is also part of its efforts to reduce misbehavior. O'Leary believes that the policy will help reduce the number of incidents of passenger misbehavior onboard.

The issue of passenger misbehavior is a complex one, and there is no easy solution. However, by limiting the amount of alcohol sold to passengers before flights and prioritizing passengers who are at the boarding gate on time, Ryanair is taking steps to address the problem.

The airline's new boarding policy and efforts to reduce misbehavior are part of its commitment to improving the passenger experience. O'Leary emphasized that the airline's priority is to its passengers and that it will continue to work to reduce delays and improve the overall travel experience.

As the airline industry continues to evolve, it is likely that we will see more airlines adopting similar policies to address passenger misbehavior. Ryanair's efforts to reduce misbehavior and improve the passenger experience are a step in the right direction.

The airline's new boarding policy and efforts to reduce misbehavior are a reminder that the airline industry is constantly evolving. As the industry continues to grow and change, it is likely that we will see more airlines adopting similar policies to address passenger misbehavior.