Michael O’Leary, Group CEO of Ryanair, spoke out about the budget airline’s challenges around excess baggage – and the businessman already has plans to tackle these struggles
Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary insists the budget airline is “struggling” with excess baggage.
The businessman said it is for this reason Ryanair is considering increasing a bonus paid to staff for intercepting excess baggage. Employees currently earn around £1.30 per item for flagging oversized bags, which is capped at £70 per month. However, Mr O’Leary, 64, said this could rise.
He believes this will motivate staff – and curb the “scourge” of excess baggage. Speaking on RTE’s Morning Ireland, Mr O’Leary said: “We’re flying largely full flights, about half the passengers can bring two bags and the other half can only bring one – because that’s all that fits in the plane. We’re already struggling with that amount of baggage.”
The firm currently allows tourists a small carry-on bag – capped at a size of 40x20x25cm and weight of 10kg – with every ticket. Passengers, though, are charged a fee of up to £65 for bringing luggage which is larger than they paid for while booking their journey.
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And Mr O’Leary, originally from Kanturk, County Cork, feels staff will be more motivated if their bonus to spot these bags is increased. The father of four continued: “We are happy to incentivise our (staff) with a share of those excess baggage fees, which we think will decline over the coming year or two.”
The businessman told the TV station summer fares are expected to hover around the same prices as in 2023, but he anticipates an uptick in the airline’s profits through “controlling costs”. The airline intends to grow, though these plans are understood to have been hampered by delays in aircraft deliveries. This is despite Ryanair recently reported a quarterly net profit of £710million. more than doubling last year’s figures, as fares surged 21 per cent.
Miguel Muñoz, a flight attendant, previously shared with Express.co.uk a nifty loophole, noting that “duty-free bags don’t count as carry-on baggage” and are usually overlooked by gate staff. Miguel, a cabin crew member albeit for an unspecified airline, said: “If you have something that doesn’t fit in your suitcase or you want to bring an extra bag on board, here’s the trick. All you have to do is carry a duty-free bag. Or ask for one at the duty-free shop, and you can place whatever you want in the shopping bag.”
When our reporter Angela Patrone tried the tip, she was delighted with the results, insisting she was waved through to find her seat without any hassle. Angela, our travel correspondent, added: “This trick was a lifesaver for the extra bag and jacket that I couldn’t squeeze into my main luggage.”