Commenced operations Never operated Parent organization Ryanair | Parent company Ryanair | |
RyanAtlantic was the proposed name for a long-haul airline subsidiary of Ryanair. According to Ryanair's CEO, Michael O'Leary, the airline could have been operational by 2009. However, such a timeline was unlikely and did not occur, because there were no aircraft orders present at that time. As of 2014, the project has been cancelled and Ryanair no longer has plans to fly to the US, focusing instead on their European flights.
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Planned Operations
RyanAtlantic would have offered low-cost flights to the US as well as premium-rate fares to compete with business class offerings of competitors. Destinations might have included New York (Long Island MacArthur Airport, Stewart International Airport, Niagara Falls International Airport, Bradley International Airport or Albany International Airport), Boston (Manchester-Boston Regional Airport, Providence International Airport, Bradley International Airport), Chicago (Gary/Chicago International Airport), Dallas (Dallas Love Field Airport), Denver (Colorado Springs Airport), Miami (Fort Lauderdale Hollywood International Airport), Milwaukee, San Francisco (Oakland International Airport) and Las Vegas.
The European airports that might have hosted these flights were reportedly Barcelona (Girona Airport), Birmingham, Dublin Airport, Frankfurt-Hahn, Glasgow-Prestwick, Liverpool Airport, London-Stansted, Milan (Orio al Serio Airport) & Stockholm-Skavsta. Some of these airports, however, (and most that Ryanair flies to) do not have a runway long enough or have unsuitable taxiways and gates for long-haul traffic. The only airports from which Ryanair were interested to host long-haul flights that were suitable at the time were Dublin Airport, East Midlands, Frankfurt-Hahn, Glasgow-Prestwick, London-Stansted, Milan-Bergamo, Stockholm-Skavsta and Liverpool Airport. While landings of larger planes such as Boeing 747s are uncommon due to runway length, it's possible to operate long-haul service at those fields. However, most of the US and European airports would not have been able to handle those flights since they lack customs.
According to information from Ryanair on November 4, 2008, these flights would have commenced during the winter or spring of 2010, and bases would have been London-Stansted, Dublin, Frankfurt-Hahn, Stockholm-Skavsta and Milan-Bergamo.
Service
The new airline would have offered both low cost and a first class service and intended to rival airlines like Aer Lingus, British Airways, Lufthansa, Air France-KLM, Iberia, Virgin Atlantic. It would operate from Ryanair's existing bases in Europe to the new bases in the United States. The new American bases would not be main hubs such as New York City's John F. Kennedy International Airport, but smaller airports located outside major cities, similar to Ryanair's secondary airports in Europe.
Creation
Ryanair was set to unveil plans for "RyanAtlantic" on 3 November 2008, but despite publicity, no official announcement followed.