Ryanair calls itself a ‘no-frills airline’ so you’d probably expect to do without a few luxuries in return for getting a cheap fare. But what about toilet rolls? And on a three-hour flight?
Well that’s what happened to passengers on a Ryanair flight from Murcia, Spain, to London Stansted.
Barely had they settled in their seats before they were told there was no milk for tea or coffee and, oh yes, no toilet paper on board.
Cabin crew on the loo-cost (sorry, couldn’t help myself!) airline made the announcement during the usual safety demonstration.
‘Sorry, we wanted to take off on time’
Their explanation was that the loo rolls hadn’t been delivered and they didn’t want to delay the plane by waiting for them.
Passengers horrified by the airline’s below-bog-standard service immediately lodged complaints about the airline when they landed. After what you can only imagine may have been a few nervous, bum-clenched hours at 40,000 feet.
Toilet roll ‘handling error’
A spokesman for Ryanair blamed this ‘very rare and regrettable stock shortage’ on ‘handling agents’ in Murcia.
‘Our crew explained to passengers that we wished to prioritise an on-time departure for London Stansted rather than wait for these items to be delivered and cause a significant air traffic control delay for all our customers.’
Ryanair charm offensive
Despite this latest setback, Ryanair is reporting that it recently launched a charm offensive and it appears to be paying off.
The Irish low-cost airline has reported that the amount of traffic travelling on its Boeing 737s is up by a fifth this spring.
But, if you were on that flight – how much charm would be needed to make up for this comfort oversight?
Would you be willing to sacrifice potential on-board comfort in return for your flight being on time? Have you come across a worse example of poor customer service or a more unlikely excuse?