RYANAIR CALLS ON REGULATOR TO REJECT “TAJ MAHAL”

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Ryanair News
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News Release
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30.01.07
RYANAIR CALLS ON REGULATOR TO REJECT £2.2bn “TAJ MAHAL” AT STANSTED

Ryanair, which is Stansted’s largest airline customer (with over 60% of its traffic) today (Tuesday, 30th January 2007) called upon the Civil Aviation Authority – the regulator of the BAA airport monopoly – to reject the £2.2bn. Taj Mahal planned by BAA Stansted for the second runway and terminal at the airport.

Ryanair and the other airline users at Stansted are opposed to this gold plated design. The airlines believe that the second runway and terminal can and should be built for less than £1bn, less than half the BAA monopoly’s figure. The airlines’ plan would also require just 200 hectares of Essex countryside, thereby reducing by more than 50% the unnecessary land grab proposed by the BAA.

Commenting on these plans this morning, Ryanair’s CEO, Michael O’Leary, said:

“This £2.2bn Taj Mahal is opposed by Stansted’s airlines, its passengers and the local community. This will lead to a doubling of the already high passenger charges at Stansted and will be a double whammy for British passengers and visitors on top of greedy Gordon Brown’s £10 airport tax, which starts on Thursday. The second runway and terminal plans submitted by the airlines would cost less than half the monies proposed by the BAA monopoly and do away with an increase in passenger charges.

“At a time when a low cost efficient airport like Frankfurt Hahn can design and build a 15M passenger terminal for less than €100m, there is no justification for the BAA airport monopoly to waste £1.4bn. on a similar sized terminal facility. These figures show that the BAA airport monopoly wastes money building gold plated Taj Mahals that its airlines don’t want and its passengers don’t need.

“Its about time that the Civil Aviation Authority, which is supposed to regulate the BAA monopoly, in the interests of its users put a stop to this waste and overspending and forced the BAA Stansted to build facilities which the airline customers want and its passengers will use. This morning’s confirmation that BAA Stansted intends to push through this badly designed Taj Mahal despite the opposition of its airline users provides further support to the widespread calls for this out of control airport monopoly to be broken up and allow competition to deliver where a regulated monopoly has clearly failed.

“Ryanair will oppose these plans during the planning process and if necessary in the courts. We have no intention of allowing this greedy monopoly to double passenger charges and hike up the cost of air travel at Stansted”.