Low budget airlines

[Kell]

Hello again!

This is going to sound really ridiculous :blush: , but I have to ask!! With all the low budget airlines we have in the UK such as BMI Baby, Easyjet, Jet2.com etc, I sometimes worry that low budget may mean low safety? :eek:
If I am flying BA, I am much happier and less nervous than if I am flying BMI Baby - should I be, or am I being daft?! I don't know why but BA and Virgin etc planes seem newer and more sturdy than the low budget airlines. How do the low budget airlines manage to offer such low prices, or in other words, where do they cut costs to afford to offer such low prices?

Thanks again! :)

K

[Falcon]

Relax, airlines by law are not allowed to compromise on safety. To operate in the UK all airlines have to operate to a safety standard. To compare easyjet with BA BA have large glass sided buildings in Heathrow we have seven portacabins bolted together to run the airline. BA will include food and drinks with the ticket price, we dont you have to buy them. Thats the kind of thing. Low cost airlines work hard to keep overheads down to pass the savings on. Your other post hints that you have flown easyjet before. What did you think of our crew, did they strike you as under trained? From a personal point of view, I am married and professional enough to decide that if the safety margin isnt enough I'm off to another job. easyjet take safety very seriously and other lowcost airlines are just as safe.

[Kell]

Thanks for your reply, it's really helpful. :) I flew Easyjet last year for the first time, and had no problems whatsoever. The staff were great. As I was sat near the front of the plane I managed to see one of the pilots - he was only young (!) (and pretty good looking!), but I did feel better when he went back into the cockpit - I think he had been to the loo!! Seriously though, they were really great and I would certainly fly with them again. In fact, there was someone on the plane even more nervous than me - she was sat right at the front of the plane, and during take off and landing one of the flight attendants sat and talked her through everything such as the noises of the landing gear and the rattling of the cutlery whilst we were going down the runway - I thought that was great of him and I'm sure it helped her lots.

[sillylally]

Hi,
I'm Sally. have flown about 15 times before but each time i get more scared.worse since having children as i amscared i won't come back fromt he flight to see them again......that sounds so stupid sittinghere in my lounge.sorry.
i live near Gatwick in UK & we are planning a trip to florida at the end of july 2005.i want to be in florida but am terrified of a 7 or 8 hour flight.how am i going to get through it? its the first time i've been on this site & saw yoru post.hope youdon't mind me writing to you, haven't quite found my way round yet.
Sally:confused: so many questions in my lil head.

[Agne]

Hi Sally and welcome !! :hyped:
My name's Agnese and like you and many people here I am a fearful flyer.
I haven't overcome my fear yet, but I hope I can help you anyway telling you about my experience. I have been a fearful flyer since I was 16. For many years I avoided flying, especially after 9/11. But I loved both travelling and flying so much, that in 2003 I decided to try again. I had a first short flight to London, and wasn't too bad. So, in dec 2004 I decided to do what I have dreamt for years: visit Florida again. And I did it, I don't want to lie saying that everything went well, because it didn't: I was terribly scared especially in the return trip, but the only fact that I could get on the plane and stay there for so many hours, it gave me a big sense of accomplishment. If I did it, you can definitely do it !!
I flew from London Gatwick to Orlando with British Airways. Aircraft B777, big plane, seats 3-3-3 (economy), every seat has a monitor in the front where you can choose among many movies, cartoons and sit com, and you can see your flight details such as map, speed, altitude, wind and time left. Very kind FA. The flight lasted approx 9,40 hours outward and 6,30 return. It seems a lot of time, but believe me, it passes fast.

I hope it can help..

and I am sure you will find a lot of people here that will be happy to help you.

:thumbsup:

[Falcon]

Dont worry sally your are not alone and this is what the site is for. I recommend you post this on the general forum as well. As I am sure you have seen there are many people in the same position and many of the people who run this sit ehave been in the same boat as you. Think of the holiday at the end of the flight.

[spleisher]

From the American perspective, let me just say this about opne particular "low cost" carrier. Southwest Airlines, for whom our esteemed Ray is a Captain, has been flying since 1971. You wanna know how many fatalities the have had since 1971? ZERO! NONE! NADA! We could not say that about the so-called "major airlines". Actually, just the term "major airline" has always struck me as funny. Southwest last year flew more domestic flights than any other carrier in the US! That sounds major to me. It's probably the same way in the UK. BA and Virgin get the rep for being the best, while a lot of people look at the lower cost carriers differently. That's not to say airlines like BA and Virgin are not great carriers because they are. So are Delta and other large US carriers. But in my mind the lower cost carriers deserve a lot of credit. After all, they're the ones with the solid business model, and the solid safety record to back it up!

Scott

[little blue]

Hi Sillylally, I too am from the UK, Manchester in fact! Right under the flight path of manchester airport:eek: You have definitely come to the right place!! The infomation on here is second to none and you definitely don't have to suffer alone in silence:rolleyes: Every one has helpful advise and because you are reading feedback on a day to day basis, you don't feel like a pressure valve about to blow by the time you have to take your flight! Your dealing with your fears every time you come on here and things don't get bottled up like they usually do before a flight, its like a slow release valve every time you come on a little more of the anxiety goes away.
Take care
Little Blue

[olav_121]

Believe me the planes are not always the newest... but full of sensors and they check it each day.... its still a lot safer then driving a car....

[Falcon]

Not always but new planes burn less fuel and aircraft makers give good dicounts if you are a launch customer.