Up, up and away

Two weeks ago, I took my first flights on Ryanair, between Munich and London. Last week, the Irish budget airline announced that, for the first time since going public 13 years ago, it would pay a dividend to its shareholders.

I'm not suggesting there is any connection between the two events. But just as I was reflecting on my first experiences of the airline, it declared a pre-tax profit of €341 million in the 12 months to the end of March 2010. The previous year, Ryanair had made a loss of €181 million, its first since its flotation in 1997.

Until now, Ryanair has kept all its profits in the company. This year, it will return 34 cents a share, or a total of €500 million, to its shareholders. Nearly €20 million of that will go to the airline's ebullient and provocative chief executive, Michael O'Leary.

The news of the dividend caused Ryanair's share price to soar by seven per cent. O'Leary indicated that another €500 million could be returned to shareholders by the end of 2013, either via further dividends or through share buy-backs.

So much for the facts and figures. What about my flights? Well, as Mark Twain said of Wagner's music, Ryanair wasn't as bad as it sounds. I had heard so many horror stories — and false rumours of extra charges, including for using the toilets — that I was almost afraid to get on the plane. 

The reality was very pleasant. The service was efficient and friendly. The planes were clean. And the strict hand-luggage limits meant that the overhead lockers weren't full. I also liked being able to buy a lottery ticket on board.

Playing adverts for drinks before the refreshments trolley comes round is also clever. Why don't more airlines take advantage of their captive audiences? And most importantly, the two flights were on time — well, on average, at least.

In fact, the first one was 20 minutes early, accompanied by a fanfare and self-congratulatory announcement that "another Ryanair flight is on time".

Fair enough, except that the other flight was 20 minutes late. The silence on landing was deafening. Not even an apology. Definite room for improvement there.

And did I say the flights were between Munich and London? Well, sort of. London Stansted, yes. But it was Munich West, officially known as Allgäu Airport/Memmingen, some 100 kilometres west of Munich. No problem for me, as I live to the west of the Bavarian capital. But possibly confusing for someone arriving from Barcelona.

Were my Ryanair experiences typical? I'd love to hear your views.