On 28 August I flew FR611 from London to Derry. Ryan Air is the only airline flying this route. I therefore had no other option. Not travelling with a printer, I needed to obtain a boarding pass at the auto check-in point at the airport. Ryan Air refused to issue a boarding pass before I paid an additional 70 pounds, almost the same price I paid for the ticket. I could have flown to Belfast and taken a 65 pounds taxi to Derry and still be better off. Attendants refusing to make eye contact said it was Ryan Air policy and failure to pay would mean refusal to board, yet I am still unsure how I was supposed to know this. It therefore came across as an express strategy to extort funds from passengers. Ryan Air's majority passengers being budget travellers makes this particularly mean-spirited. In all my travels, I have never encountered any airline penalising customers for having to issue a boarding pass. I count myself lucky I never have to make use of Ryan Air's services again, and will actively dissuade anybody at risk of having to do so. The only unpleasant experience during a two week UK holiday and therefore one I recount often.
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