I have flown to Ireland and Spain with Ryanair on lots of occasions and the aircraft are clean and tidy, the staff friendly and they always leave on time.
I dont agree with you "you get what you pay for" ideas.
This will open up the skies for us all not just the better off.

Kimberley O'Connell, LONDON, ENGLAND

Flights for 10 pounds??? Are you kidding me? Put it this way ladies, would you pay 10 pounds to have your hair done? No? Why not, because you would get a crappy cut for ten pounds? Why should air travel be any different? Listen up, you get what you pay for. Remember that as your poorly maintained jet has mechanical difficulties thousands of miles from land... Or if it takes off at all. Where's everyones common sense?

Mike, Orlando,

What a SCAM!...this is only an advertising venture that they say they will sell tickets for 7 or 10 pounds. The media jumps on this and the 1 time fliers think the rest are charging to much. HOW MANY SEATS do you think will be allotted on each fight.. As an example: it would be like trying to use frequent flyer miles at thanksgiving. You have to hand it to the PR dept. Look at the press they are getting and they haven't even started flying her yet
YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR.

TB, Cincinnati,

My perspective is low fares to/from Europe can only be a good thing. I also believe good customer service is a necessary part of any corporation regardless of service sector they address. The customer should always feel like a human being and not some conveniently milkable wallet.

Rick, Bremerton, Washington, USA

who cares as long as i can get to the west coast as cheaply as posible i'll wait till i get there for food etc take a book and an ipod all i want to do is visit my sister as often as i can so good on you mr o'leary as for cathy in london you can't blame michael for the taxes silly girl blame mr (every thing we touch we louse up) blair

jackie, lichfield, england

As an (ex) BA gold card holder, I can confirm that the difference between BA exec and cattle class is phenomenal, perhaps some stiff competition might make them start treating their economy passengers with a litle more respect and even up the fare structure. Previous responders laugh at the 'shell suit brigade', but BA (and most other 'major' carriers) still rely on Buisness fares to make their profit. For too long exec customers have paid too much for the priveledge, and economy customers have been treated too badly!

bokin, basingstoke, UK

what is your source concerning Southwest Airlines interest in the US-UK market??

jim, dallas, texas usa

Mr Hoggard is absolutely right ... keep the shell suited brigade on different cheap flights altogether, better still give them their own airport and then we could all have an even quieter life!!! We could have a champagne section at the front of the plane, gin & tonic class next section, then a lager lout section of the plane with a 'brats at the back' of the plane! I think this is called British Airways actually! BA could do with some competition as they have had to too good for too long.

Swimpy, Huddersfield, Yorkshire

Great! Let the shell-suited Geordies and Scousers and their howling kids go on the dreadful RyanAir planes. They're welcome to each other.

I hope BA and Virgin are not tempted into a price war funded by cuts in even their basic service, leaving a huge gap between this and Business Class.Instead, I suggest they take out some rows of seats and make all classes more comfortable to create a decent experience at a fair price.

They can put their prices up a bit and invent a new mid-tier class of transatlantic travel. I thinkl that would be very effective.

David Hoggard, York, N. Yorks

There is much to be said for lowering costs especially as when flying to New York you have to pay around £140 or more in (mostly US) taxes!! SO however cheap the flight is, don't forget that we are all being penalised by US taxes (including the Sept 11th tax would you believe!!).
Good for Ryan Air, as Bobby said earlier, the really cheap seats would be limited per flight, to make it viable. People who think they can fly to NY for £10 need to look at the wider picture; as usual, the press don't feel the need to give us all the details - that wouldn't sell would it?!

Iffat, London, UK

It's already happened in so many industries, closing Uk businesses to utilise cheap labour in the East, why should we not see such aggressive competition with the airlines, why should they be immune, bring on the cheap fares and out with the ologopolies.Allan Coates, Wombourne

allan coates, wombourne, UK

The idea of flying accross the atlantic for a few quid is very exciting - the fact that it will lead to more traffic and therefore more CO2 in the atmosphere is very depressing. Ironic isn't it - as the environmental price of travel goes through the roof, the physical cost drops through the floor...

Jeremy, The Hague,

Yes, 7euros sounds good. But the typical taxes, fuel surcharges, dog handling, budgy washing, etc fees from LA to London are now about $300. You will still have to pay that.

Dave , Los Angeles, USSA

My family hasn't been to the UK since we left in 1620. Fares like this will certainly get us to come back and visit.

J.C. , Mansfield Center, Connecticut, USA

Dont forget the the 10 Euro 'price' is only the start there will be additional, 'charges, taxes' and so on which will hike this up to about 120Euros. Just a small matter, I am sure most consumers wouldnt even notice it.

James, London, UK

Just wait for this MAFIA government to grab it's share by increasing taxes

Steve Byrne, Ft lauderdale, USA

Southwest Airlines is not as cheap as one is led to believe. As things stand, I do not see them having the experience of providing a Ryanair standard of pricing and service that will allow them to compete. The United States is, compared to Europe, a very expensive place to travel.

Chris Coles, Alton, United Kingdom

if Ryanair and southwestern Airlines can bring down the cost of transatlantic airfairs,that will be superb.
Ticket prices at the moment seem very tightly controlled, with very little to chose between current long haul operators.
Its a great shame that Virgin Atlantic ,wont get back to making itself more affordable, rather than virtually as dear as BA for most destinations.
Years ago I could afford a holiday to florida with virgin Holidays etc, went twice ,because then they seemed far more affordable for family holidays.Now they seem to be very glossy and expensive. I hope these new airline competitors shake up what seems a far too rosey price cartel,and in doing so manages to substantially cut cost of transatlantic air travel.
Curiously this may help offsetting the dubious extra taxes applied by our government, in the name of saving the planet.(Very curious , as they seem incapable of saving anything, when it comes to there richer benefactors But inventing new taxes)

william thornton, Margate, Kent UK

With Heathrow so congested it will be interesting to see which airport Ryan Air will fly from. We could finally see Exeter reclassified as part of London!

John, York, UK

I hope the USA airlines like Southwest and Jet Blue, can take down Ryan Air. USA discount airlines are cheap, but do it with out the scams that Ryan air ingages in. Low cost is good., dodgy like Ryan Air is not.

Nick Knight, Gdynia, Poland

To those that moan and whinge about the current and proposed budget service(s), simply vote with your seat and leave more of us realists to enjoy the discounts!

tony, Cornwall, U.K.

I recently flew with Continental from London to New York. The flight was £400 return, standard class, despite being booked 4 months in advance. And it was awful, like flying a budget airline, except it lasted a lot longer.

The 'entertainment' comprised shared TV screen, five rows in front, showing childrens films or adverts, whilst you got charged £3 or $6 for a beverage.

Bring on the budgets. At least you know what you're getting, and pay accordingly.

Ian, London,

Before I say "Well done Ryanair" I would want to be assured of proper maintenance on the planes. Budget airlines have been scandalized by spectacular crashes caused by skimping or ignoring required maintenace and repairs. What I don't know scares the holy bejeezus out of me.

henry cowan, linthicum heights, USA/Maryland

As a regular traveller with Ryanair on 2 hour flights, with dirty planes, surly service, and poor quality, if any, food, I think I will continue the Virgin experience across the Atlantic

Tim Claxton, Norwich, UK

For $25 to $50 dollar round trip tickets to London, I will be spending some of my weekends hanging out in London. Hey GB, get ready because I'm comming..... Just leave the light on....

Paul Bahre, Granby, CT, USA

How long before Ryanair have 're-branded' Baltimore as 'New York South' ?

Mark, Manchester,

Either way , It's a win win for the consumor.

John, London, UK

Actually, Martin, the comments come from someone who has flown Ryanair often enough, and who spends more time flying around than is sensible. I'll stand by my comments; in a push, you cannot rely on the no-frills airlines. Will that detract people from using them? Probably not. Will I use them? Certainly not on flights to the US. Will Michael O'Leary worry about that? Not for a second. Enjoy the flights.

David, London,

What a nightmare, NO WAY...with global warming this should not be allowed.

darren Sleeman, Geneva, Switzerland

doesnt the planet have anything to say? I thought we were supposed to be serious a bout the environment.communism is a much better system

howard jones, swansea,

Excellent news for us yanks. Ryan Air is no worse than any other US carrier. S'west doesn't give you squat on their flights, US Air for the first time to Spain this year vs flying BA all the time to the UK for transfers, was an absolute disgrace. Us poor serfs will always have to fly cattle car if we're foolish enough to pay biz class. 5 hour flight to the UK from BWI for 100 bucks ? How do I make reservations !

Joe, Balimore, MD, USA

Shows just how much New Labour contradicts itself on 'green' policy. Just a week or two ago Douglas Alexander, Blair apologist extraordinaire, was defending the liberalised air agreements saying that he did not expect a massive boom in flying (and therefore pollution and carbon emissions) as a result of his new 'open skies' policy. Well, I didn't believe him then - and it will be amusing to see what he says now. Meanwhile Chancellor Brown boasts about a green credentials. Not with this explosion in carbon emissions in prospect. Will I fly cheap to the States? Of course! So will millions others. And why shouldn't we? But it does make me laugh how all the politicians fight about who's the greenest - and then let this sort of thing happen!

mark, london, uk

Weve seen what happens when things go wrong with Ryanair in Europe on Short Haul. The staff know the mission statment by heart " You've had your cheap ticket now get lost". God help you if you get stranded 3,000 miles away.

Peter O'Callaghan, Dublin, Ireland

Good luck to Ryanair and the other budget operators. I fly with Ryanair, Easyjet, bmibaby etc dozens of times a year and don't find the experience any more (or less) enjoyable than coach class with the flag carriers.

The real issue is customer choice - the demand exists and the operators need to understand how to provide routes and prices that are sustainable - those that do will prosper, others won't. What's been wrong for too long is that the majority of flag carriers have not been economically viable but are constantly bailed out by state aid (Air France, Alitaila etc) so the whole industry has been operating in an artificial market.

Southwest, Jetblue, Ryanair, Maxjet etc are bringing harsh reality to bear - good luck to them.

David, Cambridge, England

So, does anyone know when the new operators will start?

LINTON ANDREW, banbury, UK

Hear, hear good on you Ryanair.

Shows how much it really costs to fly from UK to USA and how much profit these monopolistic airlines are making.

Well it is a capitalistic market, where any one is allowed to sell what ever. YES?

And we have a choice to buy form whom ever we want to. YES?

So stop complaining and if you don't want to travel with Ryanair to USA then you don't have to.

James, London, UK

What has the FAA and UK counterpart saying ?
Are they monitoring the basic safety requirements on board and ground maintenance ?

Do we have to wait for a glitch for action to be taken ?

Pau, New York, NY

I love the unadulterated snobbery masquerading as genuine criticism. Of course nobody would want to cross the Atlantic packed like sardines in a can (especially with the danger of deep-vein thrombosis etcetera) But, if you read the article properly you'd have noted that they're planning to buy Boeing 787s and Airbus A350s for these routes so I think it's slightly disingenuous to say that they'll be using "cattle trucks". Of course it makes for a cheap and lazy jibe against a company that has enjoyed meteoric success but sadly seems to have more detractors than most. Listen - Ryanair may not plump your pillows or stroke your fragile psyche but from what I see they do have excellent safety records, depart and arrive on time, very little lost luggage and all in all they've opened up Europe with very cheap flights that c.40 million people availed of last year. All that obviously counts for nothing. Yeah the scratch cards are naff. Yeah the livery looks tacky. So what? I can live with that!

Martin, Dublin, Ireland

I have just paid £450 for a flight from Glasgow to the US, so who cares if its no frills?

I will have another £400 to buy all the frills I want!

julie, edinburgh, midlothian

What about the cost to the environment from all the extra pollution and greenhouse gases this will generate? The planet's going down the toilet as it is, it shouldn't be about saving money going on even more unnecessary flights anymore. It's insane.

Alan, London,

my idea of Hell, 8 hrs in a Ryanair plane...

cormaquinho, Madrid, Kingdom of Spain

Ok, the "fare" is 7 Euro... so how much will the charge you (VAT exempt) to sell you the ticket, how much will the "wheelchair surcharge" be, etc. It's a wonder they don't say that it's 1p and then add 6.99 to their hidden, VAT-exempt, charges

joe, brussels, belgium

nice idea, but the taxes will push these 10 euro airfares, or whatever some are claiming they might be, back up closer to normal territory. do you know what the taxes are like to fly into the UK? its ridiculous! not sure about the US but i assume its not much different. Tiger (a Singaporian airline) just opened up flights from Sydney to KL and Bangkok and Singapore for 10 dollars or something, but by the time you add the taxes in its almost $300.

Andrew, Portland, Oregon, USA

Am I the only one worried about security? the new "open skies" agreement may be a fantastic victory in terms of breaking monopoly, but doesn't that mean that there will be so many more planes in the air, flown by so many more airlines, with so many more people to potentially try and do something terrible... will there be any guidelines in place, will there be security staff on planes? And with Ryan Air's record of pilots' "danderous flying" because of tight turn around times I can just see security being rushed and not observed.. I don't like this. I don't like this at all. I'd rather pay, and although I know it's no guarantee, BA or Virgin flights would make me feel slightly safer. I think that you get what you pay for...

Sasha, London,

Snobbery masquerading as genuine criticism

Martin, Dublin, Ireland

And they will will €50 per bag each way! and €5 per coffee

deirdre hegarty, dublin,

Hey Dont knock it before its got off the ground, great to see a pioneering spirit it still alive and kicking, why should we continue to feed the rip of Britain markets, when the majority of the fare prices are just profit? Well done RyanAir, it would be good to see others follow...

Steve, Essex, UK

Why are they all scared to publish return fares , real fares as we all come back at some time & surely at these prices something has to be compromised other than food , drink & entertainment .

EWAN, GLASGOW,

A long overdue development, BA have taken customers for granted for far to long with overpriced transatlantic tickets and poor customer care, good luck Michael O Leary!

Noel Wade, Sheffield,

Shouldn't knock it until we've tried it. Despite what everyone says Michael O'Leary breaks down barriers and gets things done. Whatever transpires here has got to be better than being ripped-off like we are currently. With Zoom now offering 'all-inclusive' low cost JFK flights from Gatwick it just bodes well for us, the public.

Stuart Fisher, Barnard Castle, UK

Cheap cheap cheap - what about the cost to the environment? The planet's going down the toilet as it is, this is all it needs. It's insane.

Alan, London,

Brilliant - apart from anything else the shadowy underworld organisation known only as 'British Air' will finally get its come-uppance for the disgraceful episode of Freddy Laker. Yes BA - some people never forget.

eric, harrogate, uk

such a deal! perhaps we can make it $25 bucks from Seattle!

Christopher Hunt, Vashon Island, WA

I agree with Emma: the idea of travelling 12 hours in a Ryanair cattle-truck, being offered RyanAir bingo tickets and being charged for everything, just to be abandoned to your own devices if anything happens with the flight is not appealling. Some things are simply worth paying more for...

David, London,

Presumeably these no frills Ryanair flights will be made-up with outside loos will they????

Stan Embling, Scunthorpe, England...UK

"The prospect of America’s and Europe’s largest budget airlines going head to head could mean flights to New York costing less than the journey to the airport."

Not quite. Only a few seats per aircraft would offer the "bargain" fare, but the average ticket would still be less than the existing carriers. A lesson in yield management is is order as you're sensationalising the prospect of LCA's going international.

Bobby Avo, Calistoga, California, US

flying from London to the USA on Ryanair would be like going from Newcastle to Manchester in a shopping trolly! god help us

Emma, newcastle,

Its about time the common man made good from the airline price war on longhaul flighs..... Imagine taking a flight from Heathrow to JFK and paying the equivalent of the service you believe you recieved.T he competition would be severely fierce and rightly so......The service we get now is limited.

greg, london,

It's about time someone stood up to the big names and reduced them to the player size that they really are..... The US is just another destination for these world class, budget airlines, lets make it happen.

sweeney, london,