CAA accuses Ryanair of misleading passengers as more flights axed

Britain’s aviation authority has accused Ryanair of persistently misleading passengers on their rights after cancelling thousands of flights over the past week. The Civil Aviation Authority said Wednesday it was expediting enforcement action against the low-cost carrier, the first step towards court action if breaches of consumer protection law persist. In a letter to Ryanair, the CAA said CE Michael O’Leary had wrongly claimed that the carrier was not obliged to find seats on alternative airlines for passengers on cancelled flights. Despite a request last week to correct that inaccurate statement publicly, Ryanair had so far not complied, the CAA said. Ryanair responded: “We are in correspondence with the CAA and have addressed their concerns.” The action comes as the Irish carrier axed flights for a further 400,000 passengers travelling between November and March, less than two weeks after it cancelled up to 2,100 flights affecting about 315,000 flyers. The CAA said information on the group’s website following the latest cancellations appeared to correct O’Leary’s misleading statement. Moreover, the regulator said, the carrier had failed to include information on the obligation to refund expenses incurred as a result of flight disruption.<br/>