Ryanair denies claims flights will soon offer ‘cheaper standing seats'

Euronews

23-05-2025

Low-budget travel has soared over the past decade, and it is hard to think of a cheaper option than Ryanair, which has been known to offer flights for as little as €7.99. However, recent viral posts have claimed that the Irish airline will soon offer an even cheaper option of 'standing seats'.
These 'seats' would resemble bicycle saddles mounted vertically, allowing passengers to lean rather than sit fully. Passengers would essentially be in a semi-upright position, supported by a padded, narrow seat resembling a saddle, which includes a backrest to stabilise the passenger's posture. Additional safety features typically shown in mock-ups of these designs include harness-style seat belts or straps intended to secure passengers during takeoff, landing, and turbulence, along with vertical poles connecting each row to the aircraft ceiling for added stability. It is a very compact arrangement that allows airlines to accommodate more passengers per cabin on short-haul flights.
Several travel-focused outlets and social media posts alleged that Italian manufacturer Aviointeriors was going to provide these seats to Ryanair, which would in turn start offering them as a flight option as soon as 2026. However, the company has confirmed to Euronews that it has 'no plans to do so.' Meanwhile, Aviointeriors' official communications confirmed that the 'Skyrider', a standing seat mockup often featured in these claims, 'is in fact a conceptual prototype dating back to 2012' and 'is not part of the official lineup' of their products.
Still, the origin of these viral claims actually traces back to past statements by Ryanair's CEO, Michael O'Leary, who is known for suggesting unconventional cost-cutting ideas. As far back as 2010, O'Leary discussed the theoretical concept of "standing seats" to maximise aeroplane space and offer extremely low fares. He also proposed the idea of pay-per-use onboard toilets in 2009, as well as the 'fat tax' that would impose extra charges on overweight passengers. However, these ideas were discussed as jokes or attention-grabbing tactics, and no plans were ever formally drafted.
Although no airline has yet confirmed the use of these standing seats (despite social media outrage), the theoretical concept could, in principle, be feasible on very short-haul flights.
The standing seats designed by Aviointeriors have already undergone preliminary safety tests, and have shown that they could withstand the emergency landing conditions and rapid evacuation requirements mandated by aviation regulators. These tests suggest that, from a purely safety standpoint, it might be possible to meet the rigorous standards set by agencies like the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).
The primary issue airlines and manufacturers face is actually passenger comfort. Even on brief flights, the semi-standing posture passengers would adopt on these saddle-style seats raises concerns about discomfort, fatigue, and circulation problems.
Likewise, airlines already face criticism over shrinking legroom and cramped conditions. Introducing standing seats would generate significant backlash: while surveys indicate a small niche of ultra-budget travellers might embrace standing seats if fares were extremely low, widespread public adoption would likely be challenging, and limit the airline's commercial viability.
US President Donald Trump has recommended Friday a 50% tariff on the European Union after complaining that negotiations were not going well and Brussels was 'difficult to deal with'.
Trump took to social media to share his thoughts, suggesting that the elevated duties should start on 1 June, in less than a month.
The US president said he wants to charge higher import taxes on goods from the EU, a long-standing US ally, than from China, a geopolitical rival that had its tariffs cut to 30% this month so Washington and Beijing could hold negotiations.
Trump was upset by the lack of progress in trade talks with the EU, which has insisted on cutting tariffs to zero even as the president has publicly insisted on preserving a baseline 10% tax on most imports.
'Our discussions with them are going nowhere,' Trump posted on Truth Social. 'Therefore, I am recommending a straight 50% tariff on the European Union, starting on 1 June 2025. There is no tariff if the product is built or manufactured in the United States.'
Since mid-March, the Trump administration has imposed 25% tariffs on EU steel and aluminium, 25% on EU-made cars and 10% on all EU imports.
The 10% rate is supposed to remain in place until 8 July, when Trump's 90-day negotiation window expires.
The European Commission, the EU's executive arm, declined to comment on the US president's words.
Previously, the EU had offered a zero-tariff trade deal with the US, but Washington didn't accept that.
As part of the current trade negotiations, the European Union and the United States have recently shared position papers that were radically apart, Euronews learnt.
The US has recently agreed on a trade truce with China, leaving room to focus on the EU a bit more.
'Trump's demands appear to reflect deep US frustration with the EU's professional, calm and bureaucratic approach to trade negotiations — clashing with Trump's willingness to quickly ink sexy-looking deals even if they mean very little in practice," Agathe Demarais from the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) said.
According to Demarais, clarity is lacking around US trade goals. These could include a wide range of demands from the EU, from curbing its economic ties with China to pledges to buy more US LNG or weapons.
'The EU does not do trade deals in a few hours: this is simply not the way the bloc works,' Demarais explained, adding that a 50%-tariff on the EU would be highly damaging for the US economy.
In a recent interview with Euronews, EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič said EU standards on agriculture and food are "not up for negotiation" after US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick last month criticised EU regulations preventing some US-made meat and chicken from entering the European market due to the use of hormones deemed unsafe by Brussels.
The European Commission said that it stands ready to implement up to €95 billion in countermeasures if trade negotiations with the US fail to address the trade deficit.
Meanwhile, the European Commission has recently lowered its economic forecast, assuming that the trade tariff on European goods imported by the US would be set at 10% for the long term. The latest forecast said that the GDP in the eurozone is expected to grow by 0.9% and the EU economy to expand by 1.1% this year.
That post had been preceded by a threat of import taxes against the US tech giant Apple.
Apple now joins Amazon, Walmart and other major US companies in the White House's crosshairs as they try to respond to the uncertainty and inflationary pressures unleashed by his tariffs.
'I have long ago informed Tim Cook of Apple that I expect their iPhones that will be sold in the United States of America will be manufactured and built in the United States, not India, or anyplace else,' Trump wrote. 'If that is not the case, a tariff of at least 25% must be paid by Apple to the US.'
In response to Trump's tariffs on Beijing, Apple and CEO Tim Cook were looking to shift iPhone manufacturing to India as the company adjusts its supply chains. That plan has become a source of frustration for Trump, who also brought it up last week during his Middle East trip.
US stock futures sold off after Trump's words on Friday, and the main European stock indexes also turned negative, losing between 1%-2.5% by 3 pm CET.