Passengers aboard a Ryanair flight from Liverpool to Dublin on Saturday "shared some Grand National luck: free drinks during the 43-minute flight," according to Simon Calder of the London INDEPENDENT. Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary was flying home to Ireland after his horse, Tiger Roll, won the steeplechase "in a photo finish." It was the owner’s second Grand National victory. Flight FR447 was "delayed by half an hour while waiting for the winning jockey, Davy Russell, to board the Boeing 737." O'Leary used the public-address system to apologize for the delay, saying, "This is because we had to bring the Grand National-winning jockey, Davy Russell." He said, "Today we won the Grand National so, unusually on board this flight, there's going to be a free bar, which I am personally going to pay for, but you're all restricted to one free drink only." The average price of an alcoholic drink on Ryanair is £5 ($7.12), "so assuming 180 passengers availed the once-in-a-lifetime offer," the gesture will have cost O'Leary £900 ($1,280). As winning owner, he collected more than £500,000 ($712,300) from the victory (INDEPENDENT, 4/15).
