wafin077 : BOYCOT LA RAM!
It's very simple.....If each one of stop buying from them they listen.....My mom is coming to visit me, she want to la RAM to purchase the ticket, they told her MAD12600 for a round trip Casa- Chicago (This is including 50% because my dad passed away in the Moroccan army)....When she went back next day to pay they told her Ooops we forgot to add taxes! The price now is MAD15600 (This is happend just last week).....I called Air France and got the ticket a lot cheaper! Please stop flying with this company.
Salam.
Hassan.
shining star : Hello wafiners,
The problem of high RAM prices is a well known problem that prevents families from traveling back home for a visit.
It's a shame to see Moroccan American kids being deprived from visiting their country of origin and to get acquainted with the culture of their home country. Something has to be done to stop this injustice. The question that should be asked now is as follow: what should be done? The answer is as follow: We all know the price of airlines is subject to the laws of supply and demand. And because during the summer season demand for airline tickets tends to be high, prices therefore increase. But at least the following smart program has to be undertaken to allow Moroccan American kids visit their home country:
-'Fun Summer for Moroccan American kids': through this program the Moroccan department of education and the Moroccan department of culture can come up with a sophisticated computerized lottery system that picks 10,000 kids from the US and pay for them the followings:
- Round trip tickets,
- Their stay for one month in a summer camp that will be designed especially for Moroccan American kids. During their stay in this camp kids will be thought about the Moroccan culture and about the basics of the Moroccan language.
Here is how this program will be financed: private companies in Morocco can sponsor this program in exchange for some tax breaks at the end of the year. In addition to that businesses run by Moroccan Americans in the US can also sponsor the program.
In addition to coming up with this smart program called 'Fun Summer for Moroccan American kids', actions have to be taken to allow Moroccan American families visit Morocco more frequently. The Moroccan Department of Transportation for instance should take the following actions to allow Moroccan families in the US to visit Morocco more frequently:
- 'Strenghten the bonds with Morocco' program: through this smart program the Moroccan Department of Transporation will provide financial grants to families who can not afford to purchase flight tickets to Morocco. Five thousand US families in financial need will be picked every year through a sophisticated lottery system. The flight tickets for these families will be paid in full by the Moroccan Department of Transportation. Here is how this program will be financed: Royal Air Maroc and other minor airline companies in Morocco will have to pay an additional tax at the end of the year. In addition to that, passengers of RAM of the US- Morocco route will be charged an extra two dollars tax that will be used to finance this smart program.
- The Moroccan Department of Transportation should ask RAM to increase the frequency of flights between the US and Morocco to ensure the increase of supply and therefore to ensure price reductions (law of supply and demand).
May God bless you all wafiners,
Peace out :)
shining star : Hello Wafiners,
Oops,I just realized I made a typing mistake. When I discussed the 'Fun Summer for Moroccan/American Kids' program, I said that the sophisticated lottery system will pick 10,000 kids each summer to participate. The system should pick only 1,000 kids.
Sorry about any inconvenience this may has caused the readers.
May God bless all the Wafiners,
Peace out :)
ummhamza720 : OUTRAGEOUS prices!!!
Couldnt RAM work with tourism of morocco to lower their prices? Moroccans bring LOTS and LOTS of money into their country when travelling. There should be some way to bring down the prices and make them more comparable to other airlines, inshaAllah.
I would really like to see a RAM representative get on here and work with the moroccan community...I have tried to email these RAM people...NOTHING!
Is RAM privately owned? Can someone pass on contact information so that displeased people can get in touch with a real human being?
ummhamza
zmagry007 : Just my 2 cents...
In order for RAM to drop its prices and stay profitable, it has to significantly lower its operating costs and become a leaner and more efficient company. Guess what that translates in other countries: Restructuring and layoffs. The high level solutions are obvious to any respected CEO (including current RAM CEO). However, due to strong Moroccan labor laws, the huge financial cost to let people go and the social/political problems that would result from layoffs, no CEO has the courage/wherewithal to do anything significant. RAM is basically stuck between a rock and a hard place.
Some high level numbers: RAM has roughly 6000 employees (air + ground) and roughly 50 aircrafts (not all jet engine planes). A back of the envelope calculation shows that it “costs” RAM roughly 120 employees (air + ground) to operate a single aircraft. Obviously, this is a very simplistic approach but it gives some rough data point to compare against other airlines. RAM has extremely High Legacy costs and is employee “Bloated”. In addition to the normal costs (salaries, fuel, airport fees, open skies that "ate" profits in traditional routes etc…) RAM has Legacy costs that include pensions plans, medical costs to current employees and retirees, Fantom employees salaries (at least in the past), non-performing employees that nobody can fire (labor laws), employees with no useful functions etc… The only way to compensate for their inefficient operations are through government subsidies (it is a semi-public company) and high prices (high ticket price).
In the meantime, save yourself a few bucks and enjoy flying with the competition.
kayll2000nj : RAM is as a crapy flight company as it can get ,but a big portion of the price problem is also due to the overly high taxes we re asked to pay ,i got a ticket last march for $910, 40% of it was taxes...
sueRabat : Salamu Alaykom,
Wow, I am shocked how high RAM prices are. Imagine if one lives in Cali and needs to go To Nador, it is even worse. What is the fuss though? There are so many airlines out there, and RAM is in business to make money like the rest. Shop around and get the best ticket, that's all. My advice to Moroccans who live outside Morocco, get into a profession that pays you well, & Stop complaining, we are not in a socialist system, no free handouts, if one lives in the USA and did not learn that yet, then they should rething their lifestyle. Good luck all, and say Al hamdulilah, remember how bad it is living in Morocco, on all levels, financially, administratively and socially. Soubhanallah, we always complain. By the way if la RAM goes out of business, the rest of the airlines will be only glad to hike their ticket fares to Morocco.
sueRabat : Zmagy: Thank you for your brief explanation there. looooooool & the nickname ZMAGY, omg I did not hear this word for 30 years looooooooooool so funny, thank you
hicham2002 : I am really surprised to see some comments\suggestion for free tickets and financial grants...are you kidding me?
How about free gift cards to Macys & Sears to help with those gifts taken to family in Morocco. May be %75 discount on any purchase to be taken on those trip to family back home......Free shuttle bus from home to the airport. No limit on checked bags. No limit on weight of those bags. RAM should fly out of each and every state in the US since we do not like to connect through JFK....Let' be real for a moment.
If you are telling me that you can not afford to pay those prices for airline tickets since you have kids, then you better start thinking how you are going to pay for those kids college tuition and start saving early
RAM is a business that is offering a product. If it does not meet your need as a customer in term of price and customer service, you are free to take your business to another airline.
Airlines are losing money each and every quarter because of recession and drop in passengers flying as well as cargo. When you add the cost or the huge losses in the fuel hedging game becuase of the gas prices then you would get a reason why tickets are expensive weather you fly RAM or other airline...of course unless it is Emirates or Alarabya where they do not pay for their fuel ..etc and are posting profits. BTW, Emirates just ordered an additional 32 A380 in addition to 48 already being ordered....imagine 90 A380 by 2017 and not counting other aircrafts.
Let's hope that Delta or Emirates starts flying direct flight from US to Morocco.
ZMAGRY007...very good point
Aliwat : Around 5000 Moroccans come to the US each year for the last 15 years through INS Lottery. Most of them sponsor wives and husbands and then make one or two if not more children. You do the math and see how many people including other Africans who favor la RAM the airline can handle during the peak season. La RAM would probably need to fly every 15 minutes to cope up with the its high demand had the price been set under $800. Those with more money will get seats and those, like me and you, will bawl pestering an airline company to stoop at us with endowment.
Datae : La RAM is a for profit company
La RAM has a product to sell
This product has a cost (Fuel, taxes, maintenance, and of course profit)
If you can't afford this product, don't complain about it. Go buy the same product from someone else. It's that simple.
If the cost of fuel goes up tomorrow, and la RAM increases their sell price, how will you react. Do you think their care about you ? Let's be real. They may care about the service they provide to you, which I might add has improved as of late, but they have to factor all costs into that product, and again including their profits, and market that product to an audience that can afford it. What most "venting comments" are asking is simply unrealistic. Asking la RAM to reduce their profitability will never happen.
aalami : To shining star, unless you think Morocco will is SWEDEN, whatever you suggesting will never see the light neither in this life nor the next. Do you know why? Simply because in our dear Morocco no one cares about you, about me, or about our kids. The Moroccan companies don’t care, the government with all its ministers and even if you go up the ladder simply don’t care. What they doin' with us now is like what the old proverb says: The dogs (us) are barking, and the caravan (them) keep cruising.....They only care about you, me and others when we stop sending “DOLLAR/ EURO” back to lebled. That’s when you hear them talking about MREs and how the money transfer dropped...blablabla.
The proof is that I’ve been hearing about la HRAM and its prices since I set foot in this country 22 years ago, if any changes were to happen, they would have happened years and years ago.
To all Wafin authors, we enjoy reading the articles you guys write in this site, but we are sick tired of reading about la HRAM, you only make our blood boil more when we see talks and replys about them. Do you realize that without you knowing, the more you talk/write about la HRAM, the more free publicity you make for them. So, please STOP!!!!!
Here’s now my 1 cent and this was said many times before but now well explained: It’s like back home when you used to go to the Corner “Hanoutt” and you didn’t buy “TIDE” either because it’s expensive or doesn’t get the stains out, you don’t go make “HAYLALA” about it, you get “OMO” instead. You have to do the same thing with LAHRAM. LAHRAM is selling you a product/service, YOU ARE FREEEEEEEEEE to go shop somewhere else. when will you realize that you live in the greatest country in the world and one of the civil rights you are given her is :FREEDOOOOOOOOOOOOM
It’s not like you flew Air France or IBERIA before to go to Morocco and they ended up by taking you to Somalia by mistake, then you'll say I should have taken LAHRAM, at least they the pilot is Moroccan and he knows where Morocco is in the map.
I hope I didn’t offend anybody, if I did: Mosamaha
benchrifa : really moroccan airline must dropp their prices. it's crazy to pay $1800 from DC to casablanca . i prefer go with other airlines even if it's goig to be more than 15h.
we love to travel with moroccan airline but with resonable price like other airlines.
Wafine13 : Shining Star, with all due respect, nothing is free (nor should it be), so no one should suggest RIDICULOUS things such as free trips, it's absolutely insane (c'mon man!!!)...do you go to stop&shop and ask them for free food? do you go the dentist and ask for free teeth cleaning? no!!!!!! so why should LA RAM give you and or your kids free trips? I am not happy with LA RAM at all...I AGREE that their prices are expensive, but they are in business to make money so are the other airlines...If you don't like the prices, you are free to shop around!!! HAVING SAID THAT...
In 2008, I WROTE ON MY OFFICE WALL TO NEVER EVER FLY WITH LA RAM (BECAUSE OF THE HORRENDOUS SERVICE, OR LACK THEREOF, HAVE BEEN RECEIVING FROM THEM). They left me and my family (wife and 2 kids) stranded in Morocco. My kids who love to go to Morocco, but every time they see the King's brother on TV, they say THAT'S THE GUY WHO STOLE OUR SEAT!!!)
I have since flown with various other lines and never received worse service (maybe there is a tie with Alitalia with Alitalia very slightly ahead of RAM)...but god damn it if LA HRAM (thank you aalami for the name) is going to charge and arm and a leg for a 7 hour trip, they should at least have the decency to provide a better service, but we all now they're incapable of doing that...
My 2 cents worth!!!
Have a great and a safe vacation all!!!
abdelhak
justsam : If your are serious about changing the RAM, fly with someone else. That's what I have been doing for the past 20 years. I don't know why we are so obsessed with these guys.
humn92 : i stopped flying that shitty air line since 1993, there is so many options on how to go to morocco. please folks,value your buying power and stand up against these idiots who take your business for granted. take your business to those who will respect you for it. you deserve it as a customer and as your customer rights. if those stupid plane have none to fill their seats, I promise you people will lose their jobs. be smart with your money, do not settle, demand to be treated with respect!
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Moroccan Americans have scaled back on traveling to Morocco due to high flight prices as explored in this video.
