Nowadays, and every time this world suffers from economic declines, it is a very good idea to select who you book your tickets with, because you could end up with a bankrupt company that takes your dream holiday away. In Europe, there are certain airlines that are better prepared to face this economic troubled times. In this article I take a look at the best airlines in Europe, the ones which are prepared to face the crisis with little pain.

To understand the topic with some depths, we need to understand the plurality of Europe concerning air travel. The European airspace is the one that has most different companies operating, and the central point for the low cost companies worldwide. Doubtless, it is a clear example of what low cost should be everywhere, and the world has to learn a lot from here. Actually, central European carriers and strong budget airlines are the best airlines in Europe, the ones in which you can rely when booking your tickets.

On one side, Germany has been showing very strong performance compared to how big economies such as the US, UK, Australia or the rest of Europe have been showing. They are without a doubt the engine of Europe, inflation is hitting as hard as in any other country within the European Union but still their numbers on unemployment and retail sales keep on a good track. That puts Lufthansa in a good position, together with the low cost Air Berlin, and also any carriers from Austria are going to survive, Austrian Airlines being the example, due to the close relationship with Germany. Economies like Switzerland with their Swiss Air are also strong.

Looking now at the low cost carriers, the best airlines in Europe are with no doubt Ryanair and Easyjet. In any case, Ryanair is far best prepared to face hard times than Easyjet. Why? Well, Ryanair's position in Europe is dominant, they have air superiority in numbers of routes and planes and their orders to the Boeing factory are massive. Ryanair purchases their planes at a very discounted price from Boeing for this reason and that makes that the total value of the company is bigger than the one that appears on the stock market.

At same time, they are the only airline which has made a promise to avoid adding fuel surcharges to their flights, so consumers can make sure that they will keep getting the same fares. Actually, as a demonstration of power, they are selling 2 million seats with taxes payed by the company, and at a price of 0.01 Euros the trip. That means you can actually purchase a round trip within Europe for the total cost of 0.02 Euros (About US$0.015).

Easyjet, on their side, do not have that strong position, but they are the second best prepared to face the crisis but have one little problem. They charge more. If the oil crisis extend for a lot longer, the low prices of Ryanair are going to attract many customers as other carriers get more expensive adding fuel surcharges. Taking into account that Easyjet is about 50% more expensive than Ryanair without taking into account fuel surcharges and taxes, that puts them in challenging position. Still, their margins will allow them to go through the problems and I still consider them to be one of the best airlines in Europe to face this global cooling.