Don't get your hopes up too high. In recent years Ryanair have abandoned a number of routes where a sizeable passenger demand clearly existed, but no-one has stepped in to take over. Examples include STN - Erfurt, DUB - Humberside, MME - Rome, Rome - Brescia.
Unfortunately, STN-BLK has been running for 4 years now and passenger numbers are getting worse, not better.
The general rule here seems to be: If Ryanair, with the lowest costs and one of the largest brands in the industry can't make a route work, no-one can.
The general rule here seems to be: If Ryanair, with the lowest costs and one of the largest brands in the industry can't make a route work, no-one can.
I hope that I am wrong.
You are right that Ryanair have the lowest cost in real terms but I think in the case of a route like BLK/STN where loads are so bad in % terms Ryanair has a much higher cost to operate this route as there is a cost in terms of operating such a big aircraft. If an airline like say Flybe were operating this route with a Q400 its cost to operate this sector would be lower than Ryanairs. If its achieved the same load factor. Its not always the lowest cost operator wins its about matching the right airline to the right market. Ie when the opportunity is smaller.
It is amazing as to why other airlines dont step in to fill the void on and ex FR route where there is significant pax but too few to satisfy a 738!
What does anyone think about BA doing a daily LGW BLK as in the case of LGW NQY surely apart from the local traffic there could be significant interline traffic. Apart from the real alternative is Air Berlin. say 3x F100 would be perfect !???
If VLM or Jetstream Express go onto the route, I think that the figures will be so low and operators such as Air Berlin would not look at it??
What does anyone else think>?
Why dont we all contact AirBerlin and show them how much
we would like / need a BLK-STN connection,
I have been told they are looking into more uk routes,
feeding there STN hub.
Could manx2 make BLK-STN work? The IOM-STN realistically wasn't going to work. But perhaps a IOM-BLK-STN-BLK-IOM could work in the same way that they operate BLK-IOM-BFS/BHD. The metro would seem ideal for the route
As I explained earlier, Air Berlin is useless as they do not base aircraft. All you would get from them is a 10.00 am and a 6 p.m. departure from BLK to STN with a Germany-based aircraft. Even worse timings than Ryanair's.
Maybe, but as they do not offer 10 GBP Tickets in great numbers, they would be struggling to fill their Fokker 100s without the business traveller who could best be in the City at 12:30 or 1 pm - without an option to return on the same day as the afternoon flight would have to depart STN 4 pm'ish. And quite honestly, before you will Air Berlin flight's from STN to BLK, they will try the likes of EDI, ABZ, DUB or LBA.
I couldn't see why an airline would invest in LCY slots then use them on BLK. Ok the potential is there but any other airline other than VLM would probably not bother. Surely the future of BLK - LON lies with routes like LGW STN or LTN.
They need to get the LON connection back before thinking about expanding anywhere els
MUFC Fan,
Let's get one thing straight, BLK will not decide on the future of a LON connection, the airlines will . After all, BLK only provide the (not so great) runway to ops from.
Revenue management will no doubt have played some part in FR's choice to leave the STN/BLK route, their asset being far more profitably utilised elsewhere (regardless of the pax figures quoted ).
Don't expect a new J31 operator (or anyone else for that matter!) to jump in and fill the void, their assets have yet to be proved profitable on lesser routes.
Don't get me wrong, I'm sad to see FR depart the route (which, to respond to another poster, was theirs from the start utilizing BUZZ 146 post takeover) however, it's going to take huge balls of steel, careful math and something soft to fall back on, before any sane operator exposes themselves to this, not for new-starts, up-starts or the faint hearted route.
Rgds
The Moss
I firmly believe, as do all revenue partners at BLK, that whilst the FR announcement is a 'pain' it is also just a blip - the kind of blip that would go almost unnoticed in a larger airport. Blackpool's growth is still good and there is plenty of time and space for more experimentation on routes. The bread and butter pattern is already becoming clear - Jet2 sunshine routes do well as do FR's Dublin and Gerona. Sure it's hard to fill a 738/733 on a late night London ('ish) flight but a smart operator, with the right size of aircraft at the right time of day, will do well on this route. The punter's view of BLK is positive - the new facilities do a good job and more investment is being made to speed pax through the terminal. With the availability of all ground services, including airside based in-flight catering (sorry for the blatant plug), BLK is not only a good place to fly to and a great place to fly from - it's also a VERY good place to base aircraft! BLK ticks so many boxes - if I was an airline operator I'd see FR's decision as a a golden opportunity to get something based in the north-west - at an airport that, I suspect, will bend over backwards to accommodate them. I know that I would be only too happy to offer a based operator a substantial incentive (i.e. a great in-flight catering deal) and who knows what else could be available?
Get in touch with FlyBe's marketing/routing dept and 'SELL ' BLK as a possible for them.
I've been in touch with FlyBe in recent months that BLK should be looked at as a posible destination in its route network,reminding them also that it was Blackpool that started them off with Jack walker and 'Spacegrand'.
So everybody get onto Flybe give them the pax figure's that FR carried and push it.
You never know cos if we don't sell it who will
if the big budget airlines can not make a profit on the routes from blackpool then there is no hope for any operator. blackpool airport pay the likes of ryan air and jet2 to operate in and out. for years the airport paid service air to handle the 737 operators. free landings, free handling, free advertising......the airport quite happy to make money from having a large over priced car park!
Actually its more likely the 'big budget airline' wanting to make more of a profit by putting the aircraft somewhere else - not safe to assume that there is no money to be made at Blackpool - the business models suggest otherwise. Anyone got a Dash 8 or a 146 going spare to test my theory? You bring the plane, I'll load the Pringles and together we will march on London! Yep, car parks pricey and you don't even get greeted by a lovely 'gorilla' in a high viz like you do at Liverpool. Last time there the man dragged his knuckles so close to the car I almost ran over them!
CUSTOMER FEEDBACK
We appreciate all the feedback
from our customers and are
currently looking to increase our
network following those requests.
Please check back frequently for
updates or create your own individual
account by registering at the top of
this page.
Taken from JXT's website. Could we be seeing a LON and GLA connection?
. After all, BLK only provide the (not so great) runway to ops from.
).
Linear Mode
