Regional Air Connectivity Fund - 19 routes

[BAladdy]

Someone has posted in another thread that the Regional Air Connectivity Fund has been scrapped. Tried to find out further information online, but was unable to find any articles regarding the fund being scrapped.

[LBIA]

I'm not 100% certain on this, but I'm sure I've read something elsewhere that the funding was cut after the Consertives won a Majority Government at the General Election in May.

[scodaman]

Government now making effort to point out that it was a policy of previous administration so not looking good.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/1...up-aid-funding

[cornishsimon]

Cant understand why Flybe need a grant to operate NQY-LBA for example.


This route ran with good success for many years before the demise of SZ, just seems like they are holding out for a little extra cash to operate what would be a popular route anyway !




cs

[litefoot1]

Government now making effort to point out that it was a policy of previous administration so not looking good.

The game's not over. In fact, the Regional Connectivity Fund has sprung back to life!

https://www.gov.uk/government/public...r-second-stage

So that's 15 routes that have reached round 2. I wonder how many of these will be successful?

List of routes that have passed the initial application stage:

Durham TV - Belfast, Links Air Double-daily return weekdays, single return Sunday
Carlisle - Belfast, Stobart Air Daily return
Carlisle - Dublin, Stobart Air Daily return
Carlisle - Southend, Stobart Air Daily return
Dundee - Amsterdam, Flybe Daily return
Doncaster Sheffield, - Frankfurt BMI regional Weekday return
Derry - Dublin, City Wings Double-daily return weekdays, single return weekends
Newquay - Leeds, Bradford Flybe Daily return (MWFSS) - summer and 3 daily returns (MFS) - winter
Norwich - Charles de Gaulle, Flybe Daily return
Norwich - Dublin, Flybe Double-daily return weekdays, single return weekend
Norwich - Exeter, Flybe Daily return
Norwich - Newcastle, Links Air Weekday double-daily return
Oxford - Edinburgh, Links Air Double-daily weekdays and daily return Sunday
Southampton - Lyon, Flybe Double-daily return weekdays, single return weekend
Southampton - Munich, Flybe Double-daily return weekdays, single return weekend

[Centre cities]

Terms of Reference

I think that I have the terms of reference wrong. Most of these routes have alternates already available.

I can understand the Carlisle ones but little else.

Southampton to Munich. This is an airline trying to get a competitive advantage and nothing more as is most of the other applications.

I am surprised Manchester or Birmingham to Beijing is not in there as they have not got one at the moment. (sarcasm not serious)

Centre cities

[NickBarnes]

Norwich routes all quailify due to there been no alternatives within 100km of original airport using Google maps, nor any airport with in 60 minutes journey time, so if I'm reading it correctly, then they do quailify, correct me if I'm wrong.

[EK77WNCL]

Will there be any more of these?

NCL-LCY and NCL-FRA are two I think could be well funded, NCL-EWR as well!

[01475]

Not really understanding how the dropped routes differ from the ones going forward, with the exception of EDI-LBA (which didn't seem like a sensible suggestion).

I'd thought the Oban routes were the strongest candidates.

[davidjohnson6]

NCL-LCY and NCL-FRA are two I think could be well funded, NCL-EWR as well!

NCL-LCY sounds an interesting route, but with existing routes on NCL-STN and NCL-LHR, it becomes difficult to see why public subsidy should be necessary for a route that will be using one of London's more expensive airports with small aircraft that make it harder to have low average fixed costs across the passenger base.

NCL-FRA might well be viable - but it should stand on its own two feet instead of needing public subsidy, particularly given that there are plenty of flights to two other major hubs, namely LHR and AMS. I can't see any reason as to why (potentially) Lufthansa should deserve public subsidy to Newcastle.

It would of course be nice to see a NCL - NY route - it'll happen eventually but as to when I'd struggle to guess. Sending people on foreign shopping trips definitely doesn't warrant public subsidy !

[stab3.5up]

The LDY DUB is a winner but LDY ORK would also have been a strong route. Did NWI not offer route subsidies before and with little success. The rest look like complete donkeys tbh

[litefoot1]

The Carlisle routes will be interesting. Despite Oxford's chequered history I suspect the route to Edinburgh will get through. Derry to Dublin sounds ace and I'm hoping that one definitely makes it!

[fjencl]

In the latter stages of the Edinburgh - Oxford operation the load factors were getting much better, it just took time for people to realise the flights existed.

Good luck to all routes named in the above list.

[fjencl]

No other routes other than those listed below..........

List of routes that have passed the initial application stage:

Durham TV - Belfast, Links Air Double-daily return weekdays, single return Sunday
Carlisle - Belfast, Stobart Air Daily return
Carlisle - Dublin, Stobart Air Daily return
Carlisle - Southend, Stobart Air Daily return
Dundee - Amsterdam, Flybe Daily return
Doncaster Sheffield, - Frankfurt BMI regional Weekday return
Derry - Dublin, City Wings Double-daily return weekdays, single return weekends
Newquay - Leeds, Bradford Flybe Daily return (MWFSS) - summer and 3 daily returns (MFS) - winter
Norwich - Charles de Gaulle, Flybe Daily return
Norwich - Dublin, Flybe Double-daily return weekdays, single return weekend
Norwich - Exeter, Flybe Daily return
Norwich - Newcastle, Links Air Weekday double-daily return
Oxford - Edinburgh, Links Air Double-daily weekdays and daily return Sunday
Southampton - Lyon, Flybe Double-daily return weekdays, single return weekend
Southampton - Munich, Flybe Double-daily return weekdays, single return weekend

[NickBarnes]

Originally Posted by stab3.5up

The LDY DUB is a winner but LDY ORK would also have been a strong route. Did NWI not offer route subsidies before and with little success. The rest look like complete donkeys tbh

Norwich routes weren't offered subsides before, Dublin had pax numbers of 40-50 when last operated all those years ago now, NWI set pax target that if flybe didn't reach they would be fined, relations went down after that, priced correctly the only one I can see been successful and Newcastle too, Paris and Exeter will never work in a million years

[globetrotter79]

...but are the NWI routes actually planned by flybe themselves (Dash 8/70-odd seats) or by Loganair on Dornier 328 (32-ish seats)...makes quite a difference, no?

[Dontgothere]

Maybe to find a middle ground between a Q400 and a Do328, Loganair could base a Saab 2000 at NWI, but then again, one is basing this more on hope than reality.

[virginblue]

So is my undertanding correct that the following have bitten the dust:

OBN-BRR
OBN-GLA
LDY-BHX
EDI-LBA

[Jamesair]

Yes.....The list shows all routes that have gone through to the next round, all routes not shown, failed the criteria.

[Barnstable]

Do we know how many will actually be approved for funding?