GayFriendly,

An alternative for DBV would be WW from EMA next summer.

Could the collapse this week of Holiday Options, a tour operator who took seats on the Croatia flights, be responsible, at leats in part, for Flybe pulling their BHX-Croatia flights?

Well I am traveling in April so it will have to be EZY from LPL, as WW don't start from EMA until June. The main point is though, why should I have to travel to either airport when in reality BHX has the catchment area to be offering such services as well. Why does BHX have to depend on a tour operator (who has apparently failed) to make such flights possible when other airports seemingly don't?. No disrespect to other airports but DBV is available as a scheduled flight from ABZ, NCL, LBA and BFS amongst others in 2010. Something is wrong.

I am pretty sure i have read before that from the catchment area for BHX that only 50% use BHX as there number 1 departure airport,also that midlanders are the most likely in country to travel to another airport,if the airport could start an initative to get those passengers it would make a massive difference to services/numbers....
Also in these times the difference in price is now even more important as everyone shops around to save a few quid, airlines will always be cheaper from London - even though it must be more expensive to operate from ?

i can not understand how bhx can not get on this list or are fr twisting the figures

Ryanair serves 50+ destinations and 5 million passengers from Girona base near Barcelona | anna.aero (http://www.anna.aero/2009/11/20/ryanair-serves-50-destinations-and-5-million-pax-from-girona-base-near-barcelona/)

Hi Potash,

Remember that BHX-GRO is only served 3x weekly, so in terms of volume, it's not one of GRO's biggest routes.

In 2008, BHX-GRO carried 35k pax at an average flown LF of 80% (the route began in April 2008). This made it FR's 49th biggest route from GRO by volume, but the 14th best by flown LF (although this is distorted by the fact that there were no flights in Jan to March 08).

This year so far (Jan to Oct), BHX-GRO has carried 38k pax at an average flown LF of 77%, making it FR's 39th biggest route from GRO by volume and the 36th best by flown LF.

Note that the performance of BHX-GRO is almost certainly diluted by the combination of EMA-GRO, EMA-REU and BHX-REU. Nevertheless, the combined effect of all 4 routes gives Ryanair a very dominant 60% market share of the Midlands - Barcelona area market.

potash

Quite easy this one, BHX-GRO only restarted in April 2008 and for the
whole year was only three a week.

BHX pax 35233 for 2008 with approx 234 rotations average of 150 pax
per flight at 80% load, which I would say is one of BHX's most consistant
services.

As for yield, it is so difficult to judge with so many offers but fares were
not always rock bottom back in 2008, as for profitability I have no idea.

It remained three a week until Nov 09 when it has changed to four but of
course Reus was dropped from late Oct, which operated last winter. Also it is reverting back to three a week next summer.

You will notice that EMA is over 100000 but that has been scaled
back since no doubt to BHX starting and easy EMA-BCN, although the latter will probably end due to the base closure but Baby are re-starting EMA-BCN in 2010.

Pete

Many thanks Anna & Pete your knowledge and in formation is much appreciated

Aena to continue with low charges

http://www.lanzaroteguidebook.com/news/lanzarote-news-aena-to-waive-airport-charges-for-2010 (http://www.lanzaroteguidebook.com/news/lanzarote-news-aena-to-waive-airport-charges-for-2010)

potash

Drove quite close to BHX yesterday - sure I saw a KC135 on approach to runway 15...what was that doing at Brum?

57-1440 calling Reach 440, rumours of it being a Mildenhall diversion, it left direct Kansas City at 06.30 this morning !

Thanks - my eyesight is still ok then!

SSFLYER


I take great offence in what you have just said, How dare you insult me and fellow East midlanders , is the West midlanmds any better ?

I am not in a position to say that, so are you ?

How ridicolous you sound.


Mike

plus also i do work for a living and never claimed benefits in any way? If people are on benefits so be it, as long as folk fly and keep people in work that is good.

Here! Here!

I couldn't agree with you more Mike.
ssflyer, your remarks are extremely rude and offensive.

SAM-EMA

Hi Sam


Thanks for your support here, i find the remarks dreadful by this so called person.


Mike

EMA pax on benefits?

So why is it then that so many pax are boarded by ambulift, complain of all ailments under the sun...and then 'leg it' off the aircraft as soon as the doors are opened at their sunny destination....

Or routinely abuse the cabin crew,trash the cabin,attempt to thieve or consume their own alcohol given half the chance?

No doubt these things happen in the West Midlands too....so don't shoot the messenger!

Binder

all generally decently dressed and behaved

Do you not feel out of place then.

Well for your information i flew from BHX myself in September this year and i was sat next to a group of lads, and they were drinking there own Vodka and actually offered me some, and just to let you know they were from Solihull, so all these chaves and so called drinkers are from the West Mids !!!!#


Just fiond this so insulting and disgusting, i hope the moderator will remove this freak from here..


Mike

What comments by SSFLYER? I can't find them, have they been removed?

Chavs are everywhere (whatever a chav is defined as, we all seem to have different ideas), no matter what airport you fly from, get over it. I have seen lads puke up in the departure lounge at BHX and girls on a hen do shouting and screaming their way through check in at EMA, neither as far as i'm concerned is particularly attractive behaviour

Back onto BHX matters, any news on the proposed Uzbek flights starting 1st Dec? Its all gone quiet......

Also good luck to all those involved in the interview process going on for the new combined Ops centre, hope it all works out for everyone, used to work in TC myself, brilliant people and many happy memories

GF- my mild comments,now zapped(?)comparing the PAX I have shared FR flights with from BHX and EMA seems to have upset some posters especially Mike.

I suppose it is like comparing West Midlands/East Midlands football teams/beer/birds - someone takes it personally to defend their Region.

All airlines servicing the sea/sun destinations suffer from a minority of ill dressed or badly behaved PAX and my sympathy goes out to the FA's and ground staff who have to handle them

I am certainly no snob and maybe the "benefits" quote could have been worded differently (but see below) but there does seem to be a far higher proportion of large family groups in term time taking their children off school on the EMA/GRO flight than BHX.

Mike-please do not shoot the messenger but this is a posting I found on TripAdvisor.
I am sure the same scene could possibly be seen at other airports but it is EMA and FR that are quoted:-

“On a Ryanair flight to East Midlands we were appalled at antics of large family groups on the plane, most of them with kids that should be at school.
Overweight, dressed in a vest, shorts and giant trainers, covered in tattoos and piercings and that was the just the mother! She was surrounded by a tribe of sink estate brats in similar attire- it was like a horror movie and many on the plane were similar, no wonder the British are hated abroad.
I wonder whether it our taxes paying for their holidays?
To top it all off the baby, dressed just in a nappy, was put on the luggage carousel, for a ‘laugh’.
If this is typical of East Midlands and Ryanair we will fly with another airline and another airport”

The same comments were also posted on the Ryanair forum here but not zapped.
As I said-don't shoot the messenger

I was waiting at the arrivals point of EMA to pick someone up from a Pisa flight a few years ago. As I pondered exactly when they may appear from behind the doors I noticed lots of people coming through dressed in athletic vests, gaudy shorts and pristine white trainers - clearly piling off the Costa Del Somewhere-or-ever flight. A little while later people started appearing with linen suits, hats, nice shoes etc so I guessed (correctly) that the Pisa flight was now piling out. Right on cue, the person I was waiting for appeared in amongst the beautiful people. I'm sure the same could have been spotted at any airport where the flights are not too frequent that you can't spot distinct groups of people appearing through arrivals.

That being said, there were a few tramps on a flight from Singapore I was on last month. And before someone says it, there is a difference between travelling in comfortable clothes for a long haul flight and looking like a street person.

Dont think its the airport or region, more the airline!

Have I mentioned before about Ryanair been a cancer on this industry?

www.briscoebarnyard.com/pictures/chav.jpg

I think they look lovely......... keeps the lowcost pilots in business:}:}:}:}

potash

Cheers for the link, this could be good news for BHX especially if FUE
happens as well.

However whether this is the downside of FR/ZB new services but
Thomson won't be using their own planes on BHX-LPA in December
until Christmas and again they stop in the new year until mid feb.

Pax go on to the Thomas Cook.

Same happens on the FUE & ACE (Sunday) but that was always
planned. All routes back to normal by Feb half-term.

Pete

I think those EMA supporters on here should thicken up their skins. Either that or just stick to the EMA threads.
The last time I was unfortunate to have to sit in the terminal at EMA it was terrible. I think it's more to do with the clientèle of the airlines operating out of there than to do with those living in the region in general.
If I spent a day at BHX without giving Brummies some stick then it would be a failed day. Luckily, with all their faults, the one thing they don't lack is a sense of humour....God bless em....:ok::):}

oh by the way i DO have a sense of humour and also work for a living as some WEST mids people seem to thjink us flyers from EMA are benefit scroungers !

it was just a vile rude commment that was made and the moderators agreed thjat it was offensive and intrusive too.


Mike

have a great day

I was born in an age when travel still had mystery and magic, whether it be being hauled by a steam engine into majestic Snow Hill Station or, and I had to wait until I was 26, my first flight in an 'airliner', a typical experince for someone born at the end of the Second World War I sould suggest.

Indeed my first flight to Faro from Elmdon in a Comet was a truly memorable experience - and I dare say for the rest of those on board all in their neat 'Sunday best'.

Sadly, travel has been dumbed down, largely I think by the emergence of the lo-cos which can get us to Palma cheaper than we can get to Skegness. We live in an age where children as young as 10 may have already flown abroad five or six times.

There is neither mystery nor magic in travel now, for perhaps the majority it is just like catching the 'No 45' - and they dress and act accordingly whether it be at EMA or BHX.

It is a sad fact of life I am afraid - and it will not change! :(

Hi Monty

I totally agree with your comments, but the person who put the comment labelled all from EMA as benefit scroungers and of a dirty nature, and that BHX was more special, to be labelled in this way is very offensive, like you all airports and all airlines have a certain mix of pax.
EMA may have a lot of Lo co airlines and tro be fair i fly mainly EZY where the crew and pax are fine, same for BMI baby too, i have flown FR only once to Dublin and i have to say even though i do not like that airline the majority of pax on my flight there and return were mainly business clients.
I understand that certain routes do tend to carry a certain clientel like younger folk etc, but in this day and age we are not ina position to label anyone who is a customer, we should be grateful of there support in these hard times we are experiencing at this time.
The East midlands economy too is doing very well too in these harsh times and is actually slighty up on an national average when it comes to house prices, employment and retail growth.

Well take care everyone

Mike

Fantastic!
:ok:

Can anyone confirm if C026/27 operated on Sunday 22/11 and if not, the reason why?

I know they are 6 x weekly during the winter, but I thought it was Wednesday they didn't operate into BHX.

The reason for the question is that a work colleague was booked EWR - BHX on 21/11 and was left stranded in Newark without any prior notification, explanation or compensation, left to find his own accommodation and transferred to the 22/11 flight.

Replies appreciated.

A good freind of mine flew Luton to fue on monarch and told me there were only 37 pax on board the flight crew said if the return flight had not been full they would have moved the pax to gatwick flight are the pax figures alot better from bhx on this route ?

Invicta DC4

Definitely non-ops Sunday/Wednesday/Thursday this week, usual
explanation given at this time of year is a little thing called Thanksgiving.

I know today is the actual day but the last year or so the number of cancellations have been about 2 or 3 rather than just the actual day.

Whether this is the correct reason for Sunday, I don't know.

Last year I heard reasons for cancellations were a mix of Thanksgiving
and the aircraft was required for extra domestics but others said it was
to cover for 757's being fitted with AVOD in economy.

However the 757 re-fit has long finished and I believe all 41 are done.

Pete

Olton Pete

Thanks for the response. I assumed thanksgiving might have something to do with it looking at other sites.

Is there a similar site to these for BHX/EMA?

Heathrow WebTrak (http://lhr.webtrak-lochard.com/template/index.html)
Casper - live aircraft tracking (http://casper.frontier.nl/)

EMA but not BHX


WebTrak: East Midlands Airport (http://ema.webtrak-lochard.com/template/index.html)

Thanks JAR

As reported on the Ryanair thread Oporto is now bookable again
from 29/3/10 - 29/10/10.

BHX based aircraft same days as this summer Monday and Friday
departing BHX at 17.40 back at 23.05.

This just leaves two spare slots on a Friday for the four based
aircraft without even considering if the LPA/ACE/TFS services are
extended into the summer service.

potash

Probably need to see the November figures for FUE before getting
a better picture. The few days the ZB & FR operated in October
the load factor was 71% and that included the first returns which
were probably less than half full.

Mahan Air

744's seem to be confirmed for the festive period and possiblty a 4th
weekly flight in the New Year. Not so good for photographers as the
times change to evening to avoid the Amritsar fog apparently, which
of course Air India also used to do.

Pete

http://www.canarias7.es/articulo.cfm?id=150147 (http://www.canarias7.es/articulo.cfm?id=150147)

The Irish airline Ryanair will return to operate in Fuerteventura as of the month of March,

So it looks as though FR and BE schedules are finally firming up......nothing new from BE and the loss of SPU, DBV and TLS: As for FR, not as bad as it seemed a few weeks ago but getting more doubtful by the day that MRS; OLB; TPS; BLL; PGF, TRF and PIS are to return, although with FR things change so quickly you never know. This leaves BHX with 24 FR routes (not including Canaries flights, are these continuing in the summer?) compared to EDI with 38; BRS 37 and EMA 34.

So thats a loss at present of ten routes compared to this summer from these carriers. OK so they must have been very marginal yield wise but its such a pity with BHX that when an airline drops a route, the void is rarely filled with another.

Feeling quite introspective (must be that end of the year is nigh feeling coming on), I decided to work out what other routes are lying in the BHX route graveyard, since 2003 in addition to the above I make it: LIS; MAD; BOD; BSL; TRN; VCE; FCO; BGY; VIE; ATH; WAW; SZZ; KBP; HEL; LJU; RTM; EIN and TXL and for long haul DEL; ATQ; YYZ, PHL and TAS. Thats quite some list! I wonder if any of them will ever return :confused:

Gayfriendly- to make you less morose DBV and TLS go on sale next week. SPU may follow.

Don't understand why someone won't give Swiss a run for their money on the Zurich flight. Load on that Fokker 100 I reckon is 85% plus whenever I take it (about 20 sectors this year), and it's not cheap....

Hurrah no trekking to LPL or EMA in order to get to DBV in June, i´ll raise a G&T to that!:ok:

PS I didn´t post with the intention of being morose, it´s just been a slow day........

dubh12000

You are right about the fares and it is interesting to see easyjet
having or going to have a go from Manchester as Swiss have
even better loads than BHX.

BHX averages out about around 70% in any given month but
suffered in September and October when the lunchtime was
dropped until the start of the winter season.

Good news re DBV and TLS both fared reasonably well but
with Holiday Optains going I thought the former might not
have returned.

Pete

BHX-YYZ was operated by TCX on behalf of Canadian Affair this summer and will operate it again next year.



S78

Do bear in mind that most of the Swiss passengers are connecting onto other Swiss flights at ZRH. Anyone else attempting to go head to head with Swiss will need to ensure that there is enough point to point traffic to justify the extra service.

Only a couple of years ago, LX indicated that only a third of their MAN pax were transferring but were aiming to boost that. I presume that BHX may the same way, but it does depend on what LH wants in terms of using which hub for the transfer passenger i.e. may try to get more through FRA & MUC with bigger connecting ability.

Being a frequent user of EMA for the GVA flight, with this now gone for good (see EMA thread), do people think there is a chance for EZY going once again year-round with their BHX-GVA ? Sure, they tried before and it didn't work out, but now the gap between MAN and LTN geographically is quite big. The EMA-GVA flight was always pretty busy.

It would likely be a Geneva based aircraft rather than a UK w.

I am sure thay have more lucrative routes heading South in the summer from Geneva than to operate a UK flight to BHX.

Centre cities

I had a look at the CAA stats for UK-Geneva for 2008 and the list throws up one or two surprises. Totals are shown for each UK airport as total sched passengers/total charter passengers in thousands rounded to the nearest thousand.

Gatwick 599/102
Heathrow 568/10
London City 333/0
Luton 306/0
Bristol 152/6
Liverpool 142/0
East Midlands 119/0
Edinburgh 110/10
Birmingham 94/24
Stansted 62/14
Leeds-Bradford 55/0
Manchester 48/39
Newcastle 35/6
Bournemouth 33/0
Belfast International 31/0
Cardiff 14/0
Doncaster-Sheffield 13/0
Glasgow 10/6
Southampton 8/0
Exeter 3/5
Newquay 2/0
Norwich 2/0
Belfast City 0/1

At some airports there were one or two charter flights in the year but where passenger totals were fewer than 500 I have shown it as 0.

Birmingham is further down the list than one might imagine, as is Manchester.

baby are doing GVA year round in 2010 4 days a week

Summer 2010 has been amended but still five based at present with Prague the only notable loss from 9/4/10.

Slight reductions in NOC, BFS but that is about it but I only checked
one week in June.

There are a lot of re-timings with Palma going from 0630 departure
to 19.30 plus some days.

Pete

DBV, SPU and TLS are back and bookable :ok:

New routes (although not yet bookable...) listed on drop down timetable from BHX to Limoges, Bordeaux, Avignon and Rennes :ok:

Have not checked frequencies or start dates yet thanks to BE horribly non user friendly on line timetable.......

This gives BE a very strong French presence at BHX probably as a reaction to WW and FR (so far) dropping a number of French routes. DH8 perhaps a better size of aircraft for these ops. Although I think NCE is still available with WW?

My mistake - French routes are bookable each three or four times weekly but only operate Jul and Aug. DBV and SPU are May-Sept, weekly

Just been looking on the BHX Timetable and it only goes as far as May 2010. Can anyone confirm if it is just Monarch and BmiBaby that will be flying to Faro next summer.
Thanks.

baby are doing GVA year round in 2010 4 days a week: This is from EMA. Better than nothing for us Midlandians, of course. No flights Mon, Wed and Thu though. Will mean more MAN and LTN journeys then. Checked their schedule again for BHX-GVA: They have 4/week until Feb, but then 3/week (2 on Sat, 1 on Sun, not useful for work journeys) in Mar/Apr and then stop again. Sure, EZY uses a Swiss aircraft (EZS) for the BHX flight, I've been on it a few times.

I Believe Fly Baboo are starting GVA from the shiny new amusingly renamed London Oxford International :}

Mahan Air will not operate their 744 before the end of this year due to problems with the Iranian equivalent of the CAA. I’m not exactly sure what these problems are but they still hope to get permission in the New Year to use the 744. I don’t believe the there any issues this end with the airport, UK CAA or handling agent.

As they have already sold 440 seats they plan to use 2 aircraft to accommodate all the pax utilising the usual A310 and an A300.

If I get any more info I will update.

Good & bad as usual.

Biarritz (2 a week) and Bydgoszcz (3 a week) now released.

This is a reverse of summer 2009 as BIQ was 3 weekly and BZG 2.

However Skavsta NYO & Bologna have gone off sale!

Pete

Monarch Gran Cararia an Fue flights till 23 march2011 from Bhx and Manchester

It looks like their full winter schedule is on sale for W10-11, not just FUE and LPA :ok:

Cheers Potash

BHX - big increase although no extra based but of
course it is early days.

Alicante - 5 a week from 3 (Mo/Tu/Fr/Sa/Su)
Arrecife - 3 a week from 2 (Tu/Th/Su)
FAO - 4 a week similar (Tu/Th/Sa/Su)
FUE - 1 weekly the same (Wed)
Las Palmas - 2 a week from 1 (Mo/Sa)
Malaga 5 a week which is the same (Mo/Th/Fr/Sa/Su)
Larnaca 3 a week from 2 (We/Sa/Su)
Tenerife 8 a week - same (Mo/Tu x 2/Th/Fr x 2/Sa Su)

No reductions in early Dec or mid Jan yet but this
will probably change.

Sat & Sun sees 6 flights and 5 on a Tuesday.

If these all operate & are 321's then quite an
increase.

Pete

Had the pleasure of flying as a fare payer from Brum over the weekend and got to see the new pier close up. Quite nice apart from the bit at the terminal end that's all boarded up still, but why oh why couldn't they have installed one of those nice moving walkways - it's a fair old jaunt from one end to other for an old git like me !

.... and I seem to remember reading a post a while back about how some of the cabbies are feeling hard done by, being charged by BIA for using the ranks there - Well all they are doing is passing on the fee to the passenger - my cab ride started with £2.00 of "Extras" on the clock before turning a wheel, which the driver said was to offset the fee he has to pay to BIA of £21 for 10 pick ups from the rank - Grrrr :*

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d129/coconut11/Coconutty.jpg

Departed from it last Friday morning and returned last night.

I agree a travelator wouldn't have been a bad idea, but it's not so far in comparison with say Dublin or Frankfurt. The walls look a bit empty - what about some of those uplifting posters warning benefit cheats they're being watched - could brighten the place up a bit. The border control area is much improved since I last arrived here, but why oh why do we need to check passports for arrivals from the EU (I know the answer but it just doesn't wash with me!). At least there were plenty of officers on duty and the passage through was mercifully quick, but I can't imagine how long it must take if you're back of the queue coming off a 777!

Baggage arrival was quick too - a pleasant surprise though I see that BHX think that 35 minutes is a reasonable wait for a 737 load's bags. In comparison with some european airports that seems a bit long to me.

The pier is certainly a massive improvement on what it replaced - makes BHX look and feel more like a major international gateway than a little provincial backwater!

Source: CAA

Figure for November 566704 -8.6%

Rolling Year: 9144015 - 4.3%

I was a bit shocked at the decrease, as I had estimated about 585000
on what was due to operate.

However I have looked at the individual route analysis and not too many
horrors with the usual suspects poor such as Milan & Stuttgart.

Long-haul all things considered looks awesome, both PK & EK averaged
over 300 per flight, Tehran was over 4000 pax with Turkmen 5800

Turkish was again below 100 per flight but I suppose it has not run
for a whole year yet (tomorrow I believe).

The Ryanair route and frequency cuts have taken their toll although
it would be wrong to lay all the decrease at their door.

Luton rolling year 9191327 but only 4.6% down in November.

Pete

Hi Pete
Have you got the pax numbers yet on monarchs new routes to LAP & FUE the numbers should be quite interesting in these hards times

john

potash

Fue 1358 pax which is 170 pax or 79%

LPA 3979 pax which is 142 pax or 72%

LPA is a bit low but I am sure both FR & ZB will continue and ride
the economic storm and give it another chance next winter.

Well in fact we know ZB have doubled to two a week next winter
at present!!!!

FUE I would have thought would have been higher due to the
lack of seats but 79% is I suppose okay but I have not checked
the fares recently.

Pete

From the Ryanair thread, Faro is to start.

This is in the FR OLCI but not yet bookable.

Reported on a local aviation forum EK rumoured to be upgrading
EK38/37 to the 77W HD, which will be 427 or 442 seats.

Same forum has at least one Mahan Air 747 operating now
before Christmas.

Pete

Hi Pete
Reading the figures below are fr attracting new pax to bhx or are they poaching pax from other airlines out of bhx to the canaires

http://www.lanzaroteguidebook.com/news/lanzarote-news-ryanair-top-arrivals-in-november (http://www.lanzaroteguidebook.com/news/lanzarote-news-ryanair-top-arrivals-in-november)

john

potash

Not sure about that, I would have to look at all the figures.

Ryanair Faro

A bit of a shock as it is a BHX based aircraft, I think Wed & Sun Morning
and Mon & Fri afternoon. This should at least cement four based if not
five or failing that some re-timings or more away based aircraft to be used.

Mahan Air

No 747 apparently before Christmas now but 2/1/2010 is showing at
present.

Turkish

The 1st anniversary press release mentions it possibly going daily
in summer. Obviously they are not as disappointed as me in some
of the loads but I suppose EK started quite modestly to 38000 a month.

Pete

FR to announce fue flights tomorrow 18 dec 12.30 pm from puerta del rosario uk flights to follow later date:ok:

Morning All, wonder if anyone could advise me if Emirates 'directly' employ staff at BHX, ie Base Admin, Ticket Desk...etc, or is it all done under the SGHA. :ok:

FR have added thrice weekly BHX-IBZ flights operating Tue, Thu and Sunday from Tuesday 30th March 2010 with a BHX based aircraft.
Daza

Another shock from FR, or have we been reading the runes wrong? Will adding Ibiza from BHX on top of Faro mean that there will be five based for summer 10?

Given this and one or two other positive moves, including Flybe's new routes, might this mean that the prospects for BHX next year are not be as bad as first feared.

And is there is still time for further developments?

Monty Gordo

Monty Gordo

The FR timetable is totally impossible to run on four based aircraft, it
needs to be five at least. However the same happened last year and
all that they did was later move flights to away based
aircraft (PSA, TPS & ALC) and cut a couple of frequencies.

This time hopefully it will be five. Wed & Sun see five departures in
the morning but that is it but there are other times when the TFS/ACE/
LPA are out and there are four afternoon departures (Mo/We/Th/Fr/Sa)
and it would take some big changes to squash the schedule to four.

As for flybe, they are all new destinations (the French) for flybe other
than TLS returning but I doubt if it is any extra aircraft as they will
just replace frequency reductions on the business routes.

The positive aspect to this though is that the aircraft just sat around this summer in Julyand August. In 2008 they added extra Brest, La Rochelle and Bergerac's but this time have gone for new destinations.

Ryanair going after Monarch at BHX? I think so.

Pete

Sadley pete that looks the case and Luton to, no problems for them at man or Lgw after man stood its ground against fr pressure to cut fees

What worries me about FR at BHX is their total lack of inspiration regarding new routes, come on IBZ and FAO; routes quite happily already served, its not exactly ground breaking news is it? Or are these Med destinations the only places Brummies really want to fly to? At least (assuming no major schedule changes or route culls) this means 5 based units. I was very pro FR when they launched at BHX but now begin to wonder my sanity at the time

I would have preferred SVQ to FAO or VLC or MAD to IBZ. I agree with the previous comments, I think that FR are going after MON at BHX lets hope that MON and their vastly superior service sees them through.
Daza

BOAC - EK employ a Station Manager a about 5/6 ticket desk staff and a handful of ground reps all in all about 10 i think on station employed directly by EK.

Gay Friendly, you really think FR care what you or any other Brummie wants???

Olton Pete and Gay Friendly, while I value your comments on this debate can I ask: Are we missing the point?"

While business is generally internecine, surely we are not concentrating on what the real problem is at BHX. It is not the airlines, but the management of the airport itself?

Is there another airport in the UK with the infrastructure of BHX: Centre of the country, superb road and rail connections (with rail intself into the airport itself rather than a parkway), a modern new terminal and a population catchment area that runs into millions?

The problem as I said is not the loco airlines, they will always fight for the lucrative pax routes; the problem is not enough people (even in the Midlands or within one hour's drive time) understand what facilities are on their doorstep and that can only be achieved by the management at BIA being more pro-active.

Some time ago Gay Friendly you said that travel agents when selling Dubai offer Man or LHR in preference to BHX. Why? Because the airport and its facilities are not being sold sufficiently!

My message to BIA management, and to travel agents, is get out there and be seen by the travelling public.

By all means let the airlines challenge each other, that is good for business. The cake is and should be big enough for everybody.

Monty Gordo

Clearly there isn't another airport in the location you decribe - well not since the Coventry debacle, and their terminal was hardly superb!

However, given the proximity of Birmingham to LHR and MAN the alledgedly huge catchment area is always going to be diluted to some extent between the two larger, better connected airports.

That said, apart from the parasite that is Ryanair (milk airports for what it can and treat passengers like dung) BHX has a pretty good network of "proper" scheduled services by quality carriers - which is exactly what you would expect of an airport in it's location. Contrast if you will with EMA, which again is sullied by Ryanair and has only a couple of proper business orientated routes, operated from a proper airline - it won't ever grow a decent network of business ervices because of it's location.

BHX, in percentage terms is still suffering passenger number reductions of less than major competitors such as MAN and EMA - and since Globespan went, Glasgow and Edinburgh as well I would think. You just can't expect airlines (or Ryanair) to take risky expansion moves in the current climate. BHX is largely, at least for leisure purposes, an "outbound" airport, and as such it suffers from the current state of the UK currency which makes travelling to the eurozone more expensive.

The good times will return - but I reckon it'll not be before Summer 2011. I hope to be proven wrong.

But....This is not a BHX problem, It's an aviation in general problem....All airports are suffering. Bemoaning the comings and goings at BHX is to ignore the problem nationwide.
As for the management at BHX....Well it's a dictatorship at the moment so all falls onto the head of one person...........They did pin a lot on the FR deal..This did include an engineering base at BHX...Not sure that is still on the cards.
IMO Manchester does have the right attitude. if all airports took the same stance then all would eventually benefit. For it to work though they all need to be saying the same thing.

MERRY CHRISTMAS ALL....
http://www.augk18.dsl.pipex.com/Smileys/christmascancan.gif

I travel most weeks from/to BHX to Europe on the ‘quality’ airlines mentioned above. CPH (SAS), FRA/DUS/MUC (LH) , CDG/AMS(AF/KLM) all seem to be busy to me. Yes the planes may be smaller with lower frequency in some cases but the fares are not cheap and they are busy. SAS to CPH must be making a killing with the CRJ9, which seems 80% full whenever I’m on it. I’ve also done a few intra Europe routes and they don’t seem so full as the BHX routes.

This has to be good for the future that these airlines can make a profit from BHX even in today’s market. If they are not then I would be surprised. When the good times return so will the frequencies and bigger aircraft. Trading that in for just one or two locos doesn’t seem like a good move to me, but a combination of both paying the right price for the airport services provided is the way to go.

The new pier is a huge step up in capability and customer service. Just wish the penny pinching £1for a trolley and drop off was changed. Even Bristol doesn’t charge for the drop off (isn’t that where the MD came from ?). These are the only two airports outside of the US I have seen trolley charges.

So in summary BHX, just keep the model going, please please don't sell out to Ryanair. Let in Easyjet (for my holidays :)), and do away with the stupid charges.

The position at present is working well as another ten diverts today
from LTN/STN/MAN including Qatar!

There is clearly a problem with the % of local pax flying from other airports but ATNotts & Call100 have touched on some of the reasons why and I think the latest figures do not show much of an improvement.

In my opinion past management did seem a little slow to say the least
with some route development but on the whole BHX does still have a good
mix of airlines.

Ryanair's approach to route development is a nightmare but that is the best BHX can do at the moment and nobody I think could accuse management of a lack of trying when trying to court easyjet albeit years too late but that is down to a previous regime.

FlyOften

I agree with the comments re SAS, this aircraft seemed perfect for BHX
but loads seem to indicate it is too small at times although the odd MD80
still appears from time to time.

I flew from BHX last Tuesday and it was a pleasure until I stepped on
to plane (but you pay for you get - well actually I barely paid if you see
what I mean) and at times like Monty Gordo it does make you wonder why it can't attract more passengers even in these lean times.

Coming back was also a dream, steps waiting no immigration at the BHX end (from Dublin) and I was at the train station in minutes just a shame the station I had left the car at was closed but even I can't blame the train company if somebody didn't want to see this this Christmas.

In fact although BHX is well served by trains this was the only problem
I encountered with my early morning train delayed leaving me with 45 Mins before depature but security at BHX was swift and there was no problem
in the end but it was a Tuesday in mid December.

On a different subject it is all smiles this last week with Mahan Air sending an A310 and A300 yesterday, easyjet back since Tuesday and Monarch schedule adding flights for Christmas.

Pete

Monarch have from 1st may added a saturday flight to fue from bhx i think the price must be a misprint cheaper to fly to australia


Saturday, 15 May 10 ( ZB 438 )
Birmingham to Fuerteventura :ok:
15:45 20:05

- fare (http://javascript<b></b>:void(0);)
£439.99
- infant/s (http://javascript<b></b>:void(0);)
£0.00
- taxes & chgs (http://javascript<b></b>:void(0);)
£38.76Just noticed they have taken the saturday flight off tenerife route in responce to fr flying there all summer i guess


22 May 10 ( ZB 439 )
Fuerteventura to Birmingham
21:05 01:20

- fare (http://javascript<b></b>:void(0);)
£439.99
- infant/s (http://javascript<b></b>:void(0);)
£0.00
- taxes & chgs (http://javascript<b></b>:void(0);)
£22.55total price
£941.29

Total price INCLUDES all

Anybody have a full list of divs Sunday ?

The airport director was quoted on radio as suggesting that they only got back to normal Monday because of the "massive volume" of inbounds !

10 does not sound a lot ?

I saw a BIA director on BBC news today saying BHX handled 50 diverts in 3 days!!
With the south east closed at the moment more are arriving and are having to park on taxiway 'T' and the 80's.

Its all revenue for BHX and also a bit of advertising to southern pax that a superb regional airport exists north of Watford and south of Man.:ok:
(Not a dig at EMA btw)
Maybe it'll attract a few southern pax north in future? I still meet people these days from other parts of the UK who didnt even know Birmingham had an airport :confused:

Not far off 30 diverts this afternoon which would make 50-60 in the
last few days.

It has slowed now but hardly surprising, one Ryanair from Brno has just divertedfrom Stansted to Liverpool!

Peter

and also a bit of advertising to southern pax that a superb regional airport exists north of Watford and south of Man


I agree with your sentiments (and certainly diverts in those numbers are a huge revenue and pax figure boost) but diverts are a complete pain in the arse as far as most pax are concerned, myself included. I should imagine most diverted pax wanted to do nothing more than get the F:mad: out of BHX and to their actual destination as quickly as possible without even a second thought about the facilities at BHX or whether they would use it in the future. At least however they will now realise that BHX exists!

I am flying in on the TK on Thurs morning and heavy fog is forecast for BHX - I can tell you now that if I divert and wherever it is to I will just want to get back to Brum as quickly as is practically possible. Airport facilities at MAN, LON or wherever it may be and whether I would use them again in the future will be the last thing on my mind. (Heres hoping however that I will actually end up in BHX :ok:)

Im guessing the 3 hour wait on board and a further hour for bags, so the ramp guys told me may deter them from a future BHX visit! Not the airports fault I grant you handlers streched to the max!!!

Cant remember and dont know if its still the case but BHX never used to charge for diverts, not sure about ground agencies.

There are charges but as it's weather diverts it is only a percentage of the full cost. Not sure what the latest charge is. Main thing is it offsets the heavy cost of keeping the place as Ice free as possible.

Im guessing the 3 hour wait on board and a further hour for bags, so the ramp guys told me may deter them from a future BHX visit! Not the airports fault I grant you handlers streched to the max!!!

Cant remember and dont know if its still the case but BHX never used to charge for diverts, not sure about ground agencies.
With diversions the priority is to get the planes out of the sky and parked up. Everything else is secondary to that. Or they could just fly around until they run out of fuel...:eek:

The amount of diversions yesterday was incredible and I know that the
pax who had to wait hours for bags and coaches were peeved a bit but
people need to get real in these situations.

Lucky to have an airport which had 30 odd spare stands to park them.

I wonder what time the Wizz Kiev pax got back to Luton from Doncaster,
even if they got their bags quicker I bet the road journey was a mare.

Also I am not sure what the split was but most seemed to be Servisair handled, do we know if Aviance helped out as they are to be one of the same company?

I have not got the final figure for diverts yesterday but I bet it was
nearing 40.

Also Luton & Stansted now have fog although EMA is the only one to recieve diverts thus far but more could be heading this way.

Pete

Really Call100?? I had no idea!

Simply pointing out to a previous poster that they wouldnt have been to impressed at the service they received although the guys are doing there best as they are streched at the best of times. But the average punter was prob feeling a little hacked off by the time they exited arrivals hence prob not the best lasting memory of the wonderful facilities BHX has to offer.

Did Ryanair lay on a bus for all the pax they diverted into BHX???

do we know if Aviance helped out

Aviance did not help out as such on the ramp, but they mop up the odd and sods such as the Star1 that don't have a nominated agent at BHX.

Did Ryanair lay on a bus for all the pax they diverted into BHX???

I think every available bus in the area was used. It was a bit of a free for all outside the terminal with each bus just being filled with whoever wanted to get on it no matter what airline you had arrived with! Everyone who wanted onward travel to LTN / STN was accomodated by approx 2300 ish.

I was present and witnessed a lot last night and think you can say the best job was done with the notice period given and the manpower available, yes acft were dropping (11 in the hold at one point) then being marshalled onto stand by the airport. In a couple of instances U2 PSA/LGW and IST/LGW the handlers did not know for a while they had landed and had parked up. Some crews opted to keep pax on board thinking they would get out again, then some airports did not re-open and crew hours became an issue.

Its a simple fact no one can ever be fully prepared for diverts and certainly not that amount at an airport with the apron size of BHX. Who would have thought LGW, LTN and STN would be out at the same time ? (think this was the case for a short period)

More people were angry with being on the acft for hours with no water service offered on some flights, the TOM LGW/FNC was one of the first to land, he decided to wait and see if LGW would open when it did for a while he got a slot, then lost it and went out of hours, in this time pax could of been off and nearly back in LGW it was about 4/5 hours total.

Well done BHX, yes not perfect but as Call100 says it was a case of getting them down where ever safely. I think i read at one point the BA238 was heading off towards Scotland possibly GLA ??? after being told LHR could not cope with pax arriving in the terminals and asked for the arrival rate to slow.

I think Servisair with very few loaders on, coupled with having to turn the scheduled stuff of EK, and two EI's worked there butts off to get 20+ offloaded with single digit manpower, spread over to terminals!

Captain Caveman/jetsgo

What you have both described sounds like a fantastic effort by all
concerned and I just hope it is appreciated by the airlines and
management at bhx.

No let up either, three easyjets have just diverted in from STN and two
flybe from Southampton.

Pete

Listed BE8031 to Athens on bhx.co.uk departs 10am today - obviously a charter but does anyone know who or what for?

I have no facts for this, and it is a straight guess, but is it BE ferrying a Dash 8 out to Olympic (they've leased some of their new arrivals directly to Olympic) ??

ANybody managed to prepare a full list of diversions...would be good to see just what came in.....thanks in advance.:ok:

HeliCraig - thats what I thought but there is a corresponding arrival in the evening BE8032 from ATH at 2030 which would signify an out and back flight? Maybe its a big crew changeover positioning to/from ATH?

GF - yeah, or maybe they are swapping their toy set about?? ;)

Just noticed new 3 x weekly BHX - Dalaman from May on the Monarch website. Also showing 2 x weekly MAN - Antalya and 2 x weekly LTN - Dalaman and Bodrum :ok::ok::ok:

Are the Dalaman flights at the exspence of the murcia flights or are they expanding there fleet ?

potash

Confirmed no increase here at all, straight swap for Murcia which
has gone from daily to four weekly to three weekly to nil over the
last couple of years.

Baby reduced Murcia last year as well and it is 3/4 weekly next
summer and Ryanair stay the same at present 4 weekly.

Goldtrail Holidays are currently showing Monarch flights Sun -Thur
with 5000 flight numbers which would be an extra aircraft but some
seem to think they will morph back onto the Thomas Cook aircraft.

Pete

The schedule change is quite extensive really
with Murcia gone, Almeria disappointingly
reduced from three weekly to weekly but Arrecife
increased to three weekly. Palma on Saturday reduced
to one.

Obviously taking advantage of reduced landing fees at ACE/FUE/LPA/TFS.

Four based at present with no gaps in the schedule and in fact some
flights require re-timing at night due to the changes.

Mon

1) ALC/TFS
2) FAO/DLM
3) AGP/LPA
4) CFU (IT)/MAH/CFU (IT) SHORT SEASON

TUE

1) ALC/MAH
2) FAO/ACE
3) AGP/TFS
4) HER (IT)/HER (IT) SHORT SEASON?

WED

1) ALC/LCA
2) FAO/FUE
3) AGP/TFS
4) PFO OR RHO/ RHO OR PFO ALL IT

THU

1) ALC/TFS
2) FAO/ACE/ZTE (IT) times no longer fit
3) AGP/LEI/IBZ But times no longer fit
4) PMI/DLM

FRI

1) ALC/LCA
2) FAO/PMI/HER (IT)
3) AGP/TFS
4) MAH/MAH/IBZ

SAT

1) ALC/FUE
2) FAO/DLM
3) AGP/LPA
4) PMI/ACE/IBZ - time does not fit

Sun

1) ALC/PMI/IBZ
2) FAO/LCA
3) AGP/TFS
4) PFO (IT)

Pete

d192049d

Just copied the flights from another list plus another site and since
last week I have noted 100 diversions!

Not sure if the mods would like a whole list of reg's but I will give some
breakdown between airports and airlines when I can.

Diverts taken from LGW, BRS, LTN, STN, MAN, LPL & LBA.

Possibly others as well but no LHR or EMA I think.

Still quite amazing.

Foggy most of today but I believe nothing lost but could be wrong
on that one.

Pete

Good morning People.....Just wanted to take the opportunity to wish everyone connected with BHX.....
http://www.augk18.dsl.pipex.com/Smileys/merryxmas.gif

Hope we all get what we wish for........Enjoy!

Easy Jet would do !

A lot less accurate and late this month due to
some annual event.

BRUSSELS/8395/39 PAX/40-45% LOAD FACTOR
BILLUND/1232/103 PAX/54%
COPENHAGEN/62 PAX/65-70%
BIARRITZ/1783/99 PAX/52%
LYON/2508/29 PAX/63%
PARIS CDG/55 PAX/63%
DUSSELDORF/12573/35 PAX/55%
FRANKFURT/18842/53 PAX\55-60%
HAMBURG/1994/44 PAX/57%
HANOVER/3720/55 PAX/70%
MUNICH/9302/57 PAX/62%
WEEZE/4572/134 PAX/71%
STUTTGART/2431/26 PAX/33%
CORK/9793/104 PAX/60%
DUBLIN/49031/136 PAX/75%
KNOCK/3275/91 PAX/65%
SHANNON/4902/138 PAX/73%
WATERFORD/1510/42 PAX/63%
MILAN MXP/1638/37 PAX/32%
PISA/1992/111 PAX/59%
AMSTERDAM/33641/85 PAX/65-70%
FARO/5716/150 PAX/70%
ALICANTE/12469/156 PAX/83%
GIRONA/4038/112 PAX/59%
MALAGA/13649/131 PAX/75%
MURCIA/3727/155 PAX/82%
ARRECIFE/5770/160/80%
FUERTAVENTURA/1358/170 PAX/79%
LAS PALMAS/3979/142 PAX/77%
TENERIFE/13633/149 PAX/71%
GOTHENBERG/1484/28 PAX/76%
ZURICH/11131/62 PAX/62%
ISTANBUL/3565/81 PAX/52%
PRAGUE/8781/122 PAX/76%
KAUNAS/2328/129 PAX/68%
GDANSK/2122/133 PAX/70%
KATOWICE/2057/129 PAX/68%
KRAKOW/3205/123 PAX/65%
RZESNOW/2227/124 PAX/65%
BRATISLAVA/3702/154 PAX/82%
ASHKHABAD/5864/163 PAX/86%
TEHRAN/4180/161 PAX
DUBAI/38094/317 PAX/79%
ISLAMBAD/8894/342 PAX/87%
NEWARK/7272/158 PAX/84%

Pretty grim short-haul but long-haul is rosy though by the look of it!!

potash

checked the overall Canaries figures for BHX and they are flat
but EMA was down. Other Spanish destinations were well down
at both BHX & EMA.

I suppose you could say "flat" was good compared to the overall
BHX figure and comparing to other Spanish routes.

Pete

Thanks for info Pete not many surprises there . I quite expect 2010 to be an even tougher year not just for Bhx but for all airports in the uk Monarch are boxing clever pulling a TFS flight on a sat and switching it to fue to fill TCX slot till oct. Monarch seem to be hesitant to increase there Gatwick routes at present and with Manchester being there only other fr free airport this next year could well see there top line serouley challenged by the threat of fr still if there is £25.00 difference in price i personally would not choose the harp tailed crew

john

I was involved in a discussion over Christmas about holidays and a member of family said they travelled BHX to DBV a few years ago. Now Flybe started in 2007 but they are adamant they didn't travel Flybe, but it was a prop aircraft. Has anyone any ideas as to which airline this would have been?

I am not usually that interested but this has intrigued me so now I have to get an answer :ok:

Cloud1

Not aware of any prop flights to Dubrovnik from BHX but Croation
have done a short season most years to either Split or Dubrovnik but these
are/were 319/320's.

Of course Norwich had Eastern flights on the Saab to Croatia so
possibly if they flew from Norwich.

Not even aware of any ad-hocs from BHX as props to Dubrovnik
but could be wrong.

Pete

After the frustrations of the 12 hour closure came another batch of inbound diversions of amazing variety.

Used the train for work today and on the way home saw the Air Tahiti
A343 landing, which was a Brize Norton diversion (Ascension), there were also two Virgin 747's parked up and a Mexicana 762 (2 x TOM 763 diverts aswell).

Also the 4th Emirates of the day has just landed, this included two Gatwick diverts as well as BHX's own.

They even knicked one of the Gatwick diverts to operate last nights
cancelled EK38 (The inbound EK37 had previously diverted away).

About another 30 inbound diversions today from Gatwick, Stansted,
London City, Luton, Bristol & East Mids.

All seems to have gone fairly well although the Dublin snow closure
has meant some EI cancellations making T1 look busy when I was there.

Pete

I think a large "pat on the back" is in order for the Airfield ops staff who worked hard through Tue/Wed to reopen the airfield and all the Handling agents staff who did their best turning the diversions round and get the many disgruntled pax on their merry way.

Well done. :ok::D

I was stuck at BHX in all the snow and ice disruption on Tuesday and have nothing but praise for all the staff I dealt with on what was a very busy and frustrating day for all, they were brilliant. And a big thanks to all those outside on the apron braving the arctic weather especially those working tirelessly to keep the runway open. These are the people as a passenger you never meet but without whom there would have been no flight at all :ok: My flight in the end had a 3 hour delay, no mean feat in such challenging conditions, at least we got away! I know others weren't so lucky as the weather got much worse later on.

Gayfriendly,

A very comforting post which I'm sure will be appreciated. As a former handling agent employee I amongst many others have experienced the wrath and downright unpleasantness of some passengers who obviously thought we were some sort of supreme beings able to control the weather at the drop of a hat!

Yes it`s like the people who insist in going out in the car to get to work get half and have to abandon the car and then blame the authorities who can`t get through for abandoned cars

Ian B

Other than dealing with its own passengers BHX has turned away very
few diverts and the flow has not stopped.

After the heavies on Thursday a quieter day yesterday but still diverts
from Southampton & Leeds.

Even more of a surprise is now, as AA92 ORD-DUB is about to land, I
assume Manchester still not accepting diverts? Contienental to Dublin has
chosen Belfast and Turkish Stansted.

I don't remember too many if any Dublin diversions in recent times. Mind you looking at the number of planned cancellations this month by "home" airlines anything else is a boost.

Pete

MAN is accepting divs as LS have been operating BLK services here, plus RE diverted in yesterday. Surprised AA came to BHX as USAirways diverted to SNN.

Due to the snow TCX plan to operate TCX47L / TCX87k through BHX instead of LGW. In from BGI and out to CUN A330-200.

I also believe BA have being making enquiries about how many the airport can handle in the morning.

Could be a busy day for diverts tomorrow.

MAN wont be taking any diverts, so its over to you chaps,

looking at the TAFs LGW / LHR

Snow and blowing snow in 25 knot winds I think they will struggle in the morning !

The AA divert had a slight problem on arrival he requested 20t of fuel and subsequently 40t was pumped on board whoops :confused:

Looks as if met office got it wrong 2C at LHR not doing much at BHX
MAN snow melting slowly and DIV ban lifted so guess what no diversions

Ian

Departed BHX around 11.30 and just about to land in Dublin,
which I assume is explained by the post from dionysius.

Not quite the reminder BHX would want to give to AA.

These things happen I suppose but I can't believe AA will be
impressed. How will payment work? Will AA say he is the money
for the 20T and thanks for extra we didn't order?

Lets be honest it is not like ordering say one DVD online and then
receiving two, as it is easy enough to send the other one back, not
easy to take back 20T's of fuel, which also seems to have caused
an operational issue.

Assuming that the fuel company got it wrong and not anybody else.

No doubt there are some experts out there to explain how all this
would pan out.

Pete

probably asked for his uplift in lbs and got kgs instead.

More cutbacks from the original release although some changes
were inevitable as the schedule did not flow.

Their response to BMI Baby pulling off Prague at present is to
cut frequencies rather than increase.

Gone has the Thursday rotation which operated last summer
until early October.

Derry will not return to a daily service as first released and is
now showing Mo/We/Fr/Su, which is the current schedule.

Friday Faro has moved to Thursday with a Faro based aircraft.

It seems to be changing daily and I assume to stay at four based.

Pete

A real bad month this one.

Source of the figures: CAA

547511 down 8.3%

2009: 9093787 down 5%.

More misery - Summer 2010 sees more revision to the schedules with
Ryanair cutting Reus from 5 weekly to 3, Krakow from 4 to 3 and
Katowice from 4 to 2 weekly.

I have not gone through the whole schedule yet but added to cuts
to PRG and LDY it is not looking very good.

Pete

Pete. It's just going to be more of the same for the rest of the year. No signs of any growth anywhere. Maybe a bit from Monarch later but not a lot....Tough times for the next 12 months at least. So, don't expect too much......Thanks for all the figures. Appreciated.:)

call100

I can believe it as everytime I check a booking engine I find
a flight cut.

BMI Baby GLA ends 28/01/2010 and I presume a reduction to
the three based as stated on the Baby thread.

GLA was not unexpected, just a little bit earlier than I thought.
I had also hoped BMI Regional would take it on but nothing to
suggest that this will happen.

Still another change to come and it could be the end of another
double daily such as EDI or BFS. The former has been rumoured
although there is room in the summer schedule for once daily.

Ryanair Weeze at the weekend for summer has been chopped
and Girona is no longer bookable but I think it is just changing
days from the usual summer schedule of Tu/Th/Sa to Mo/We/Fr
and Sun.

Some good news from the December figures with DUS/FRA/MUC
HAM/HAJ/CDG/ZRH/DXB all up.

I will post the individual route analysis in a few days.

Pete

Very odd as picking up some flights bookable in March and July but
earlier nothing in Feb & June.

Baby's site is a nightmare for me can anyone clarify it is a temporary
suspension or they just not updated their booking engine completely.

Pete

Just had notification that my June flights to GRO have moved from Tuesday out ,to Wednesday and my return changed from a Thursday to a Friday.
Timing now moved to around midday rather than evening.
Have accepted changes but website not updated and no other bookings available yet.

OltonPete,

I've had a request from someone wanting to know what flights were cancelled last Tuesday 12th Jan. Can you point me in the direction of where I might find this sort of info?

Regards

Phil

These changes are becoming ridiculous - it reminds me of the "old days" when tour operators published a best selling work of fiction, otherwise known as flight schedules in the back of their brochures only to change it all totally once they had the early booker's money.

Perhaps it was expecting too much to hope that since the IT market has been superceded by the allegedly "scheduled" low cost models you could book eartly with confidence that the so called scheduled service would operate as booked!

Personally I wouldn't book early, it just ain't worth the hassle.

Philflies

Other than BHX's own records I don't know. I belong to another forum and
they post the SBS arrivals most days but they are operating flights and
canx ones are not mentioned.

All flights after 18.00 I believe were cancelled as the airport was shut but
some like LH, KL & AF just operated the first outbounds the next day rather than the Tuesdays last outbound.

Also there had been cancellations before the snow closure due to the weather abroad sothere is no way I could get a definative list unfortunately.

I had noted the operating flights for that day (the night before) but was too busy to note the cancellations.

ssflyer

Have the timings changed to a BHX based aircraft or still originating
in Girona?

Baby

Glasgow gone again from the booking enigine from the end of January
and I have already received an e-mail from flybe announcing they are
putting on extra flights from BHX.

I could not find them yet in the booking engine but if they are like FR
it could be weeks or months before things change!!!! I saw some tasty
flybe fares in fare from GLA - £171 one way plus taxes!!! It might have
been Spring Fare week assuming that it is on this year!

Pete

Some of the short haul routes between the Midlands and Scotland were bound to be cut going forward into 2010, the effect of high fuel costs, high fuel burn on short sectors with jets, goverment taxes the banking crisis on EDI loads all mean less poeople flying.

Add to which the security hassel and the inbound UK Border hall, i'd rather stay at home, walk get the train or drive than land after a PIA or EK flight and be queing for an hour with the esclators turned off for our safety!!!

This has to be the only industry in the world where customer service standards have gone backwards, so little surprise that volumes are down at most airports by 15-20%

I agree INKJET. Flying has certainly lost it's appeal. In the past it was exciting and different with a touch of luxury about it. Now it's just an everyday ball ache with little attraction.
As you say, I would rather drive domestic than fly. In fact ad hoc trips are now not even thought of. Maybe a package holiday in the year..The rest have gone. It's far more relaxing having a break in the UK now.....This has little to with cost in my case..
Airports are trying to stay with the appeal that the main legacy airlines want, but, are finding it difficult to afford along with the cattle shed mentality of the LoCo's.....
Something has got to give.

The other aspect is the not knowing what type of experience
you are going to get depending on the latest worldwide security
incident.

I last flew from BHX on a Tuesday in December and it was a dream
but looking at last months passenger figures you can see why.

I arrived later than I wanted due to a cancelled train (useless in
this country) to find a smooth transition through Security to the
aircraft. On my return, steps waiting, no immigration (from Dublin)
and straight to the railway station - to find my train cancelled again.

The flight was grim due to constant sales pitch but I chose to
use that airline but I do agree with both previous comments,
on a busy summers day (I have been in immigration with the PIA still
clearing), flying can seem to be no fun at all.

Domestics flights would be even more at risk if the UK had a decent
rail system and as for driving in the UK, I don't find that a pleasant experience either. I know at least it is door to door although the
queueing still happens just on the motorway and not at security points.

Back to routes:-

Thomson's seem to have added Taba from mid February,
which did operate last winter but was not due to start
until May. The rest of the Thomson summer schedule has
not changed too much from the first release but with the
767 appearing on to be here 4 days and a 73H based it
will be down on 2009.

Pete

It would appear that Thomson will charter a Flybe aircraft to operate a flight to Dubrovnik on Sunday morning ex BHX for Summer 2010.

BE4435 Dep BHX 0700 Arr DBV 1105 ER9
BE4436 Dep DBV 1205 Arr BHX 1410 ER9

It will operate from 2/5/2010 until 19/9/2010 and appears to be an additional flight to the scheduled Flybe Sunday afternoon departure to DBV. Alghero, Sardinia is however no longer bookable maybe due to the demise of Holiday Options?

I know that the addition of a 737-800 is only seen by some as a cut in seats ex BHX. I hope this smaller aircraft will continue to open smaller niche market charters to places like Skiathos and Santorini etc. that wouldn't be viable if operated by a 757.


Daza

At first reading your heading I thought you were saying FlyBE were starting Dubai (DXB), it would be interesting with a few stops on the way.

Andy mach 1 LOL!!! My mistake!:} The way airlines seem hell bent on route duplication at BHX it wouldn't surprise me if Flybe started DXB albeit indirect!
Daza

OP
This is the schedule change & it looks like a GRO based aircraft on its second rotation.

GOING OUT
From Birmingham(BHX) to Barcelona Girona(GRO)
Wed, 16/06/2010 Flight 9163 Depart BHX at 1415 and arrive GRO at 1725
COMING BACK
From Barcelona Girona(GRO) to Birmingham(BHX)
Fri, 25/06/2010 Flight 9162 Depart GRO at 1235 and arrive BHX at 1350

ssflyer

Cheers for that, it is now bookable again with Mo/We/Fr arrives
BHX 13.50 and Departs 14.15.

Sun arrives BHX 0745 departs 08.10.

Lovely 0630 departure ex GRO on Sunday!

Pete

BMI British Midland International Baby EGBB - EGPF cancelled this morning at the last minute. Don't know why. The crew were called just as they reported, and sent home. Is this rigor mortis setting into the chilling corpse?

it could be tech i suppose......

nothing worse than that?

According to the airport website, the two terminals will be merged.

2010 Press Releases (http://www.birminghamairport.co.uk/news.aspx?id=190&articleid=576)

The merging of the terminals is something that has been on the plans for a while.
Basically the Security search area will be relocated to the link building and will serve as the one and only search area. You will then go to the appropriate terminal from the other side. Via more shops (Of course):)

call100

Does that mean no T1/T2 and aircraft could in theory park anywhere
or will it still be FR/BE on the southside and the rest the north?

Such a waste all those T2 airbridges hardly used as they were
designed for.

Pete

Monthly pax figures: CAA
Average pax and load factor: my records & acarsd

I did keep a daily record of flights due but not
weather cancellations but these should not be too
far out. Turkish have now cancelled some Tuesday
services in the next few weeks which seems a very
good idea looking at the Istanbul figures below.

The reduction in frequencies by the full service
carriers on the whole has helped maintain load
factors lets also hope it worked for yields as well.

Paris, Dusseldorf, Zurich, Munich, Frankfurt, Hanover,
Dubai and Islamabad saw increases.

BRUSSELS/6418/31 PAX PER FLIGHT/35-40% LOAD FACTOR
LARNACA/3211/142 PAX/74%
PAPHOS/485/SEE ABOVE
COPENHAGAN/4711/64 PAX/74%
BIARITTZ/1831/131 PAX/69%
CHAMBERY/717/60 PAX/77%
GRENOBLE/1351/112 PAX/67%
LYON/1722/25 PAX/50%
PARIS/26560/63 PAX/71%
DUSSELDORF/11888/41 PAX/55-60%
FRANKFURT/17847/62 PAX/60-65%
HAMBURG/2270/60 PAX/77%
HANOVER/3537/55 PAX/71%
MUNICH/8930/60 PAX/70%
WEEZE/4510/141 PAX/75%
STUTTGART/2449/32 PAX/41%
CORK/8733/90 PAX/52%
DUBLIN/45736/131 PAX/75%
KNOCK/2880/90 PAX/69%
SHANNON/4213/132 PAX/70%
WATERFORD/1634/48 PAX/73%
MILAN/1690/44 PAX/38%
PISA/2379/132 PAX/70%
MALTA/1820/107 PAX
AMSTERDAM/31651/91 PAX/65%
FARO/4730/139 PAX/70%
ALICANTE/12207/142 PAX/77%
GIRONA/3982/124 PAX/65%
MALAGA/11575/129 PAX/70%
MURCIA/3713/143 PAX/76%
ARRECIFE/5339/167 PAX/83%
FUERTA/1393/139 PAX/65%
LAS PALMAS/3130/121 PAX/61%
TENERIFE/13067/163 PAX/80%
GOTHENBERG/1240/25 PAX/67%
GENEVA/6741/130 PAX/85%
ZURICH/12368/69 PAX/69%
ISTANBUL/3845/87 PAX/55%
PRAGUE/9478/148 PAX/90%
KAUNAS/2337/130 PAX/69%
GDANSK/2485/133 PAX/70%
KATOWICE/2391/133 PAX/70%
KRAKOW/3202/133 PAX/71%
RZESNOW/2332/130 PAX/69%
BRATISLAVA/4201/150 PAX/79%
ASHKHABAD/5033/148 PAX/78%
TEHRAN/4741/158 PAX?
DUBAI/36625/295 PAX/75%
ISLAMABAD/7883/282 PAX/71%
NEWARK/7077/147 PAX/84%

I flew TK IST-BHX on 24/12 and BHX-IST on 5/1, there were no more than 40 in Economy on both sectors (back to IST was on a 321!). OK, thats just two flights out of a five a week year round schedule but looking at the recent 55% LF posted by OP (has it ever been much higher than this?) surely this must be a route under review. I hope it doesn't go, maybe it is better as a summer only service?

Having said that, to survive as an alternative to the other connecting carriers from BHX they will have to up their game - aircraft are quite tatty inside, crew a bit surly, no seat back IFE and IST airport mayhem for connections (I only just made mine on the way to BHX and I had 2 hours between flights!). IMO LX and EK certainly as far as travelling to the Middle East is concerned offer a far superior product from BHX

call100

Does that mean no T1/T2 and aircraft could in theory park anywhere
or will it still be FR/BE on the southside and the rest the north?

Such a waste all those T2 airbridges hardly used as they were
designed for.

Pete
Theoretically, anything will be able to use any terminal. Having said that the fine detail is yet to be worked out....

There is no mention of the Runway extension there though..

Is there any news on that front??

Looking at a delay there. Commencing 2012 for finish 2014. Other projects including new ATC Tower to go ahead soon. Times are tough but the programme seems to be rolling on. It's the staff taking the brunt at the moment.

In your last post you say that the Runway Extension will commence 2012 now, will BHX have the funding in place for it to proceed, as Paul Kehoe keeps ranting on about not been able to afford it.I do hope that extension work commences asap as BHX needs it.

I cannot see enough long haul routes will start from BHX before 2015 to justify the extension. If you divide the millions in cost by the thousands of extra pax than it does not make sence yet. You just would not do it for just one or two extra sectors a day. The big question is what demand will exist in 2020?

Before you Brummies put a spade in the ground, make sure you really have a market. MAN has a 3000m and a 3200m runway but has struggled to grow/retain long hauls. We thought we were doing OK until our long-haulers started saying "Sorry, we made a mistake, we thought you were London. Bye!"

Not quite, more like London Airways says we have to move as they don`t like anywhere other than Heathow.
Times are tough but will get better and with the prospect of the A380 from September
good times will return but not yet.

Ian B

The funding is there once the rules for funding can be sorted. I believe the bit we can't afford or don't want to afford, is the Highway work. As they said, we are not in the business of building roads. Having said that there is no rush with aviation where it is at the moment. The case for it to be an alternative to Heathrows extra runway is getting stronger with the rise of the high speed rail link.
At the moment there is no reason for it not to go ahead. But, as we all know, a week is a long time in aviation now. ;)

Major time changes in their summer 2010 schedule.

Schedule now streamlined but about 50% of routes have needed
time changes. Schedule is now four based with a couple of spare
slots. One Dublin flight on Monday, Thursday and Saturday is now
BHX based aircraft, Weeze has become BHX based and all Faro
flights are away based.

This leaves the number of based aircraft the same as 2009 but
less flights due to the Canaries routes using up more sector time
and less away based flights.

At present destinations missing in summer 2010 from 2009 are: -

Billund
Bologna
Hahn
Olbia
Trapani
Pisa
Poitiers
Marseille
Skavsta
Torp
Perpignan
Shannon

New are Faro & Ibiza, both existing routes.

Pete

Interesting that all the FR routes missing from BHX this summer compared to last are those that were solely FR operated (you could perhaps except Hahn as it serves the Frankfurt area) yet most of the routes they still have from BHX are on those where they compete with another carrier.........so seemingly they can't make routes work from BHX when they have a monopoly??? Yet they appear to manage to do so at other airports?? And are happy to fight routes out at BHX with others rather than carve their own market share?? Answers on a postcard........ :)

Aer Lingus

Despite some rumours it appears BHX has survived the threat of ATR's on
the Dublin, which means quite a large capacity increase for summer 2010
with an extra daily service in the week and Sunday.

Quite surprised that Cork remains a 320, as I could have seen that as
twice daily ATR but that could come next winter.

KLM

Slight upgrade reported on the KL1421/2 during Feb/March with the
190 replacing the F70.

Lufthansa

The Munich this summer reverts to an all CR9 operation matching
the Dusseldorf, both three daily in the week.

Added to the Saturday PIA returning as a 772 and keeping some
773 flights on the other three days, dare I say some slight green
shoots amongst the gloom.

Mahan should also be four weekly soon as well.

Pete

Was trying to check on the no of monarch aircraft based at BHX for the summer, with Goldtrail flights all withdrawn from BHX and that MONARCH due to operate some flights.

Have checked on tour operator details and mon sch flights and on most days only find 3 aircraft at BHX.

regards
stuart

As it stands there should be 4 based aircraft for Summer 2010 as follows:
Monday
1 - Faro, Tenerife
2 - Alicante, Mahon, Corfu
3 - Corfu, Las Palmas
4 - Malaga, Dalaman

Tuesday
1 - Faro, Mahon
2 - Alicante, Arrecife
3 - Malaga, Tenerife
4 - Heraklion, Heraklion

Wednesday
1 - Faro, Fuerteventura
2 - Alicante, Larnaca
3 - Malaga, Tenerife
4 - Paphos, Rhodes

Thursday
1 - Faro, Tenerife
2 - Alicante, Dalaman
3 - Palma, Arrecife, Ibiza
4 - Malaga, Almeria, Zante

Friday
1 - Faro, Palma, Heraklion
2 - Alicante, Larnaca
3 - Malaga, Tenerife
4 - Mahon, Mahon, Ibiza

Saturday
1 - Palma, Arrecife, Rhodes
2 - Faro, Dalaman
3 - Malaga, Las Palmas
4 - Alicante, Fuerteventura

Sunday
1 - Ibiza, Malaga, Tenerife
2 - Faro, Larnaca
3 - Alicante, Palma
4 -Faro, Larnaca

stuart-travel

As sam1993 as pointed out there is a very busy 4 aircraft schedule
especially once July is in.

Even before that the based 4 are fairly busy with the short-season
routes limited to some IT (RHO x 2, CFU x 1 and I think one Tue HER).

There have been cuts with Murcia gone, Palma 4 weekly from 8 and
Almeria down to just once weekly. I assume this is part due to the
weak pound (hence DLM) and reduced airport fees at FUE, ACE & LPA.

Even without the Goldtrail flights I thought that the 5th based
was still a possibility but caution has prevailed, which is understandable.

Pete

Mahan should also be four weekly soon as well.


4th weekly flight starts Wed 3rd Feb.

Arr 0630 and dep 0800

I have just been checking some flights prices to Larnaca on Monarch from Bhx or Man i fell of my chair the want £31.98 for 20 kg luggage and on checking they are charging different prices from all four airports and different charges to each destination what are they up to

Doing what most airlines now do and charging for each constituent part of the flight/journey. Nowadays you need to wait until the very end of the booking process until you know the real comparison cost between various airlines as each one charges slightly differnetly for each thing. Apparently it's what the customer wants!!

It's what they tell you you want.

PIA's Saturday service is reinstated on 13/2/10.




S78

Apparently, the longer the booking process and the more add ons, the less likely the customer will cancel and start again elsewhere.

Sounds a bit counter intuitive, but I guess the more trouble you've gone to to arrange a trip, the less likely you are to want to start over again with the competition, especially if you don't know what the final cost will be on the next website.

I'm not sure this really is what we want, we are merely being told that it is by the marketeers.

I have the perfect counter to their little ploys............I never use them....:*;)

Reported on a local forum but taken from the bbc - bhx bound this month.

BBC News - 'No scan, no flight' at Heathrow and Manchester (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8490860.stm)

Probably will affect my family as we are off to the USA this year!

Not a particulary nice thought in respect of how it works but neither
is the potential of the alternative.

Pete

I think there has been a lot of rubbish in the press over this...Only one operator in a separate room will view these images. That person will be changed regularly for obvious reasons. There won't be loads of giggling individuals there for the laugh. With the thousands of passengers passing through the scanners can anyone really believe they are going to be interested in anything other than contra indications??? It seems people are OK with someone invading their personal space and touching them, but, when it comes to a blurry image...Well!:)
I hate all of these security systems, but if it speeds up the damn process, get them on the staff access points.

Any news on the opening date?

EK lounge I think is around 05th March with official opening a few weeks later by some famous cricket player I understand ? not 100% though.

A6-ECY been in 4 days on the row now, only delivered 27th Jan - Nice to have a nice new B777 on the route!

I believe decicated to BHX at present so you will probably get a bit sick of it

Ian B

Anyone know whether this new aircraft has the full flat beds in J?

Quote from another site
Emirates upgrades Business Class http://www.flyintobhx.co.uk/update.JPG
Emirates have now upgraded their lunchtime service (EK039/040) to the new re-configured High-density (HD) cabin with new "lie flat" seats in Business Class. This new configuration is initially being offered in the UK market with Birmingham being the first route to be upgraded! Currently 2 brand new 777-300ER's have this new configuration (both A6-ECY/ECZ*) with the latter yet to be delivered. A6-EBD is also being re-configured at this time. (new config: 42J/386Y).

The evening service will remain operated by mostly Low-density (LD) 777-300ER's until September 2010 when this service also gets an upgrade to a HD aircraft.

Why would you need a full flat bed on a 5 hour flight anyway?

UK - Dubai is about 7 hours each way normally

The introduction of the lie flat bed in Business is something EK should have done years ago, their current Business product is way behind BA, VS and EY. Still better late than never and a sure sign of a strong commitment to BHX, lie flat business beds and the opening of a dedicated lounge. Although it may be some time yet, I can see a third daily flight in the future, unless another carrier gets in there first - EY and QR must have looked/been looking seriously at BHX but don't seem to have gone much further than that :(

Emirates have now upgraded their lunchtime service (EK039/040) to the new re-configured High-density (HD) cabin

Does this mean more Y seats down the back and less legroom now?

crewmeal

It is an "upgrade" in the product on offer to business class passengers
and a short-term downgrade in the number of daily seats on sale from bhx until the HD 77W starts in September on EK37/8.

EK39/40 was a 442 seat aircraft although over the last year I believe
various aircraft have been used but mainly the 442 and 427 config.

I am not sure if there is more space in economy with 386 seats than
there what was on offer on the 42/400 config. I would imagine the extra space is given over to business to get the lie-flats in.

GayFriendly

With EK pax fast approaching 40000 per month I am amazed that EY or QR are not looking at the situation carefully. EY have nailed their colours to
the mast recently with the intention to increase Dublin and upgrade MAN
to the 777 and there are rumours that QR are looking to upgrade their Manchester service to a 777 as well.

QR's two rumoured new European destinations have been announced as Barcelona and Copenhagen but they are for Spring and with several new 777's due this year more routes are on the cards. Although I believe they have justannounced a Brazillian destination although that will be a 77L.

I suppose it is a lot cheaper to increase an existing airport than "risking" a new destination not too far away with all the associated marketing costs.

The one advantage QR would have is probably 100 transits pax per day (say 4 x a week) to Amritsar without even having to do much.

I believe Doha - Amritsar goes daily soon and if Mahan Air is now averaging 160 per flight via Tehran, I would think QR could poach some of these although I would imagine there would be a difference between the fares charged.

However where would you prefer to fly Doha - BHX or Tehran - Honily?:E

Pete

Pete - Tehran would be a lot more fun! ;) I don't get why Mahan didn't re-introduce MAN at the same time; obviously BHX provided richer pickings.

jongeman

Honily can be quite pleasant on a summers afternoon but not much use for connections!

Indeed the last time Mahan Air operated, the Manchester service was carrying more pax than the BHX service but I assume that this time round they have got more contracts with local agents and although not exclusively for Amritsar connections it has probably helped with Air India out of the way.

Pete

A modestly sized airport off the M42 in Birmingham could become a serious competitor to Heathrow (http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/heathrow) under government plans for a 200mph high-speed rail network.
A site near Birmingham International airport is being considered as a station on a new route that will link Britain's largest cities by a 50-minute train ride, according to rail industry sources. If the government pushes ahead with the plan it would take no longer to reach Britain's sixth largest airport from London's Euston station than it currently takes to get to Heathrow.

Dan Milmo: 'To fly from Birmingham rather than congested Heathrow' Link to this audio (http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/audio/2010/feb/08/birmingham-airport-expand-rail-link)
The route would see the line emerging from Euston before travelling to Old Oak Common in west London where an interchange would link the route to Heathrow airport and Crossrail, a £16bn rail service joining Heathrow to Canary Wharf due to open in 2017.
The line would then sweep through Buckinghamshire to the West Midlands where a parkway station, where drivers can park their vehicles and use buses to complete their journey, would be built near Birmingham International and the nearby National Exhibition Centre.
The first phase of the line, which the government hopes will become part of a UK-wide network, will terminate at a new station in Birmingham city centre but the main spur would continue up from Birmingham International through Trent Valley to join the west coast line north of Birmingham, where the services would continue at conventional speeds to Manchester and Scotland.
Ministers are particularly sensitive about where the route goes once it emerges from London because the line is expected to go through a section of the Chiltern hills in Buckinghamshire – one of 40 areas of outstanding natural beauty in England and Wales. The Chilterns Conservation Board, the public body responsible for protecting the area, has warned that parts of the countryside could be "trashed" by a high-speed route.
A 1,000-page report compiled by High Speed Two, a government-backed company, was delivered last year to the transport secretary, Lord Adonis, including a detailed plan for the first phase placing the tracks within five metres in urban areas and 25 metres in the countryside.
It will include three broad proposals for a UK-wide network that would reduce the journey time from London to Edinburgh from four-and-a-half hours to two hours 40 minutes. London to Birmingham is expected to take 50 minutes using a service that will carry 18 trains per hour. Adonis is due to publish the report before the end of March, with construction on the first phase due to begin in 2017 and finish in 2025. A spokesman for Birmingham International said the airport had received no "formal or informal" indications that it will be on the high speed route, but added that a strong case exists for making it part of a new rail network because it will allow the airport to win back Midlands passengers who use Heathrow.
Birmingham International airport plans to nearly treble in size from 9.2 million passengers per year to 27 million by 2030 without adding a new runway. Instead, it is building a 400m runway extension that will allow the airport to host planes with heavier fuel loads, opening up destinations such as San Francisco and China.
A spokesman said that airports such as Manchester, Newcastle and Glasgow would also benefit.
Birmingham International broke ranks with the aviation industry last year to lambast the government's apparent obsession with Britain's largest airport. Birmingham International's chief executive, Paul Kehoe, said it was "preposterous" to let Heathrow develop further.
He added: "Heathrow sucks in traffic, we have to support it and if you don't support it you are made to look like climate change deniers."
A report by the Committee on Climate Change, a government advisory panel, has made the case for a third runway at Heathrow by forecasting that British airports can handle up to 140 million more passengers per year ‑ which would allow at least four runways at Heathrow ‑ by 2050.
However, connecting Birmingham International to a high-speed rail line would suit the Conservative party, which has pledged to block a third runway and build an ultra-fast rail network instead. The shadow transport secretary, Theresa Villiers, expects regional airports such as Birmingham to soak up the airport growth permitted by the government's advisory body on climate change. The committee said that UK airports could add 140 million travellers per year, on top of 230 million currently, without breaching the government's target of limiting aviation's carbon dioxide emissions to 2005 levels by 2050.
BAA (http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/baa), the owner of Heathrow airport, said any attempt to transform Birmingham International airport into a serious competitor would not work.
Heathrow connects 66 million passengers per year to 181 destinations around the world thanks to its two runways, while an attempt by British Airways to turn single-runway Gatwick airport into an alternative hub was a failure, it said. BAA executives estimate that 1.5 million people per year use Birmingham airport to fly to major European airports such as Frankfurt, Paris Charles de Gaulle and Amsterdam Schiphol and believe that establishing a high-speed link between Birmingham and Heathrow would see those travellers come to Heathrow instead.
A Department for Transport spokesman said the Birmingham airport station was "complete speculation".
He added: "We have yet to reach a view about specific routes. If the government decides to go ahead with plans for high-speed rail, it will publish a white paper by the end of March."

At the end of the day it will be down to cost.....If Brum is cheaper then it will be used. I doubt it will make much difference initially to the resident population. They need their habits changing. Some, especially business pax, don't put any thought into how to get to any particular destination....However it may influence incoming pax to look at BHX. I think the shuttle service that serves Birmingham International station will have to be extended to the new station or a new link put in to make it complete....I suppose, along with the runway extension, it won't do us any harm. Only time will tell and it's that far off I don't think I'll worry about the effects, positive or negative at this time.....

AI - are apparently looking for a new hub in Europe to operate through, FRA (its current hub) has been cited as too expensive. DUB currently in the frame which seems a crackpot idea unless they are looking simply to make a plain tech stop (in which case it will come down to whoever is cheapest with available slots?). If they are looking to make a true hub style operation then sadly BHX I don't think has a chance even with the new pier, it is let down by runway length constraints as AI fly to west coast US. PIA did OK when they used BHX for YYZ and ORD stops en route but I seem to remember they were really only tech stops with very few pax being picked up or dropped off at BHX. I'm sure AI could make a three weekly BHX-ATQ-DEL work but sadly they don't seem to think so despite their now infamous quote made after they pulled out in 2009 'we haven't forgotten about Birmingham'. I hope BHX lobbies hard for this one, having worked with AI before could be an advantage although MAN will provide extremely strong competition me thinks.

FR - another a/c for EDI making six. Obviously BAA are more cozy to work with than BHX......and a new hangar at PIK, so all that blarney about 50 routes and a new hangar was exactly that, pure blarney. BHX needs a much more committed loco operator, I think FR have really let BHX down. Question is - who? WW and Jet2 committed to EMA, EZY just not interested in the Midlands and BE happy to stick with tried and tested routes (admittedly they have greatly expanded their French offerings from BHX this summer albeit only for six weeks or so). EDI surely will overtake BHX in pax figures this year?

The "obvious" choice is MAN .....!
...with a massive infrastructure already in place !

The Dub option may simply be posturing on price .

GayFriendly

I agree if AI are going to want to fly to SFO, LAX or YVR to tap into the
expat market then BHX is a non-starter until the runway is extended.

Manchester can't offer as much VFR traffic in the UK but pax might travel up from the West Mids, Leicester and Warwickshire but that is a gamble. However in the UK there is little alternative and as I said on the Manchester thread I am sure they will knocking on AI's door.

Also VFR traffic can be low yielding and it might not be a consideration but surely it all helps? However Jet use Brussels as their hub but I am unsure how successful that is although it is mainly A330's now compared to several 777's originally (I have now idea if there is much of a local ex-pat community).

FR

I compared some November loads between EDI & BHX using the CAA
punctuality stats and both were as bad as each other although there is no information on yields and average spend on board which would also be needed to get a better picture.

As I have said before I believe the routes dropped by FR were in the main
understandable, it was the original choice which was questionable.

Pete

If you consider the facilities BHX has to offer in two different forms, then it is clear where the bar to development and expansion lies.
Firstly for the passenger in terms of current infrastructure: terminal facilities, accessibility by road, rail or bus and its central local within the UK and proximity to ethnic strongholds are all very good, much better than most if not all other UK airports.
However, facilities for airlines wishing to develop routes and hubs are limited through the length of the runway.
This was, is and will remain the major stumbling block at BHX up and until the airport's management tackle the problem.
No extended runway, no major development. It is as simple as that.

No extended runway, no major development. It is as simple as that.


Monty Gordo, you've hit the nail on totally on the head. Funnily enough, I'm watching "Field of Dreams" on ITV as I write this. Classic quote from the film:

"If you build it, they will come".

The stumbling block (as always) is who will fund the project? Kehoe and team are trying their hardest to secure funding. Investment banks don't seem to want to lend. Further downturn in ATM's, pax figures expected this year. You can't blame banks for not wanting to lend.

Let's hope the Canadian Teachers Pension fund and Austrailians read these threads and inject some money into what is undoubtedly a long term investment. :ok:

"If you build it, they will come".

:ok:
Coventry wouldn't agree with that!!!:) Anyway, the main stumbling block for the development would appear to be the funding for the re-routing of the A45.
Advantage West Midlands have something like £25 million for the project but current EU rules say this is Government money, therefore, forbidden.
The extension will not be up and running until at least 2014 now, so any speculation about long haul hubs will remain just that....
I'm sure BHX, along with many other airports at this time, would just be grateful for an upturn to the pre crunch levels of business.....

Advantage West Midlands have something like £25 million for the project but current EU rules say this is Government money, therefore, forbidden.



How weird? Newquay Airport has EC money as it was deemed that it's crucial to Cornwall's Development. See below

EC Funding (£24.3m) for Newquay airport is approved (http://airportwatch.org.uk/news/detail.php?art_id=3381)

West Midlands has had a constant battering over the years: Rover, HP, Cadbury etc and whoever next JLR?? Industrial decay, regression, destruction of the area. Doesn't seem right that BIA can't have this money.

Maybe BIA should start buying lotto and euro tickets from Spar LOL

It is inevitable that at some stae BHX will get an extended runway and, conversely, the A45 will be re-routed; each being funded from different sources.
If that is to be the case why then should the project not be completed in two phases. If the controlling management at BHX can with the Canadian Teachers Fund and the Australians secure funding, proceed with as much if not all of the runway extension that lies within the airport bounday in the knowledge that clearly no extension could be brought into use until the A45 was diverted.
Madness or radical thinking I don't know. But once any work was started within the airport, it would certainly drive forward the need to find a rapid solution to the other vital and essential element in this equation - the road works. And it could shorten the time taken in the overall construction.

"If you build it, they will come".

....yes but they might all go again when the times get hard...!

As I have said before on the BHX forum, careful for what you wish for !

The payments for investment at MAN especially on RW2 will go on for years and is clearly having a detrimental effect on other areas such as lighting, taxiways etc.

BMI Baby Barcelona not bookable after 7/6/2010?

Hopefully just a time change but it is not looking good.

On the positive side, Emirates are still operating quite a few
High Density 77W's on EK37/8.

PK791/2 on Saturdays returned yesterday as a 772, complimenting
the 77W on Sunday, Tuesday & Thursday.

Pete

So, Barcelona - yet another destination that seems will be disappearing from the departure and arrival screens.

The route development consultancy, employed by BHX at no doubt great expense (and at a time when jobs that matter to the traveling public, like the Information Desk, are being culled) i'm sure have a plan up their sleeves :mad:

I noticed the new security equipment (automated rollers/scanners etc) currently being installed at T1 this morning. Looks like positions 3/4 are complete with 1/2 and 5/6 yet to be started. From experience at Manchester (where the exact same equipment has been in place for some time) the new system tends to be a little slower than the traditional belts. That being said, it's a bit more organised and efficient for the staff - so swings and roundabouts I guess.

Source: CAA

519716 for January down 7.4% and rolling 12 months 9051612 down 5.4%

This is probably not as bad as I thought, as there was quite a few weather cancellations during the month.

Luton 529105 down 8.1% and rolling 9068416

EDI 513357 down 8-9%? rolling 9002956.

East Mids down 17.6%, Bristol down 9.1%

The difference is that most other airports are adding aircraft for summer
but BHX will be losing two Baby compared to last summer and less FR
flights although four based still.

Pete

The Emirates lounge was open for selected airport staff to come and have a look around yesterday, I believe it was open today for passengers. From what I heard a soft opening and then an official launch later.

Anybody have any news or reaction from the passengers. Ive seen it and it is quite nice and comfy inside. Shame about the view though. Would have been better with a view of the other side in my opinion

Mahan air are intending to upgrade the bhx service to a A343 in the future after
signing a lease on the Hifly a/c CSTQM. A/c is in IKA for repainting. We
(servisair/aviance) have received a seat map and all weights etc in order to do
loadsheets n check in..
Will let all know what services these are on once relevant emails are received...

What I cannot understand is why an Ethihad or the like are not looking at bhx and getting in on the action.. EK and now W5 are in a sense printing money ex bhx..

Baz

What I cannot understand is why an Ethihad or the like are not looking at bhx and getting in on the action.. EK and now W5 are in a sense printing money ex bhx..



This I agree is a total mystery........but for some reason the figures for EY and QR can't or don't add up ex BHX - or maybe the airport cannot offer what they want or at a price they are prepared to pay? At least Mahan are making a real go of things, I was sceptical when I heard they were coming back to BHX, although IF either QR or EY ever did start will there be enough pax to go round for all?

As for other airlines BHX seems well off the radar of all - I see Norwegian are starting EDI and LGW-ARN, both routes served by FR (admittedly to Vasteras not Arlanda). No one serves this route to either airport from BHX.......yes, the routes consultancy are certainly worth the exorbitant fees they no doubt charge ;)

I must admit Emirates must be quite satisfied with the lack of real competition at BHX but whether there is enough pax to go round if
EY or QR entered the fray is a good question.

I would say that there definitely is if it was QR and they targeted
the obvious connection to their newish Amritsar service. Whether
these pax would provide a sustainable yield, I have no idea.

January which was an awful month generally produced 39728 pax to Dubai
and Tehran 5244 (175 per flight?).

The Dubai was the second highest ever but might include diverted
pax although this might balance out as one Gatwick diverted flight
operated the BHX EK38 one after the inbound EK37 diverted away.

38728 equates to 320 per flight and around 81% load factor.

This month is seeing a lot of upgrades on EK37/38 to 442 seat
aircraft, probably due to half-term.

Qatar would probably want about 225 pax per flight and say 17 flights
a month (4 a week), then this would be less than 8000 pax a month, which should be possible but would no doubt squeeze Mahan & Turkmen a bit as well as EK.

As for route development, it has gone backwards fast since the announcement of this outside company and it is something when
Norwegian see more mileage in competing with Ryanair at EDI than having a route to itself at BHX.

EDI is very strong in the summer months and it is understandable if it is a seasonal route but FR proved at BHX there is a market to Stockholm year-round, it was just unfortunate they could not get the yield on a 189 seater. Although I suppose DY would have the same problem with their aircraft.

Pete

Pete, You are right about the contracting out of the route harvesting...I don't know exactly how much we are paying them, but they are certainly not delivering anything of any significance.
I know it's a difficult market at the moment, but, I think the money should be saved and the process brought in house again.
BHX has masses of capacity at the moment, it's a shame it's not being taken...

call100

I get the impression that PK is not likely to tolerate a company not delivering? What is their exact role, anybody who has been around the
West Midlands for a while would generally know what routes are realistic,
the problem is persuading airlines to risk them in these difficult times.

Is this company dealing directly with the airlines or just advising
BHX of their options? I just do not see how this arrangement can be
justified unless it is just to identify future long-term markets which are currently untapped.

Personally I just want them to concentrate on delivering Madrid,
Rome, Venice, Berlin, Stockholm, Oslo and Athens and that is surely
just down to persuading an airline(s) to take the risk and PK should be
getting involved himself if things aren't progressing by delegation.

Pete

As I understand it this company is supposed to go out and get the routes for the airport. Not just advise.
As for PK, when he arrived and the Commercial Director left (varying reasons on how/why he left) he said he was taking on responsibility personally for routes. Then he hired this company. I don't find anyone that is impressed at the moment. That said, it is a difficult market at present so hoping for some good news in the long term.....Geez I want to be positive!! It's so damn hard these days!!!:(

Personally I just want them to concentrate on delivering (...) Berlin, Or Cologne ? :} It's quite clear that BER wouldn't work from BHX, plus it was tried and failed already (though not 5x like CGN). Just look at BE's loads even for FRA, which is a much better market in all respects. The small interest in BER from the Midlands are covered well by FR from EMA and EZY from LTN. I hope no airline is stupid enough to again waste money on trying BHX-BER Rome, Madrid, sure these could be different stories. But all those destinations are easily reachable with connections. BHX should focus on keeping existing routes.

jpthomas72

I don't agree re your comments re Berlin, I think the last time it stopped
was due to the fact the airline went under (DUO) and I am not the
only one although I am not sure about a full service operator.

The Route Shop | Birmingham International Airport (BHX/EGBB) (http://www.therouteshop.com/birmingham-airport/)

Okay Cologne is flagged up as well, which doesn't add to the credibility of the article but never mind, as the rest are pretty much as you would expect.

Under the BA franchise TXL was carrying over 3000 pax a month (CAA 2003)which averaged out at 36 a flight although it was lower under Duo.

However if it was a goldmine LH or BE would have tried it by now but it is a route made for ryanair or easyjet. Obviously the former is ruled out as you rightly say it is covered by them at East Mids. However easy has a base at SXF but they seem to be uninterested in BHX. So in the short-term it isn't going to happen but it is not looking good for the rest either.

flybe's Frankfurt to be fair does compete with LH and I was amazed that they kept it after the Connect takeover but yields are supposed to be good (if you believe what you are told) and the same goes for Stuttgart
(have you seen the CAA stats!!!!) and Dusseldorf.

Pete

The Routeshop pitch is saying nothing to potential airlines that the Marketing Team hadn't been saying for years. Very often they had airlines interested only to be thwarted by the bean counters who thought BA were going to stay and pay high pax rates forever. The consultancy not a stroke of genius, it is merely a method of turning fixed costs into variable costs in terms of route developments.

I wonder if BHX is going to be the airport remembered as the one that reached for the stars only to have the rug pulled from under its feet?

PGT499/500 Sundays Antalya 1640/1730 Suns 02/05 - 17/10

OltonPete,
(rant warning here !)
this is a nice analysis, but as usual people looking from the outside Germany believe Berlin is so interesting and powerful, which it isn't, esp its economy is very poor. EZY is not expanding there anymore, low yields and strike troubles. It's the capital on paper, but that's about it. So as I said, no carrier should waste money on trying BHX-BER (again, after DUO and BA Connect). EZY from LTN, BRS and LPL and FR from EMA will do just fine, plus various options from LON, and connections on LH, SAS etc. E.g. a year-round GVA would be a much more obvious option (ok, tried by EZY and also failed, now seasonal only again).
I've been on loads (>30) of FlyBE Frankfurt flights, and they are really empty (Mostly ~25 people, 40% max ?) even on Friday evenings. If they make money on this it's only due to OneWorld codeshare people coming in from FRA, e.g. Korean Air.
I'm actually doubting myself for still using FlyBE, Friday was again a bad mess with 3.5h delay (mechanical failure), so needed to pay 60 Euros for the hotel bed, I know FRA very well, some people might have been stranded. This happened quite a few times before (inbound was 3h late, though this was FRA's snow problem). FlyMayBE all over again. People booked into the 14:00 had it even worse, they had to spend 8 hours in Terminal 2. Somebody said she was close to paying LH the 400 GBP just to get out of BHX. OK, they had the airport closure, but that was 24h earlier. Remember SAS got rid of all their Q400's, I can now really see why. So for me it's back to the long train ride to STN for FR to HHN, at least they do fly, nearly always on time and they have proper 737's with jet engines. Sure the people at FlyBE do their best, but Q400's as just rubbish.
Sorry for the rant ! You win if somebody opens BER-BHX and managed to keep it open for more than 6 months...

jpthomas72

I must admit my knowledge of Berlin's economy is somewhat limited and take your points but it does have a certain appeal for city break purposes and I know that does limit the chances of success if that is all it has going for it but I believe that could be enough for FR or easy to make a go it.

However there is no chance of either at present or anybody else I would have thought.

Interesting comments re Frankfurt and flybe. The pax loads you have quoted tie-up with what I have been told and even with the super economics of the Q400 it does make you wonder how it survives at
three a day (in the week).

I have only flown on the Q400 twice times and suffered delays on both (one tech & one aircraft swap in Paris) and I can concur with what you are saying to some extent re reliability. However I enjoyed both my flights although they were 60 minutes or less.

I must admit seeing Cologne in the anna aero did make me smile.

Pete

'careful what you wish for' . Bagsco , you have said that on more than one occasion on the BHX thread relating to the costs incurred on building the 2nd RW at MAN now becoming a millstone round it's neck .MAN already had a perfectly adequate RW , one that BHX 'would wish for '. The plans at BHX to have a second runway together with an extension to the original one we have , i would like to believe , was a piece of reverse phsycology for the inevitable NIMBY protests if BHX had just put forward plans for the extension alone. They drop the idea of a 2nd RW (that would never have been really needed ) and low and behold , a success for the loud minority ! but in reality it was the plan for the RW extension and new ATC Tower that BHX really wanted. It's just a misfortune that they have a major trunk road at the bottom of their garden , or we wouldn't still be wishing for it , we would have had it years ago.

Trees are being cleared today in the area of the new tower, hopefully, work should start later the year.

The new tower is being built now because building is cheap because of the recession. Then it will be left for the interior fit at a later date. That's the plan at present anyway.

Great theory getonitt, but I can tell you that the late (and sorely missed) Richard Heard was very keen on the second runway - even if many of his senior colleagues were not! Remember, that plan was developed when the industry was back on the up after 9/11, boom and bust was a thing of the past(!) and it was assumed that airports would continue the growth curve into the future.

btw, anyone know what has happened to that bird island site? It was rather entertaining for a while...have those who spoke out left the party and those left had their testicles removed?:uhoh:

I've been told it's going to relaunch soon.........You are right, there is a lot of castrating going on.

Castration? They went further with the company report this year; the picture of the "businesswoman's leisure accessory" was taken out:)

Been told today that the Wednesday Mahan airlines flight will cease operating from 01st April, dont know whether its due to falling passenger numbers or due to aircraft resourse issues?

JK

Only dropping as iranian uk bilaterals only allow 7 weekly flights. Iran air reduce in winter time and hence mahan increased. Iran now want to increase there flights and mahan have to reduce! Pax figures are always full in n out hence the reason for the use of bigger a/c in the coming months.

Baz

The Ryanair schedule for summer seems finalised for the 28/03/10 onwards.

The gaps have been filled from May by the Girona based flight changing to a BHX based aircraft making a very ordinary schedule.

Turkish have moved their Tuesday flight to Saturday which eventually will see a slight capacity drop. The first two flights are showing as a 320 but then it reverts to a 737-700. Still rumours of it going daily for high summer.

High season flights also seem to be added with another Dalaman Thomas Cook on a "W" pattern for a Wednesday evening.

The best bit of schedule news won't exactly make passenger figures soar is the re-introduction of double daily Gothenberg by City Airline from mid April fitting
into their mini-hub with onward connections to Riga as well as Scandinavia.

Pete

Useful update OP but nothing to get really excited about. I suppose there are also the new flights to KEF (Iceland Express) and AYT (Pegasus) as well. Also good to see TK hanging on in there. However, compared to the expansion going on at other airports by FR, U2 and LS its going to be a very flat summer at BHX this year :(

Expect to see spanair operating to bhx in the summer from both BCN and MAD using a mix of a/c type from 717 to a321. Not sure wether these are scheduled flights or charters of behalf of of a tour operator. Flight numers are JK232 from BCN and JK231 to MAD..

Regards

Barry

GayFriendly

Another one I missed is the Aer Lingus increase on the Dublin to
four daily weekday flights and no response by Ryanair. Normally
they fight fire with fire but nothing this time (probably as well).

As I said on the Ryanair thread, FR route closures now over 33%
which is slightly above what Mr Crawley said about this subject
(7-10% failure rate for FR in general not BHX).

Luthansa winter is bookable and showing Dusseldorf back to four
daily but three flights are with CR2's, which are disappearing!!!!

The EMB190 returns on the first inbound Frankfurt and the Munich
reverts back to RJ85's as it is this winter but changes to CR9's
later in the month.

Still no official confimation of the Emirates HD 77W from 1/9/2010
on EK37 but they turn up anyway quite often during the month.

Pete

More changes and rumours.

BMI Baby EDI ends on 26/3/2010 - no surprise there then other than the short-notice.

However with the information posted earlier there could be good news re Spanair.

Pete

Nothing on Spanair website as of yet regarding BHX, however looking at the destinations they currently serve BHX is the right 'fit'. Leaving it late for a summer start though?? Anyway, keeping all crossed that these are indeed the scheduled services so badly needed and not just a series of charters. Someone mentioned they might be student flights.........

See the East Midlands and BmiBaby threads. Cologne is back, not only from EMA, but even from our very own BHX ! As it's really useful for me, I shouldn't moan too much that this is the 6th try to get CGN-BHX up. Starting 31st Oct, 6x weekly. This is probably the first expansion by WW in BHX for the past two years. Clearly an indication of LH's influence. I wish them the best of luck. It's a bit odd to have CGN now from MAN, EMA and BHX, but then the more choice the merrier. Note of course that CGN is 4U's main hub where they sell connection tickets, so this could also be serving the BHX-BER market as 4U and WW are now cousins.

The website does say more to come thank goodness.

Currently two aircraft based AMS & BFS Morning and evening with just
Knock in between on Mo, We, Fr, Su.

Only one BFS on Sunday but three Thursday & Friday
and no ALC, AGP, FAO, NCE or PMI.

However with the CGN timings as they are I suspect that the
gaps with be filled.

Geneva is the same as now 2 x Sat and 1 x Sun plus the peak
Mon & Fri services (New Year & Half Term).

The strangest is Prague, ends in early April to reappear for the
October half-term and that is it!!!

Pete

CAA figures

Fbruary 2010: 548346 -6.3% rolling year 9014372 -5.4%

ATM's 6173 - 9.8%

EDI has overtaken BHX on an annual basis with their rolling figure
9022434.

EDI will probably catch Luton although up in February their
rolling figure was 9078235.

The star of the show at BHX in February.........just one guess.

Emirates record high in the shortest month a staggering 42011 + 22%

Only 3500 behind MAN!

Pakistan International pax were up 29% to 8945 but not a record
and they added the 4th weekly flight back earlier this year I think.

Pete

Interesting Pete
as 45000 for MAN operating on aircraft that carry 427 only leaves 21 seats spare
and I have heard quite a few Manchester pax have been roaded down to BHX
as flights have been full and mainly business class at that.


Ian

Ian

I read that too and it might be true in some instances and I certainly have nothing to prove it otherwise. However EK37 on 19 occasions was a 442
seater rather than the usual 364 config. The EK19 on 14 of those dates
was a 427 seat aircraft.

You would think (subject to the inbound BHX load) that they would have
put the 442 seat plane on Manchester rather than BHX if they were transferring pax down on a regular basis. I know it is not always as simple as that on every occasion but it really depends on what kind of figures we are talking about.

EK17 was a 442 seat aircraft on 24 out of 25 flights showing on acarsd in February and there were a few on EK19 as well. Still about 93% load factor.

Pete

Pete, I think that as BHX is flavour of the year with Emirates it helps our cause.
Shame about the figures generally, Seems we are all suffering with the economic failures thrust upon us. (No pay rise..:sad::().
It looks like the general forecast going forward is a slight improvement. Fingers crossed, it can't last forever....:}

Call100
Looks as if big announcement for MAN by EK early April http://images.ibsrv.net/ibsrv/res/src:www.pprune.org/get/images/smilies/thumbs.gif

Has just got to be extra capacity

Ian B

A380's a shoe in at MAN from Spetember is the popular rumour, just to open a debate what would you prefer, an A380 daily plus the second daily 777, or a 3rd daily service with a 777 or 330 and no A380?

The suggestion for MAN is that in addition to the A380 starting up, the evening service is slanted to become a 3-class 777 which would appear to suggest they are just trying to max out yield from MAN? However, not too sure if that means that there may not be any increase in seating capacity for MAN unless they go for a 3rd service using an A330 as it appears easier to get more passengers paying for economy and having some cargo capability to make up for the A380s "problems". I imagine such a scenario will exist for BHX shortly.

Will be intersting to see what effect the proposed upgrades at MAN have on BHX loads for EK. I travelled twice this year so far from BHX on EK, both flights packed out on 773ER in Business and Economy. Interestingly, I sat next to MAN pax on both flights, not that they had booked MAN and been bussed doen but had booked BHX as it was much cheaper (on my last flight in March the guy said BHX-DXB-BKK was 150GBP cheaper than MAN-DXB-BKK)

As for BHX pax figures nothing unexpected there. more steps backwards before going forwards. 7th biggest airport this year me thinks as EDI have now overtaken. Will that get a press release???;)

Apart from LHR, many destinations with EK ex. MAN have a higher fare than the rest of their UK destinations.

There is a reason for that though...

Anybody a cargo expert?
What cargo load can EK B777 carry either ex BHX or MAN when flight full of pax?


Ian B

Great news for Manchester then (unless you want a cheap fare) if EK
are more expensive and filling the flights. That February load factor was hot.

BHX averaged 375 pax per flight at 88% (yes I went through each day to
check the config).

The February pax figures were actually quite good believe it or not and I
am sure BHX will be pushing double digit decreases this summer unless
something happens soon.

There are the usual horror figures such as Stuttgart & Milan but at least
late fares tend to hold up on these flights . Dusseldorf actually showed a
15% increase with one less flight but CR7/CR9's LH rather than CR2's,
Hanover was +29% and Lyon was up 24%

I will post all the schedule flights with averages in the next few days.

The other aspect I have noticed but whether it has affected the bottom
line (you would hope so) is that base fares were more expensive on some
airlines during February. Combined with less frequency than 2009 on some
routes and improving load factors, hopefully it has not been as traumatic compared to previous months with the weather etc.



Pete

Nice to see that the purpose built Emirates lounge at BHX is now open, with enough capacity for more than 100 pax, so plenty of room for expansion of flights from BHX for them, i assume a 2 class A380 has about 100 seats in biz class ?
With the pax figures that have been mentioned recently on the DXB route i wonder if there will be further expansion from BHX for EK before other airlines step in ..

I don't think they've revealed the 2 class configuration but I would imagine it's going to be no more than 70 business class seats.

Now bookable on Spanair's website from 56 euros each way.



S78

Just to add to S78's post

Barcelona starts Thursday 20/05/10 by the look of it

Dep BHX Mon 15.05
Dep BHX Tue 20.55
Dep BHX Thu 20.55
Dep BHX Fri 23.25

Madrid appears to start Saturday 22/5

Dep BHX Tu/Th/Sat 09.00.

I wonder if LH is behind this and will the flights be sold on baby and BMI's site?

Baby Barcelona ends 7/6/2010

Pete

I can't see LH being behind this move. Firstly LH have no stake in Spanair - they are just another Star Alliance partner. And SAS sold most of their stake so their influence is limited

Secondly Spanair are launching a number of new routes this summer to various European destinations, so new UK routes could be part of this wider expansion

I'm guessing a bmi codeshare could be expected though

Spanair Announces Birmingham as First UK Scheduled launch Airport

17 March 2010
Spanair has chosen Birmingham Airport to launch its first scheduled operation in the UK with new flights to Barcelona and Madrid starting in May. Barcelona will be served four times per week each Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday starting on 20th May and Madrid will operate three times a week each Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday from the 25th May 2010.

Spanair, a member of the Star Alliance network, will operate an Airbus A320 aircraft with 168 seats, which will be split into Business and Economy cabins on board. Timings have been scheduled to meet business and leisure travellers’ needs and both destinations will be served all year round.

Although Madrid previously operated from Birmingham until October 2008 it is currently unavailable from the Midlands region. Moreover, the current Barcelona service offered by bmibaby from Birmingham is planned to cease on the 7th June so travellers will not be left short of flights to this popular destination.

Paul Kehoe, Birmingham Airport’s CEO, said, “From May we will provide the only direct Madrid service south of Liverpool and north of Watford Gap and with the excellent road and rail access to Birmingham it’s a no brainer for people wanting to reach Spain’s capital city from this stretch of the country. We are obviously delighted too with the news that Barcelona will continue to be available for our passengers once the current service stops in June.

“Although it’s not clear if news like this is the early signs of economic recovering, it certainly demonstrates that the industry has confidence in Birmingham so we are delighted to have been chosen as the first airport in the UK where Spanair will start operating scheduled flights. We believe that once people experience the benefits of travelling from central England’s global gateway they with continue to choose Birmingham for a hassle free air travel experience, benefitting from the 140 plus destinations already available worldwide. We welcome the carrier to the Midlands and I encourage the region to support both routes to help show other airlines to show that the Heart of England is a safe bet for expanding their future operations.”

Spanair CEO Mike Szucs commented: “With the introduction of these new routes from Birmingham, Spanair is delighted to create a year-round gateway to Spain from the Heart of England. Via our hubs in Barcelona and Madrid, passengers will enjoy connections to a range of Spanish peninsula cities and Islands, which they could otherwise only reach during the peak season with low cost carriers and charter flights. With competitive fares, a free baggage allowance and allocated seating, Spanair offers tremendous value to leisure travellers, while allowing business travellers to fly direct to Spain’s leading business centres in Barcelona and Madrid without enduring the hassle of London’s airports or connecting flights. We are very much looking forward to filling the gap left by low cost and full service airlines on these important routes for the Midlands region.”

Spanair will also offer onward flights from Barcelona and Madrid across its scheduled network in mainland Spain, the Balearics and Canaries Islands as well as North Africa, increasing the 300 plus one-stop flights currently available from Birmingham.

Spanair has currently 16 codeshare agreements with Air Canada, airBaltic, Air Europa, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, EgyptAir, EstonianAir, LOT Polish Airlines, Lufthansa, SAS, SWISS, TAP Portugal, THAI, Turkish Airlines, Singapore Airlines and US Airways. The airline has previously operated charter flights from Birmingham.

Lead in fares start from £69 return including taxes and charges (can vary with changing exchange rates) and can be booked via www.spanair.com (http://www.spanair.com/)

Yesterday at approximately 1630, promotional photos were being taken. There was dhol players in the full traditional garments, along with people from the airport.

Are these promo photos for a new India route. Can anybody shed any light?

Thats rather a tenuous link.


Centre cities

There was dhol players in the full traditional garments

I knew it! Those senior execs will do anything Kehoe suggests!:ok: