Originally Posted by
hatton
How to rescue Flybe:
1) Bring back Saad
2 Get rid of the Jets
3)Focus on Belfast, Birmingham, Exeter, Glasgow, Manchester and Southampton. Close all other bases and cut routes that are loss makers.
4) Sell or park non Q400 fleet.
5) Sell simulators and out source line and base maintenance.
Can't really agree with any of that i'm afraid and Saad will most definitely not return.
Yes the E195s need to go and the sooner the better. The rest of the fleet though is a pretty perfect fit for their operations IF of course utilised in the most efficient way.
As for maintenance, it's not always the most cost effective way to outsource everything as much as some would have you believe. If anything, BE should be looking at bringing more of their A/B checks back in-house. I believe MAEL in BHX are currently taking care of that. There's also money to be made with the Flybe Airline Services operation with other Bombardier, BAE/Avro and Embraer operators often heading to them in Exeter for work.
Originally Posted by
hatton
Why not have Eastern operate from bases like Cardiff and Aberdeen with J41s as part of the franchise deal?
I agree. The Eastern Airways / Flybe franchise really hasn't been used to the best of it's potential. Eastern could really have used the power of the BE brand and online selling services with opening up new routes as well it automatically expanding the Flybe network. However, as another poster has mentioned, it seems they themselves have been struggling with crewing issues. Perhaps had they planned more prospects and had more work generated at an earlier stage of the franchise, these issues may not have been the case with crew seeing a more positive and ambitious future...
As for bases, If it wasn't for the LHR route, ABZ could have been a contender to close as a BE base. Flybe operations could continue on based Eastern aircraft and away based Flybe aircraft. The only other realistic contender as a base closure would be DUS. The only benefit of this base is the early morning arrival into LCY which it too is competing directly with BA Cityflyer (ironically operated by Eastern Airways). All other routes to and from DUS can be operated with UK-based aircraft.
There's a lot of things BE need to work on to get itself into ship shape efficient order, but it needs to do so now, much more quickly! The roll out of the new Amadeus systems has been a start, but that itself is progressing rather slowly. Increasing ancillary revenues through the booking engine and operating model should also be looked. Other than the checked-in baggage charges they must be the least pushy airline when it comes to extra fee's and service offerings. Finally and following on from that, they need to aim to be a high quality low-fare regional airline. Something they are trying to be but also seem scared to fully admit to as they continue to cling on to a lot of legacy. Aircraft utilisation, old fashioned scheduling methods coupled with old fashioned overheads such as aircraft cleaning during turnarounds etc all need looking into. Its needed to make the operation much leaner and a more efficient operation if they are to survive as a sizeable operation.