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Old 28th Nov 2020, 15:39
  #12 (permalink)  
roverman
 
Join Date: Jul 2004
Location: Manchester, England
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Thanks to all for the gentlemanly debate. Just to clarify some of my points I wasn't suggesting that MAN pay no attention to domestic and European traffic, just cautioning against the pursuit of target volumes achieved by pricing and deals which lead to multiple carriers serving similar destinations at low yields. 20mppa in 2030 need not be a failure, the measure will be do we have the flights to the key destinations/hubs and the network connectivity which will provide real economic benefit. Travelling back and forth frequently to holiday homes in the Med will not achieve that and I believe it will become increasingly taxed and seen as socially irresponsible. Of course it's important that we have good links in to the hubs and the secondary cities of Europe as well as a decent choice for UK holidaymakers to popular resorts for annual holidays. MAN was built up on package tour flights alongside the flag carriers and that will always be important. Call me naive but I see LIverpool as a complimentary airport, not a competitor. They're 30 miles apart after all. The whole Northern Powerhouse concept is cemented on the idea that the cities / city regions of the North work together, finding out who can do what best. That means setting aside some rivalries and duplication because these only serve to undermine the bigger picture. Liverpool and Hull are our great sea port assets. Manchester has the airport with the facilities and ground transport links best placed to connect the North globally rather than through Heathrow as some would wish. LPL plays a complimentary role in enabling certain very popular leisure services to be facilitated as well as GA and perhaps cargo. It's ok in my mind for MAN to say sometimes 'sorry we can't offer you slots at a bargain rate as it doesn't fit our required return on investment'. LPL with a lower cost base can pick up that traffic, and if it means MAN 'loses' some traffic, then so be it. The North still gets the benefit. On long-haul, the coming of Code C single-aisle aircraft types to 7-8 hour sectors opens the possibility of greater North American service as well as in to Africa and the Middle East. That's exciting.
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