Originally Posted by
Dannyboy39
Dare I say that 2 spare aircraft for a fleet of 80 was never going to be enough? I’d argue, especially in the summer season you need 1 spare for every 20. Especially at the levels of utilisation needed in the high season.
I totally agree that two standby aircraft, one long haul and one short haul, for a fleet of eighty aircraft is ridiculous. Someone needs to be held accountable for that decision. While the cost of additional aircraft and crews needs to be accounted for, the financial decision is made much easier to justify by the cost of goodwill and EU261 payments that would accrue without the standby aircraft.
I also totally agree with comments about the Government’s culpability in all this. It was not just furlough payments that the industry needed help on. It needed more help to recapitalise given the stream of money that floods out of the door in respect of leasing payments and other costs without revenues flooding the other way during a period most aircraft were not flying. Similarly for airports, although their situation was more to do with interest payments on the debt in their businesses. The Government did not get it at the time, and still clearly does not. If I were Grant Shapps, I would roll my neck back in on this. It is not all the airports and airlines and their agents fault. We are here because the Government never really engaged with the industry and worked in partnership to see it through to better times. It appeared a very confrontational relationship, which left me wondering whether it was being driven from an environmental perspective rather than what was best for UK plc in these difficult times. I suspect one or two people might have been burnishing their environmental credentials if it ever got to a Cabinet discussion about the matter, but who knows.
We are where we are. The industry is always great at working in a crisis. This one needs to be sorted as quickly as possible, as there are already a lot of people out there who are saying, “you know what, I can’t be bothered with going abroad this year”. You would be surprised how many are saying this but that is what I am hearing a lot in my job, it is not a small number and every time it comes up in the papers or on TV more form the same view. Winning them back next year, and others who have had a bad experience this year, may not be easy and the work has to start now by getting this turned round and sharpish.
Finally, this Government is loving the opportunity to keep other news off the front page so, perhaps, no surprise Shapps has been particularly vocal in recent days. I trust voters will not forget when the next time comes to vote for our elected representatives. We need decent, honourable politicians who put the needs of the country, and not themselves, first. At present, Ministers want to cling on in their comparatively well paid positions as, without Boris, where would they be?
Rant over!