Originally Posted by
The Nutts Mutts
I know it's fun to engage in speculation, but surely there won't be too long to wait to find out what if any new airlines/routes SOU will see in S23.
If SOU plan to have the extension operational by April next year then it'll be available for summer operations, and those flights will go on sale over the next few weeks/months. So I reckon by the end of October/November we should have an idea of any new players entering the SOU market.
Just to reaffirm that the 737-800NG (Ryanair TUI, Alba Star, Air Europa, and Jet2) and the A321 (Jet2 EZY etc etc) cannot economically fly in or out of SOU -
By that it means taking a full or nearly full
ECONOMICAL load of 189 or 210 Passengers and their luggage on or off the runway at SOU
without Payload restrictions -
Even with the new 164m extension.
Some here mention Southend - SOU is not SEN;
SOU has differing and restrictive approach/landing and take off/clearways/noise criteria to add in to the calculations which restricts the 738 and A321.
Yes, we have seen both types at SOU in the past but these flights are usually Football, Lapland, or special charters/one-offs.
This affirmation is from the SOU Ops Directors own dialogue recently, and in 2021.
MOL also said 2 years ago that we (RYR)
cannot go to SOU with our aircraft - and with that he clearly means ''without a weight penalty'' -
something which RYR would not regularly counter in their business model.
All SOU can attract and they have said that as much see the following taken from their own Master Plan published 2017. (MP covers 2017-2037)
(Obviously written before Flybe collapse and the Pandemic)
quote -
''Offering our airlines in the medium termis traffic forecast based on the level of market capture of passenger demand within the Southampton Airport catchment area.
Due to the short length of the existing runway, Southampton Airport currently has a limited route network range with services primarily provided by regional airlines such as Flybe operating medium sized (70-120 seats) regional aircraft such as Bombardier Q400 and Embraer 175/195 jets.
The main assumption made for the medium term forecast is that a runway starter extension would allow the larger narrow-body aircraft, being the current types of the Airbus A319/A320 and possibly the Boeing 737-800 with 150-190 seats, to operate without major payload restrictions to a more distant and much wider route network from Southampton Airport, covering a range of European destinations.
The investment in the runway starter extension should enable Southampton Airport to attract new carriers to both capture existing demand and stimulate significant traffic growth. This additional traffic would in the main be passengers from the Southampton Airport existing catchment who currently fly primarily from the London airports, since the destinations are not currently served from Southampton Airport.Southampton Airport has for many years lagged behind other UK regionals''
-
unquote
So pre-Pandemic the above quoted shows clearly what SOU wanted to attract,
but now (5 years on) of course we see a whole different aviation world
emerge, for now.
The runway
cannot go beyond the current length with the planned 164m extension - that is clearly shown on the land maps of the Master Plan up to 2037.
There is no more land they can take.
If they do not start building works very soon, now that Appeals debacle (?) hopefully is finally over, then when do we see the extended runway operational>?
next summer or summer 2024>?
Anyone planning to operate for next summer needs to starts planning now - with no extra Tarmac going down, then my money is on 2 years time.