Originally Posted by
SWBKCB
I follow this thread because I've always found SOU a conundrum - good transport links, affluent catchment area but struggles to attract airlines to serve routes that look like winners. We are told that MAN is a good route, Eastern operate it intermittently. Paris is a good route but Eastern operate it as a slot sitter. EZY pile in on GVA during the winter but haven't committed to anything else. The Channel Islands operate consistently as do the Scottish routes and NCL. Maybe the current runway length is more of a constraint than we think - interesting times.
Great points, but SOU lost Flybe, and then Covid killed the cat.
SOU was very much a Businessman's ''go to'' airport - so as you say MAN, GLA, EDI, BFS, DUB were all once very busy, plus the KLM/AF Interline hubs at AMS and CDG.
The historical Channel Islands routes have been flown from SOU since BEA's Dragon Rapide days lol.
Long may they continue.
Businessman and many workers, now sit on their fat behinds and work from Home; costly Business Travel expenses are now frowned upon by their Accounts Departments.
It's now 'Zoom' this, and 'Teams' that (yuk)
As for SOU-Geneva and Easyjet --- This route flown in the peak ski-winter is a cash cow for them, with flights from BOH and now SEN too, for the cash rich Skiers.
The EZY GVA base and the aircraft is operated by Easyjet Switzerland.
A summer series could be attractive, as could Basel and Zurich too (all Easyjet Switzerland bases)
Any other EZY expansion at SOU will come from Easyjet Europe bases, such as PMI FAO and AGP etc.
The KLM AMS is now twice daily, and I am using it myself next month, flying VCE-AMS-SOU in Biz.
Eastern Airways have been playing games at SOU with MAN, & the ORY is a disaster.
I wanted to book MAN (I actually want to go to LPL) but MAN is now canned,
so I am flying SOU to LPL via JER (Blue Islands and EZY)
Or I can fly from EXT to LPL, via JER or even BFS,
and I still get there quicker than taking the train or driving.