Originally Posted by
Cozy F
Assume this idea about US Clearance has come from the U.K. political discussions.
I have ties and connections to Belfast and would love to see travel and tourism really flourish there. Alas I really don’t see any legs in this 😏
I’ve used Belfast Int a lot over the years, mainly because I favour easyJet and all their flts were there. But as ezy have started to serve City airport I’ve used it some more and I have to say it is a really simple and pleasant airport.
i’ve also been to and thru Dublin on a couple of trips in the last year and I hadn’t been there in years. It is frankly mind boggling how much investment and development there is in Dublin airport. There are so many airlines and flts if now compares well to any airport I can think of in the world.
I went through Belfast just last week and there does seem to be some work and construction taking place but overall it is a depressing experience. Ther place looked shabby and dirty and there were untended weeds growing out of the building and that was before you drive out along the road with all the cars jostling to park among the potholes. I’m afraid it does not offer a 21st century welcome to visitors and with Dublin so well served and not very far away down a good road if is really difficult to see how Belfast Int could ever really develop any major services unless it was rebuilt and a huge amount of investment put into it to make it appealing.
to be honest it might be a bigger benefit to Belfast if ezy continued to add more service at the City Airport.
I can't understand BFS prioritising the building of a new "arrivals building" - you just get your bags and leave, either with hire car keys or to the bus, taxi or car park. Who wants to hang about? Maintenance has been neglected for years because the previous owners were fattening the accounts to sell it, but once inside the publ areas aren't bad. Its the lounges that are a joke. The old shuttle lounge for 180 people on a 757 now has three cattle containment areas for 3x 320 with more than 180 seats each. When they get a bit full they open the gate so you can stand on the stirs for 15 minutes. Utterly shameful. Then there is the longwalk to the aircraft in the wind and rain. The could easily have extended the first floor out to the aircraft stands, leaving room underneath for baggage trucks etc. and created some big gate lounges with lots of seats - Bristol gate lounges are pretty good size.
The cars all parked up on the approach road are because the airport wants to milk them for parking like every other airport, the only way to stop it is to ban parking, better to have a waiting area tarmacked if there isn't room in the car parks. They could charge £1 and put in EV chargers. But common sense never prevails.