G’day jabird,
Paris – Yes. The attraction is Napoleon and Longwood House was gifted by the UK in perpetuity to France. Well-heeled US and French citizens do the Napoleon trail in substantial numbers already. Research suggests that if the fares were lowered from luxury liner cruise costs to viable airfare costs more people could afford it and would do it.
London – Yes. We have connexions despite the bad times and we have an English outlook on life and English currency, laws etc.
We are blacker skinned than any African or Caribbean but as England's last and remotest colony ruled by a Governor in ostrich plumes, white jacket and striped trousers we are prisoners of our colonial past and present. English to the core. Ahmoast, ma'an.
Andrew Weir Shipping at
http://www.aws.co.uk/raf_flights/ will show you that the 3800nm from Brize Norton to Ascension Island is charged at £928 per adult apex return. That gives you an idea what the market will bear.
As for the Falklands route I overstressed tourism. Please remember that many of us work there. So the need is for air access from home rather than having to wait for a sea-journey once a blue moon to Ascension and consequent loss of already low wages.
So on St Helena you will find more like 4500 people being largely supported by 1500 expatriot earning maybe £5000 a year on menial work. Nevertheless Saints remit money to the old and young at home and out of what is left have to pay for travel. So we need the shortest distance between the place of work and home.
You will find Saints at work for service industries, as communications people for such as the BBC, Merlin, C&W and also with contractors to the US and UK armed forces in England, Ascension, Antigua, Fort Lauderdale, the Falklands, Recife, South Africa and Namibia. But always at lower pay rates.
Shelco is not the only potential airline, just one of many, but is prominent in its wish to see the Saints prosper and not just provide tax-free perks for English expats which has been the case throughout the whole island employment history.
Some of these air access routes are touristy but some are plain old-fashioned connexions with day-to-day business and human needs. Which brings me back to humane necessities. If you fall seriously ill on St Helena and major surgery is required, you die. And instead of scrimping and saving for years to make a sea-passage home (or abroad to work now that the British passports withdrawn by Maggie Thatcher have been restored) at huge cost and for weeks on end, (such as only the wealthy can afford), Saints will likely find the cost of air travel manageable.
Landing strips are not on, I’m afraid. This is ETOPs country and the airport etc has to be to world class standard in terms of runway, obstacles, navaids, emergency services etc.
London is not the only option but it is one that will generate tourists and that is why Shelco wish to fly it as a flagship route. Just like they have identified Paris. But Saints have close ties with South Africa, Namibia and all the other places I’ve mentioned.
Outfits such as Virgin and Air Luxor (Portugal) are well-connected in the region (especially the latter) and are expanding or would like to. These airlines and others compete for the lucrative UK-Ascension-Falklands franchise. Air Luxor currently hold the deal and are very ambitious (as a visit to their website and various articles in the industry press will show).
Thanx for being an interested reader jabird. Hopefully it will not end in tears as it usually does.
..... Now,
plo an ollies aw plo an cawsell?
(Would you like a little chicken curry and a beer?)