ncl-man route
Gill Airways certainly did have at least a twice business-daily service MAN/NCL/MAN using Shorts 330/360 aircraft and NEAS (now Swissport) was the handling company in NCL receiving them.
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The route economics was similiar to any short-haul private company, at that was peak demand from businessmen early into NCL or MAN and later back who may or may not turn up and usually had fully flexible refundable cpns
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European Airways(L8) co-operated on this route for a small time trying out the market NCL/MAN/and onwards to France but didn't last long as not easy to market a J31 16 SEATER with payload limited sectors and a strategy that seemed to change daily in the marketing of this route.
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Landing and handling fees at both NCL and MAN ate any profit margin very quickly so it needs a HS146 reasonably fully loaded with no refundable tkts to get the revenue stream attractive to attempt to market again.
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Both NCL/MAN and NCL/SOU suffered from PAYLOAD whether it be a S330/360 or J31 and that is because it was very limited on ZFW/TOW/RLW for load control planning which often left genuine full fare commuter businessmen behind (particularly NCL/SOU) which became an early version of a codeshare between Gill Airways (9C)and European Airways (L8).
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(For info..European Airways started life in NCL as(HY) which was the code of the financial arm of Uzbekistan Airways and the aircraft was leased from Maersk in BHX I recall)
PROBLEMS WITH NCL/MAN/NCL and NCL/SOU/NCL were
1/Mostly male passengers commuting
NORTH/SOUTH
NORTHEAST/NORTHWEST
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2/Reasonable fuel and diversion fuel uplift required over Pennines due not Cat 3b !!
3/Baggage (that dreaded word that Flybe/Ryanair/easyJet don't want to hear)
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The competition on NCL/MAN is the roadways 2.5 hrs NCL/MAN
A69 to Carlisle
M6 to Knutsford for the airport or earlier turn to city centre
THEN any combination to get through the jams to MAN
or
A1 5 MILES from NCL A/P and turn onto M62/3 over Pennines.
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Train services of any speed were discounted as genuine competition.
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I hope this helps those with fond memories of these routes and also any airline that may wish to evaluate rekindling the sectors but you will need deep pockets or good start-up marketing discounts with the airport authorities in both NCL and MAN plus ultra-cheap ground handling if you are to make a commercial viability success of this route against competition of the roads.
Maybe the answer is easyBus MAN/NCL/MAN !!!!!!
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