I worked as Cabin Crew for 16 months with Debonair after some 10 years with another carrier.
The basic routes they operated LTN-MGL, CIA (later FCO) MAD,MUC and some of the main land european routes were busy but I have no idea what the ticket yield was.
There was no clear product with them that the customer or travel agent could idenify to sell the service, ie. was it low cost or a regular airline. The business class product ABC was very poor and never took off.
When I joined, Debonair operated 2 BAe 146 for Air France which was 1 of the easiest contracts for them to do. Air France provided the French speaking cabin crew who did PAs and general helped the 2 Debonair cabin crew. Swissair contract was flown using 1 146, this proving a little harder as no Swissair cabin crew and the routes were to VCE and BLQ from ZRH. So Italian speakers where sort. Now its well know fact British people have a poor linguist skills but we are improving....slowly. So Italians where taken on, whos English was not always that good. The Italian Cabin Crew were based out in Italy and were paid nightstop allowances. When this was pointed out that the Luton based cabin crew when based in Luton did not get night stop allowances when night stopping in Luton we (I) were/was told that this was fair. The night stop allowance in Italy was 80,000 Lira. So every night whist at home in VCE or BLQ they all picked up this 80,000 Lira.
This was on top of £1.00 p hr flight pay whilst on duty and a basic of £9,000.
The next contract taken on was the Lufthansa contract for 5 146 based in MUC. The AF contract had to be finished, and the a/c had to have ovens fitted and seats removed 96 to 80 seats. 2 cabin crew operated a LH service....this was change to 3 just before the airline went down. Also the MUC-BCN and MGL-MUC routes had to be dropped. Again Language speakers where recruited this time German. This proved difficult for a small airline to find crew suitable. Also more 146`s had to be found. When I started with them they had 7 146`s on the airlines demise some 13 146 and 1 737-300.
The other problems started when their own scheduled routes were dropped the timetables did not change hence the a/c sat around various airports in europe waiting to go back to LTN. All destinations except MAD were nightstops for crew and aircraft.
Debonair took on a number of charters however they never seemed to operated themselves..usually AB, European or on occassions BM.
They never had enough a/c for the number of routes they operated. MGL-MUC busy route was Denim Air F50, and in the last summer the LTN-FCO was European 1-11 operated. (No F100 were ever operated by Debonair)
The LTN-BCN was operated by AB for a time and the LGW-BCN started.
The 737-300 started operating on Air Foyles AOC but was never used to it full. It did LTN-BCN-LGW-BCN-LTN.
There were a few people who lack experience who had worked there way to management positions very quickly and their inexperienced showed when things went wrong.
The crewing department had crews sitting in MUC being paid allowances for days on end, only spending days in the hotel, or operating 1 sector.
I would never say the big boys made Debonair go bust. It was poor management, no product idea or knowledge, light ideas thrown in but not properly researched for example new livery, design team to redesign the cabin crew uniform-the airline was only 3 years old! The yearly company birthday party, upmarket venue which was free including wine, but pay bar. Grabbing work (charters) etc... which the airline could never of flown because the a/c where doing something else and had to be sub out.
Debonair could have surved if the scheduled routes where non nightstopping, the airline focus its self on what product it wanted to offer and do the "job" eg. the business class product should have never been introducted as no food as such was offered. A plastic bag containing a roll butter plasic cup and powdered milk with a choice of ham cheese for lunch, or a choice of crossiant for bfast evening meal was a bag of crisps and a poor quality prepacketaged cake. This was Business Class!!!! Free bar was thrown in. The non Business Class paxs same food but a pay bar, although soft drinks hot bevs free.
Debonair ran in a form in the US Hawaiian islands but known as Discovery. Had the same livery as Debonair used 146 a/c and believe cabin crew uniforms. Perhaps any old Discovery crews can shed light on this venture?
I hope this helps.........and the lession here is never run an airline as a game!
[This message has been edited by euroboy (edited 29 June 2001).]