Hum.....once again! In this climate?
The return of business-class only
London’s Luton airport may once again see all-business-class flights as BWAA prepares to start services this year.
BWAA, which stands for British West African Airways, plans to fly between London Luton and Nigeria, where it’s based, according to a source. The carrier will take over Silverjet’s private terminal, which has stoody largely empty since business-class only carrier Silverjet went bust in June last year.
BWAA’s proposal comes at an interesting time, with mainline carriers like British Airways and Virgin Atlantic struggling to fill their premium seats amid a worsening UK and US recession. British Airways’ premium traffic, which includes business- and first-class, dropped 20 per cent last month, for instance, and both airlines are trimming capacity to keep pace with lower demand.
Silverjet was part of a wave of first- and business-class only airlines that began operating between 2005 and 2007, at the height of the financial boom. The airlines, which also included MAXJet and Eos, aimed to offer first- or business-class equivalent tickets for roughly a third of what British Airways and Virgin Atlantic charged for them, operating from secondary London airports like Luton and Stansted to keep costs low and avoid the congestion at London Heathrow.
The services proved popular with customers, but the carriers were unable to produce enough earnings to survive amid record fuel prices at the time and competition from mainline airlines. A deepening credit crunch also meant they were unable to secure new sources of funding. MAXJet declared bankruptcy on Christmas Eve 2007, and was followed by Eos in April 2008 and Silverjet in June.
Since then, British Airways has been the only carrier to dip its toes into the premium-only segment in the UK, planning to start business-class only flights between London City airport and the US later this year. BA’s OpenSkies subsidiary already operates premium-only services between Paris, Amsterdam and the US, having taken over L’Avion, the last of the independent European business-class only carriers in July last year.
Silverjet was the sole business-class only carrier to offer its own private terminal to passengers. Customers were ferried to the lounge in Silverjet’s signature cabs, once there enjoying private check-in, an open bar and a selection of meals and snacks, before boarding. Silverjet operated a fleet of three Boeing 767s, fitted with 100 flatbed-seats, less than half the usual capacity.
BWAA plans to operate three Boeing Co. 757s, the source said. London Luton’s marketing director Natalie Raper confirmed the airport is “in discussions” with BWAA, and more detail will likely be forthcoming later this week.