RACEDO. You're very right. However, I wonder though do SAA have other operators lined up to come in to operate some of the routes that are gone? Some of the UK regional routes are gone like LBA and others have been cut back. Perhaps Flybe with smaller a/c would better suit those routes and make some money.
I'm surprised at the Malaga, Faro, Murcia and Tenerife routes mind as I've been on some of those flights and they're nearly always full whether it was during the winter or summer. I'm up and down to FAO many times during the year and so are friends and family of mine and they say the same. I hear the same about Malaga too. So you can understand my utter surprise at this. Although MOL has been smart enough to not pull off these routes completely I do think he was foolish to reduce them to once a week.
Every airline is paying the taxes on these routes whether you're flying from DUB, NOC, ORK or SNN so he's talking through his hat. He's too many a/c and more to come and not enough pilots. As consumers we don't like the taxes but you'd swear that MOL was paying the taxes himself. The reason he's pulling out of SNN is that his agreement with SAA is drawing to a close this winter and he want the agreement to stay. Baby and rattle out of cot syndrome. The sooner there is a level playing field we'll hopefully see more operators coming back into SNN. Is it any wonder that BRAL and Flybe pulled off the UK regional?