I think Manchester is a great airport, I think the people are much friendlier than London but I try not to ley my heart rule my head. For the love of God they're certainly more pro-aviation, but if I'm being honest being a Scot, I see the "local" effect in place a lot that I saw back home
I think this is what it all boils down to. We are all proud of our 'little' airport, and amidst all the decline we cling on to any good news we can get. I can tell you that NZ have certainly looked into MAN, but as to how serious, well, we all know that sort of information is confidential and not something I am privvy to.
Bear in mind Company X flying from A to B is NOT the same as Company X making money flying from A to B. I don't see how a small-ish home market like New Zealand can make money flying direct to Manchester.
I think this is a given, but with EK even saying demand is unmet, with such a large connection base I wondere where the 'unmet' demand is to?
Ive read somwhere that NZ has a good casm and low operating costs, so whilst it seems I am throwing darts, I think tapping into the HKG/AKL market at the same time could prove beneficial. Im not advocating a 2 daily B744 service, but maybe a 3-4 weekly B772 service. The seat count is lower, the risk is lower (its pretty much a proven market) and gives pax that extra option.
Actually I got the A380 wrong, I thought MAN would not be up there so quickly
In all fairness, not many thought EK would have sent a 3 class A388 to MAN before the likes of PVG/HKG/JFK? MAN was always on the cards for an A388, but maybe further down the pecking order or a 2 class varient. I think its a case example of showing just how the market dynamics are changing. Yes SQ are on a smaller scale and Via MUC, but who can sit here and honestly say a year ago they forecasted that there would be 2 first class cabins going east by the end of 2010?
I think travel agents can be blamed for the mass migration to LHR for the longhaul flights in the past, as they are usually the 1st options and cheapest. As more people book online and realise the options, I think we will see more of this pattern emerging.
fanboy speculation of other places
a.net, yes is quite fanboy now, but like Ive said before, planemad is actually quite accurate and 90% of posters are genuinly connected to the news they are posting. yes there are some spotters as with every other site, but Id take news off their anyday over other sites.
However I will say Thank you for such a balanced response Skipness