Originally Posted by
WHBM
I think that few who travelled that day would appreciate this legal nuance, and it remains to be seen if the courts take a similar view.
This sort of "now we're an airline, now we're not" approach does the operator and the industry no credit.
One lesson which needs to be learned very promptly here from the experiences of the US majors and their various contracted commuter carriers, operating with their own AOC (as here), but operating at the behest and with a public image of the main organisation (as here) is that, while insurance, legal and aviation technicalities may indeed belong with the physical aircraft operator, the main company will front it all, pass the relevant items backwards and forwards to the right people, handle the press and the relatives appropriately, and such like - and most certainly not start sending forthright solicitors letters that end up in the media.
Firstly, I am not a lawyer; and secondly, I recognise that people may wish to use this thread to debate the ins and outs of Cat II approaches rather than airline terms and conditions (perhaps this should then be moved to the Manx2 thread?), but I find myself puzzled by the Manx2
T&Cs:
General
Manx2 Ltd. is providing your tickets for this flight booking. We proudly claim to offer great service at competitive prices, and we are constantly looking at ways in which we can improve our service.On behalf of Manx2, Van Air Europe As will be the main operator for flights from the Isle of Man to Blackpool, Belfast City, Galway, Newcastle and Leeds; also between Belfast City & Galway, and Galway to Cork. FLM Aviation will be the main operator for flights from the Isle of Man to Gloucestershire Airport and Cardiff to Anglesey. Links Aviation will be the main operator for flights from Belfast City to Cork. Please see our terms and conditions for full details or enquire at check in.
...
We trust you will enjoy your flight and we would be pleased to hear your comments at our Customer Services address below.
Definitions
As you read these Terms and Conditions, please note that:
"We", "our", "ourselves" and "us” means VanAir Europe AS (see also definition of "Carrier") or FLM Aviation.;
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So first of all "we" in the preamble clearly means Manx2, but subsequently means one of the actual carriers
; but more confusingly, as a passenger, nowhere do I know with whom my contract is being made: the T&Cs tell me that "we" can refer to either VanAir or FLM. Links Aviation is now the operator for Belfast-Cork, so if I book Belfast-Cork, who's my contract with? Follow-up question for any lawyers out there: what does it do to the nature of the contract if the identity of the counterparty is undefined?