As a loyal supporter of BHX, I can only say GLA peeps, be VERY careful what you wish for when it comes to FR........
2008: FR launched a base at BHX with a varies selection of sun, city and business routes, greatly bulking up the direct scheduled services timetable. At the time BHX was, like GLA, suffering pax decline, in part due to a vastly superior offering of loco flights from EMA, BRS and to a lesser extent LPL, airports that all claw at the BHX catchment area and that were experiencing pax growth at BHX's expense. 'Phew' everyone thought, the FR publicity machine promised 10 based a/c and 100 routes within five years, rumours abounded that there was also to be a maintenance base set up too, happy days
2011: Forward wind three years, and FR are still at BHX - just. The publicity bluster proved to be just that, most of the initial destinations were dropped with FR launching on already established routes that have seen the withdrawal (Air Malta) or reduction of (BMI Baby and MON) flights on these routes. Of the 23 routes flown this summer, 11 of these are in Spain (all already served by other operators) with only 9 of the destinations FR fly to are exclusive to them. We have three based a/c (a far cry from 10) and a very run of the mill destination offering when compared to the launch of the base.
I believe that FR have done nothing for BHX and its route development, save a few Polish routes that were not served before. Pathetic. So, be very careful, as I said, what you wish for - IF FR set up at GLA, mark my words they will launch on routes already flown by Jet2 and EZY, forget any thoughts of new and exciting routes, at least in the long term, as quoted by MOL himself on the STV news site.
He said he wants to use routes already used by his competitors
The failure of FR to grow at BHX cannot, based on the following comments by MOL himself be entirely down to profit (or lack of it) either
"We're a social service. We are here to carry people at the very lowest fares. We do it for the love: love of passengers, love of community, love of our fellow Gaelic, Gael."
Quite obviously there is no love for the Brummies then or we would have seen those 10 based a/c!