Seventy odd miles from Oxford in various directions, BA at Heathrow, EasyJet at Luton and Bristol, and FlyBe at Birmingham and Southampton offer around 40 flights a day to Edinburgh. For passengers originating from the Oxford area, the journey to and from each of these airports has its frustrations be they coaches, car parking or just the overall cost to them or their company. The challenge for Oxford Airport and Minoan is to tempt enough of these `locals' to its flights.
A lesson from history suggests that a properly advertised, consistently reliable service from a passenger friendly airport can do just that. Back in the 70s & 80s Liverpool was on its knees. The motorways led all traffic east to Manchester and its sparkling terminals, leaving Liverpool with just the Isle of Man and Belfast traffic. Even the main IT players had deserted the airport. And then a gent called Stellios arrived with an orange tailed Boeing 737 and the rest is history. What he did was to advertise his lower fares in Manchester as well as Liverpool, and to stress that flying with him would be simpler, as he used a quieter local airport. Funny old thing, the masses suddenly recognised that the M56 was two way and today you are as likely to hear accents from across NW England as you are from Liverpool.
I am not saying LCCs should or indeed ever will flock to Kidlington. But the airport is correct in believing there is a market for money to be made on a small number of key routes. However, they really need to invest greater time and energy on the project. How much for a banner on the hedge alongside the A44 advertising the flights, for ads in the local press as far out as Swindon, Aylesbury, Warwick and Worcester? Compared to the recent significant investment in airfield aids, the lack of advertising is simply bizarre. And if London Oxford Airport really wants to be an airport it needs to act like one, for no where else do you have ask to come in at the quirky security hut, with its `Carry On' film barrier! Airports succeed by carefully identifying markets, then being passenger and potential passenger friendly. The more folk in the car park and cafe the more return they get on their investment.
I really hope Kidlington suceeds in this venture, if they started Glasgow I would use it for business. But you have to win your markets and sell your `edge' over the competition. You can make the best pizza in the world but no one will buy one if they don't know it exists!
