BackpackersXpress

[Vuelo]

So what is happening with this airline? Are they going to be starting services from Manchester in November as was planned?

It has all gone very quiet...has it all gone tits up as predicted?!

[1DC]

Read in the paper that Qantas had been given the slots instead and Backpackers would not be able to start up.

[MACCA69]

if qantas have got the slots instead of backpackers does that mean qantas will be taking the manchester slots?

[Globaliser]

What Qantas got was the full allocation of seats from Australia to India - 2,100 per week. Backpackers got nothing on the grounds that they were nowhere near ready to start operations and thus to use them. But it rather stymies their plans to operate via India.

[Vuelo]

Perhaps now we will see BackpackersXpress turn into Antipodean Air Charter!!

[Bagso]

Its gone "tits" purely because they were not allowed to serve
Dehli from Manchester....

They could not get a licence from Manchester as the bilterals do not allow this ...that is why they cannot start, serving Delhi was an instrumental part of the plan !

QANTAS have no intention of serving Manchester, the current feeder flights are simply to protect/reserve slots out of LHR.

When they have aircraft available they will stop the Manchester flights and start new yet more flights using these additional slots EX HEATHROW to Australia via Hong Kong...

A nice cosy cartel.........!!!!!

Essentially we will end up with 8 flights a day London to Australia and the Manchester feeder service will disappear.......its a total waste of space anyway !

The only bright news is that both QANTAS and and BA are losing many thousands of pax, who now fly EMIRATES, QATAR, SIA and MAS all of whom offer direct through service to Australia and avoid the mire that is the South East.

[Vuelo]

I wonder if Thai, Cathay or even Air New Zealand have looked at Manchester as a possible new destination. Certainly the CX flights to HKG used to be full nearly everyday, though I don't think either Thai or Air NZ have ever flown from MAN.

MAN - LAX - AKL...... sounds good to me and fills the west coast USA void ex MAN too!

[Danny_R]

Cathay should be coming back to MAN in 2005 I believe, with an A340.

[Flightmapping]

Danny,

There was a thread on this, but I think the routing was going to be MAN > MOW > HKG, or was it MUC? Either way, 2 stops via HKG is a long way round to reach Oz.

[Danny_R]

True Sir,

But I think we can expect by 2006 to have a direct service, if Cathay are as intelligent as EK, SIA etc when it comes to Man.

[Vuelo]

Don't CX xodeshare all their HKG - SVO flights with Aeroflot? That would essentially mean SU would serve MAN again, though by means of a CX aircraft.....

According to the systems, the new Tramsaero service due to start soon from MAN to DME looks well booked up, so there is obviously a market here....

I predict Etihad also at MAN by end of 2005.

[svona]

Yes, there's a CX code on all the Aeroflot services to HKG as of early this year.
CX will start flying the route with their own aircraft though as of mid-2005, probably linking it with, as mentioned earlier, MAN or another European destination, as the route SVO-HKG hardly has enough demand for two carriers to be operating it on a near daily basis, although the SU (6 weekly) flights are doing very well at the moment.

[Vuelo]

MAN - SVO - NRT would be a good idea, too. Would mean a link between the north and Russia and Japan....and especially if Everton goes the way of Chelsea and we see lots of Evertonsji businessman travelling!