New routes for Bristols new extension
Brunel to Concorde
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Several weeks ago Macquarie Airports (MAp) reported that the airport had successfully completed a refinance of its debt facilities and established capital expenditure facilities to fund the future growth and expansion of the airport.
A total of £515 million in bank debt facilities has been established of which just over 65% has been drawn, with the remainder to be utilised as required to fund future capital expenditure and for working capital purposes.
A MAp spokesperson said the refinancing will provide the airport with a 'stable financial base and additional financial capacity for the airport to continue to expand as it enters its next phase of growth'.
The spokesperson also said the strong business performance of the airport had attracted a high level of interest from the bank market with the result that the new debt facilities were offered at a far more attractive rate than the previous ones that were arranged in 2001.
So it seems the money people are as bullish about the place as the owners and are very keen to see it develop further, hence the MD's reference to a £100 million being available over the next five years to fund future developments.
A total of £515 million in bank debt facilities has been established of which just over 65% has been drawn, with the remainder to be utilised as required to fund future capital expenditure and for working capital purposes.
A MAp spokesperson said the refinancing will provide the airport with a 'stable financial base and additional financial capacity for the airport to continue to expand as it enters its next phase of growth'.
The spokesperson also said the strong business performance of the airport had attracted a high level of interest from the bank market with the result that the new debt facilities were offered at a far more attractive rate than the previous ones that were arranged in 2001.
So it seems the money people are as bullish about the place as the owners and are very keen to see it develop further, hence the MD's reference to a £100 million being available over the next five years to fund future developments.
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Anybody heard a rumour regarding Delta sniffing round BRS, could be a nice airline to have in BRS, the person who told me this said they were looking at a Florida route, or is this just more hopeful wild speculation?
Brunel to Concorde
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WATABENCH
I can't see BRS-Florida being a viable regular scheduled route, leaving aside any runway question.
A weekly charter flight certainly, perhaps more than one: other regional airports of the same size, and some much smaller, have charter flights to Florida as well as to Toronto so, to a punter like me with a layman's interest in civil aviation, the sticking point can only be the dreaded R.
As for more scheduled transatlantic routes (to destinations more promising for the genre than Florida), let's hope the CO service to EWR will succeed and convince some hearts and minds in the airlines.
I think hearts and minds of some pax still have to be won over though. In the past week or so I have spoken to three groups of people in the Bristol area who are flying to New York later this year at different times, and who are all flying from LHR to JFK.
They were all aware of the BRS-EWR route but told me that their travel agents got them much better fares from LHR. One lot travel frequently from BRS around Europe and would loved to have used the EWR route but money obviously talks.
I fear that LHR's proximity to Bristol will always attract a significant number of pax who might otherwise have used BRS. Apart from BHX, there is no other regional airport of any size closer to LHR than BRS, and of course BHX has a far more populous catchment area than BRS so is in a stronger position to 'stand up to' Heathrow.
I can't see BRS-Florida being a viable regular scheduled route, leaving aside any runway question.
A weekly charter flight certainly, perhaps more than one: other regional airports of the same size, and some much smaller, have charter flights to Florida as well as to Toronto so, to a punter like me with a layman's interest in civil aviation, the sticking point can only be the dreaded R.
As for more scheduled transatlantic routes (to destinations more promising for the genre than Florida), let's hope the CO service to EWR will succeed and convince some hearts and minds in the airlines.
I think hearts and minds of some pax still have to be won over though. In the past week or so I have spoken to three groups of people in the Bristol area who are flying to New York later this year at different times, and who are all flying from LHR to JFK.
They were all aware of the BRS-EWR route but told me that their travel agents got them much better fares from LHR. One lot travel frequently from BRS around Europe and would loved to have used the EWR route but money obviously talks.
I fear that LHR's proximity to Bristol will always attract a significant number of pax who might otherwise have used BRS. Apart from BHX, there is no other regional airport of any size closer to LHR than BRS, and of course BHX has a far more populous catchment area than BRS so is in a stronger position to 'stand up to' Heathrow.
Brunel to Concorde
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The Bristol Evening Post carries an article today about the Continental EWR service, saying that "claims have been made by business sources" that the route is failing to hit passenger number targets.
The airline has denied this with a spokesman saying that the load factors are currently at 70% which is "broadly in line" with expectations.
He went on to say that because the airline is new to the route it will take time to build up the customer base to levels they expect, and although there is a huge amount of awareness that the route exists it will take time to convert this into ticket sales.
Continental continue to assert that the route will "ultimately carry 75,000 people a year."
The airport's airport aviation director is still bullish, but he could hardly be anything else in public.
Reading the entire newspaper article, I get the clear feeling that the airline and airport are a bit disappointed but are obviously making the right noises.
I mentioned in my previous post that too many people in this area still seem inclined to look to LHR for transatlantic travel (after all there are those who regard Bristol as an outer satellite town of London), and it might be a longer haul to persuade many of them to use BRS than was first thought.
The old message remains crystal clear: use the route or lose it.
The airline has denied this with a spokesman saying that the load factors are currently at 70% which is "broadly in line" with expectations.
He went on to say that because the airline is new to the route it will take time to build up the customer base to levels they expect, and although there is a huge amount of awareness that the route exists it will take time to convert this into ticket sales.
Continental continue to assert that the route will "ultimately carry 75,000 people a year."
The airport's airport aviation director is still bullish, but he could hardly be anything else in public.
Reading the entire newspaper article, I get the clear feeling that the airline and airport are a bit disappointed but are obviously making the right noises.
I mentioned in my previous post that too many people in this area still seem inclined to look to LHR for transatlantic travel (after all there are those who regard Bristol as an outer satellite town of London), and it might be a longer haul to persuade many of them to use BRS than was first thought.
The old message remains crystal clear: use the route or lose it.
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Well said, and you can also add, that if that route goes you can kiss goodbye to any such future routes that rumours are going around about, if they can't get the pax for New York how the hell is a BOS route going to manage.
If BRS looses the route then they cannot say its not through want of trying to sell it, its more through the people of the West still looking at BRS as some sort of backwater airstrip in the Somerset countryside, not a thriving regional airport that handles more than its 2 nearest rivals put together and is currently 10th out of 30 UK airports for pax figures and looks set to make it into 9th very soon.
C'mon people as MV said 'use it or loose it'
If BRS looses the route then they cannot say its not through want of trying to sell it, its more through the people of the West still looking at BRS as some sort of backwater airstrip in the Somerset countryside, not a thriving regional airport that handles more than its 2 nearest rivals put together and is currently 10th out of 30 UK airports for pax figures and looks set to make it into 9th very soon.
C'mon people as MV said 'use it or loose it'
Brunel to Concorde
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WATABENCH
People in the Bristol area have a tendency to think the grass is greener elsewhere in every field, not just flying. I have done some research over the past few years on this subject and there is no doubt that this is a particular trait of local people, first noticeably coming to the fore in the dark days of World War II. But that is another story completely.
Some good news announced this morning - Ryanair to fly daily to BRS from Shannon commencing 30 October this year.
People in the Bristol area have a tendency to think the grass is greener elsewhere in every field, not just flying. I have done some research over the past few years on this subject and there is no doubt that this is a particular trait of local people, first noticeably coming to the fore in the dark days of World War II. But that is another story completely.
Some good news announced this morning - Ryanair to fly daily to BRS from Shannon commencing 30 October this year.
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Nice to see Shannon departure time is a bit awkward though of 1850, but I'm sure it may be increased if it is proved to be popular which I'm sure it will be.
I think we are due to see some changes in the coming months.
WHSmiths move downstairs Security moving across and the introduction of several new retail outlets.
Loads on the new Ezy routes seem healthy enough and it states on their website that we are still due to become a 319 base this winter.
Hello MV good to be back, although same old EWR stories seem to be knocking around. I can't see them dropping it completley they have reduced the capacity to 5 a week in the winter but I'm sure it will go back to daily next summer. I think that next summers figures will be the ones to watch as the route will then be established.
I think we are due to see some changes in the coming months.
WHSmiths move downstairs Security moving across and the introduction of several new retail outlets.
Loads on the new Ezy routes seem healthy enough and it states on their website that we are still due to become a 319 base this winter.
Hello MV good to be back, although same old EWR stories seem to be knocking around. I can't see them dropping it completley they have reduced the capacity to 5 a week in the winter but I'm sure it will go back to daily next summer. I think that next summers figures will be the ones to watch as the route will then be established.
Brunel to Concorde
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terrier
Good to have you back.
I'm guessing the EWR service was always intended to go to 5 a week in winter but this was not made clear at the outset whereas the new BFS-EWR route was. Furthermore, EDI-EWR went to 5 a week last winter despite very impressive loads in the summer.
BRS is the smallest airport in Great Britain with a daily scheduled service to the USA, so perhaps part of the marketing should stress that those US customers who have 'done' London might like to sample the experience of leaving the mega busy New York area to land the other side of the ocean in the midst of the English countryside in a civilised and uncrowded airport, with the glorious west country at their fingertips and with never the need to set foot (or car wheel) in any large city if they don't want to. And I'm only half joking.
The three new easyJet routes do seem promising with the company saying that over 50,000 seats have already been sold for them.
I note the June stats are on the airport website with 501,000 using the airport last month. Even charter passenger numbers are up 4% over June 2004, the second month in a row showing a small percentage year-on-year gain, following several months of falling numbers.
I can remember dear old Les Wilson being cock-a-hoop when 500,000 first used the airport in a year, and that can't be much more than twenty years ago.
Good to have you back.
I'm guessing the EWR service was always intended to go to 5 a week in winter but this was not made clear at the outset whereas the new BFS-EWR route was. Furthermore, EDI-EWR went to 5 a week last winter despite very impressive loads in the summer.
BRS is the smallest airport in Great Britain with a daily scheduled service to the USA, so perhaps part of the marketing should stress that those US customers who have 'done' London might like to sample the experience of leaving the mega busy New York area to land the other side of the ocean in the midst of the English countryside in a civilised and uncrowded airport, with the glorious west country at their fingertips and with never the need to set foot (or car wheel) in any large city if they don't want to. And I'm only half joking.
The three new easyJet routes do seem promising with the company saying that over 50,000 seats have already been sold for them.
I note the June stats are on the airport website with 501,000 using the airport last month. Even charter passenger numbers are up 4% over June 2004, the second month in a row showing a small percentage year-on-year gain, following several months of falling numbers.
I can remember dear old Les Wilson being cock-a-hoop when 500,000 first used the airport in a year, and that can't be much more than twenty years ago.
Brunel to Concorde
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auelad
I chose my words carefully. I said Great Britain.
Belfast is in the UK as you say, but the UK is the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
I chose my words carefully. I said Great Britain.
Belfast is in the UK as you say, but the UK is the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
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The Nouvelair had a bird strike on departure from Monastir. Serious damage was done to the fan blades on the No1 engine. A replacement aircraft is being brought in with engineers and parts to fix it. They have to replace three blades apparently.
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Pax due out at 0645 this morning hopefully!!!
Not sure what the original Plans were to be honest MV. Maybe our friend a bristolian can shed some light. Actually while were at it why don't we start some wild speculation for him to dispell or confirm?!!!
Someone mentioned FCA were still looking at a possible Cancun next year with a 76.
Not sure what the original Plans were to be honest MV. Maybe our friend a bristolian can shed some light. Actually while were at it why don't we start some wild speculation for him to dispell or confirm?!!!
Someone mentioned FCA were still looking at a possible Cancun next year with a 76.
Brunel to Concorde
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terrier
a bristolian is still around on this MB. He posted to the Humberside thread two or three weeks ago.
The average CO EWR load factor of 70% given publicly by the airline certainly corresponds to what we were told earlier in this thread by Confirmed Must Ride and redfield. This equates to an average of about 120 pax per flight, although it seems from various sources that business/first is doing pretty well - a very important consideration I am sure.
On a different subject I note that you and others have been discussing elsewhere the extremely disappointing performance by Euromanx on their weekend charters to Olbia, Split and Bastia, with yesterday being especially horrendous, although in fairness I note today's incoming Bastia has just landed 42 minutes early.
The Olbia route seems to have the Indian Sign on it because last year Duo were to operate it but went out of business before the summer season commenced leaving the German OLT Saab 2000 to pop over from Filton each weekend to substitute, with bmi also helping out some weeks with an ERJ145.
a bristolian is still around on this MB. He posted to the Humberside thread two or three weeks ago.
The average CO EWR load factor of 70% given publicly by the airline certainly corresponds to what we were told earlier in this thread by Confirmed Must Ride and redfield. This equates to an average of about 120 pax per flight, although it seems from various sources that business/first is doing pretty well - a very important consideration I am sure.
On a different subject I note that you and others have been discussing elsewhere the extremely disappointing performance by Euromanx on their weekend charters to Olbia, Split and Bastia, with yesterday being especially horrendous, although in fairness I note today's incoming Bastia has just landed 42 minutes early.
The Olbia route seems to have the Indian Sign on it because last year Duo were to operate it but went out of business before the summer season commenced leaving the German OLT Saab 2000 to pop over from Filton each weekend to substitute, with bmi also helping out some weeks with an ERJ145.
Quote - "leaving the mega busy New York area to land the other side of the ocean in the midst of the English countryside in a civilised and uncrowded airport"
You ever experienced Bristol in the morning? Caos me things.
You ever experienced Bristol in the morning? Caos me things.
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You ever experienced Newark in the Morning!
I'll be suprised if FCA start Cancun for nxt year now, the 2nd edition brochures won't be out for a month or two and they'd of lost a lot of time to sell the route, maybe a nice longhaul programme for Winter 2006/7? - Yeah Rite
Talking of speculation, wheres our welsh chum Windsheer gone, he usually likes putting amusing rubbish on here, if we all chant maybe he\'ll re-apear, ready
WINDSHEER WINDSHEER WINDSHEER WINDSHEER
I'll be suprised if FCA start Cancun for nxt year now, the 2nd edition brochures won't be out for a month or two and they'd of lost a lot of time to sell the route, maybe a nice longhaul programme for Winter 2006/7? - Yeah Rite
Talking of speculation, wheres our welsh chum Windsheer gone, he usually likes putting amusing rubbish on here, if we all chant maybe he\'ll re-apear, ready
WINDSHEER WINDSHEER WINDSHEER WINDSHEER
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Yes yes yes, whats all this shouting we have no trouble here. This is a local site for local people, there's nothing for you here.....
(10 points for the quickest reply on the programme thats off)
I still stick with my original opinion, shut Bristol, Exeter, Birmingham, Manchester and Gatwick down and concentrate on Cardiff!!
Heathrow can stay for now, but I don't think they could withstand our hefty celtic copmpetition for long!!
(10 points for the quickest reply on the programme thats off)
I still stick with my original opinion, shut Bristol, Exeter, Birmingham, Manchester and Gatwick down and concentrate on Cardiff!!
Heathrow can stay for now, but I don't think they could withstand our hefty celtic copmpetition for long!!