Air Southwest
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: A different hotel to the one crewing told me...
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Traffic Not Sighted - surely you are not saying then that operating commercial flights in vfr heavy airspace with compromised radar cover is perfectly acceptable and should continue because there hasn't been an accident yet???
I believe Newquay radar previously offered a service too, but that was vetoed and NOT by ASW or T3.
Sadly, PLH is reaping what its owners sowed.
I believe Newquay radar previously offered a service too, but that was vetoed and NOT by ASW or T3.
Sadly, PLH is reaping what its owners sowed.
Join Date: Nov 2003
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air southwest RIP.
From air Southwest Website
"Air Southwest to cease operations at Plymouth and Newquay
Air Southwest has taken a decision to cease all its Plymouth services from September 14. The Newquay flights have been reviewed at length, but are not viable on their own without the association with Plymouth. As a consequence, Newquay routes to Glasgow, Guernsey, Jersey and Manchester will also end on the same date.
Newquay services to Aberdeen, Bristol, Cork, Dublin and Leeds Bradford will end on September 30,which regrettably will be the last day of Air Southwest branded flights.
Air Southwest was planning to operate while Plymouth Airport remained open, however, despite our original hopes, Air Southwest forward bookings are significantly lower than required and the level of demand is not financially viable.
All passengers booked to fly after these dates will be fully refunded.
We apologise for the inconvenience caused, and thank you for supporting Air Southwest."
"Air Southwest to cease operations at Plymouth and Newquay
Air Southwest has taken a decision to cease all its Plymouth services from September 14. The Newquay flights have been reviewed at length, but are not viable on their own without the association with Plymouth. As a consequence, Newquay routes to Glasgow, Guernsey, Jersey and Manchester will also end on the same date.
Newquay services to Aberdeen, Bristol, Cork, Dublin and Leeds Bradford will end on September 30,which regrettably will be the last day of Air Southwest branded flights.
Air Southwest was planning to operate while Plymouth Airport remained open, however, despite our original hopes, Air Southwest forward bookings are significantly lower than required and the level of demand is not financially viable.
All passengers booked to fly after these dates will be fully refunded.
We apologise for the inconvenience caused, and thank you for supporting Air Southwest."
Join Date: May 2011
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I don't know much about ASW or hold much interest in it, however, I think there needs to be a full review / investigation regarding the games at hand here also regarding PLymouth airport - of ASW, Eastern and Sutton harbour holdings.
The whole situation is awful for people and communities.
The whole situation is awful for people and communities.
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You are absolutely correct JSCL and it must happen at a higher level than the local authority. They are the ones with most to account for.
The scandal was set in motion in 2000 - the moment Plymouth city council awarded the lease of the airport to a housing development company.
The fact that the airport and the airline survived this long under such belligerent ownership is testament to its viability.
I ask people with greater knowledge of the facts than I to compile a record of what has happened and hold those people responsible to account for the sustainable future that has been stripped away from the southwest.
The scandal was set in motion in 2000 - the moment Plymouth city council awarded the lease of the airport to a housing development company.
The fact that the airport and the airline survived this long under such belligerent ownership is testament to its viability.
I ask people with greater knowledge of the facts than I to compile a record of what has happened and hold those people responsible to account for the sustainable future that has been stripped away from the southwest.
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Leeds, West Yorkshire
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Sad news this about Air Southwest been shut down. They opened the South West region to a mass of people who would not have normally travelled the long distances by the car or took a cross country train journey from the North of England and further up into Scotland.
There really was a good bunch of people who have worked and took pride in there local airline and surely don't deserved to be treated like this by Eastern.
The 2x daily Air Southwest, Bristol-Leeds/Bradford-Aberdeen service is to continue operation but under the Eastern Airways banner, Effective from October 2nd.
There really was a good bunch of people who have worked and took pride in there local airline and surely don't deserved to be treated like this by Eastern.
The 2x daily Air Southwest, Bristol-Leeds/Bradford-Aberdeen service is to continue operation but under the Eastern Airways banner, Effective from October 2nd.
Last edited by LBIA; 14th Jul 2011 at 16:45.
Join Date: May 2007
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The other real culprits in this are FlyBe who attacked there core routes and turned them from profitable company into one on the slippery slope. Another step towards BEs attempt at UK domestic flight monopoly. Watch out Aurigny, blue islands and eastern.
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JSTR - with respect,
Flybe are perfectly entitled to compete on routes that interest them. Indeed they are entitled to try to undermine existing companies not healthy enough to compete with them. The thing they are not entitled to do is to take ownership of part of a company (citiexpress) that had been well invested in, with brilliantly leadership, providing livelihoods to a significant workforce and one which determines the future at PLH, NQY and of Cornish tourism - and point it into the ground.
I also doubt they would be so cowardly as to pay another airline to take the mess of their hands and then try to blame them for it all.
My only respite is that there are some great minds at airsouthwest. I hope they pull a whopper out of the bag.
Flybe are perfectly entitled to compete on routes that interest them. Indeed they are entitled to try to undermine existing companies not healthy enough to compete with them. The thing they are not entitled to do is to take ownership of part of a company (citiexpress) that had been well invested in, with brilliantly leadership, providing livelihoods to a significant workforce and one which determines the future at PLH, NQY and of Cornish tourism - and point it into the ground.
I also doubt they would be so cowardly as to pay another airline to take the mess of their hands and then try to blame them for it all.
My only respite is that there are some great minds at airsouthwest. I hope they pull a whopper out of the bag.
Last edited by kernowclown; 14th Jul 2011 at 21:45.
Join Date: Aug 2000
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Yes of course it is all the management's fault, the owners,the competitors,the people that owned the airport. SHH really wanted their airline to lose millions of pounds, that was always their plan wasn't it ? They and the wonderful staff never tried to make a success of it did they?
Of course, it had nothing whatever to do with there simply not being enough people willing to pay enough money to fill these marginal routes profitably did it?
So let's shut down Newquay Airport then. There are no problems only opportunities. Here is a fresh one for Newquay to go out there and attract more operators if they are not already doing it they damned well should have been pushing hard.
My thoughts go out to those that have suffered by losing their jobs and businesses through this, I have been there, though it is no consolation the astute must have seen this coming.
Of course, it had nothing whatever to do with there simply not being enough people willing to pay enough money to fill these marginal routes profitably did it?
So let's shut down Newquay Airport then. There are no problems only opportunities. Here is a fresh one for Newquay to go out there and attract more operators if they are not already doing it they damned well should have been pushing hard.
My thoughts go out to those that have suffered by losing their jobs and businesses through this, I have been there, though it is no consolation the astute must have seen this coming.
Flybe are not in the business to make sure their competition is healthy and making money. The fact is ASW were a good bet that they would not survive the current market as sad as that is. It is survival of the fittest and most small regional airlines will go belly up.
Good luck to the staff finding new jobs.
Good luck to the staff finding new jobs.
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Flybe competed with them on the NQY-LGW only. If an airline cannot make all of their other routes profitable the problem expands far beyond a little bit of competition. NQY/PLY - MAN, GCI, JER, LBA, BRS, GLA, NCL, LCY & CWL (stopped pretty soon), ABZ?
I think it is an easy option to blame BE, those that have are hardly fans if you read their other posts. The fact is that Air Southwest, a good little airline, simply could not make it work any longer probably due to a number of factors - some that even the sharpest posters in this forum may not be aware of.
ASW was a good airline and I was very impressed with the staff when I used them. Hope everyone is able to find work with an alternative airline soon.
Will the Dash 8s be absorbed in to the Eastern fleet?
I think it is an easy option to blame BE, those that have are hardly fans if you read their other posts. The fact is that Air Southwest, a good little airline, simply could not make it work any longer probably due to a number of factors - some that even the sharpest posters in this forum may not be aware of.
ASW was a good airline and I was very impressed with the staff when I used them. Hope everyone is able to find work with an alternative airline soon.
Will the Dash 8s be absorbed in to the Eastern fleet?
Join Date: Jul 2004
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Guys .....
The problem was that ASW stuck with 50 seater aircraft, long after the PLH runway extension whereas other than DHC products could operate in/out and, believe it or not, Joe Soap(s) want, indeed demand, direct flights to/from their destinations and not an en-route 'tumble dryer' ride PLH/NQY and/or vice versa.
I'm not about to promote any product that could/can operate in/out of the current PLH but ..... let's just go with the 'Dornier' product, the Y18 Do228 and the Y35 (ish) Do328, PLH doesn't have a call, very often, for Y50 all in one go, Y18 and Y30 (ish) yes, and a Y35 (ish) would be ideal for the NQY routes.
The reason ASW failed ..... the only Y50 requirement from/to PLH is a weekend Channel Isles but, even then, only if it operates to/from both JER and GCI.
The problem was that ASW stuck with 50 seater aircraft, long after the PLH runway extension whereas other than DHC products could operate in/out and, believe it or not, Joe Soap(s) want, indeed demand, direct flights to/from their destinations and not an en-route 'tumble dryer' ride PLH/NQY and/or vice versa.
I'm not about to promote any product that could/can operate in/out of the current PLH but ..... let's just go with the 'Dornier' product, the Y18 Do228 and the Y35 (ish) Do328, PLH doesn't have a call, very often, for Y50 all in one go, Y18 and Y30 (ish) yes, and a Y35 (ish) would be ideal for the NQY routes.
The reason ASW failed ..... the only Y50 requirement from/to PLH is a weekend Channel Isles but, even then, only if it operates to/from both JER and GCI.
Join Date: Dec 2004
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APD played a part in AIR SW demise
I think the government's APD has also had an impact on Air SW viability. It is obscene that airport users in economically deprived peripheral areas pay the same as congested London airports. I know the government will say they want more people to travel by train, BUT train travel is not always viable from the far southwest! Try catching a train from Glasgow to Truro. All these fancy new high speed trainlines they are building from London will NEVER come to the South West peninsular, they will stop at Bristol or the Welsh Assmbly will lobby them to go to Swansea. The government needs to reduce APD on passengers using regional airports now.
Join Date: Jun 2003
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Phileas, GLA and the Southern Irish routes had good loads/yield too and not just weekends.
Accept your point about smaller aircraft but sadly, any profit was taken out of the airline rather than reinvested and replaced with woolly statements about support when things get tough.
A small airline needs to be quick on its feet to survive these days, and sadly not much seemed to be done to promote it to the wider public, especially once T3 took it on and the closure of PLH was announced.
We live in a soundbite age. Sadly, chopping and changing routes with nothing more substantial than a few lines in the local paper about a commitment to the Southwest isn't going to get bums on seats. A lot more than that was going on in the background for sure, but as far as public perception goes.....
Anyway, the bell has tolled, so its academic. It was fun though!
Accept your point about smaller aircraft but sadly, any profit was taken out of the airline rather than reinvested and replaced with woolly statements about support when things get tough.
A small airline needs to be quick on its feet to survive these days, and sadly not much seemed to be done to promote it to the wider public, especially once T3 took it on and the closure of PLH was announced.
We live in a soundbite age. Sadly, chopping and changing routes with nothing more substantial than a few lines in the local paper about a commitment to the Southwest isn't going to get bums on seats. A lot more than that was going on in the background for sure, but as far as public perception goes.....
Anyway, the bell has tolled, so its academic. It was fun though!
Join Date: Aug 2003
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A one way trip back to max fares
The apparent death of regional airports (and operators) marks a return to the good-old-bad-old days. No more airline bartering with the 'big' airport operator - it'll be 'our way or no way'. Then, once the airline battle for supremacy is over at the major airports, the survivors will rake it in - 'fly with us or don't fly'. The clock has gone back almost 20 years.
UKplc should hang it's head in shame - the fact that a first world country can not support different tiers of air travel is pitiful!
UKplc should hang it's head in shame - the fact that a first world country can not support different tiers of air travel is pitiful!
I feel for all the staff working for Air South West, in the same way that everything happened to Brymon a few years ago. It's sad to see the demise of transport in the SW. Petrol is so expensive, train fares are a rip off, flights will only be to EXE. It really does leave the SW out in the cold.
There is very little industry left in the UK now, it's the way successive greedy governments have lined their pockets and sold our industries abroad.
There is very little industry left in the UK now, it's the way successive greedy governments have lined their pockets and sold our industries abroad.
Join Date: May 2011
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Met with a friend today who relies on ASW to fly MAN to Plymouth because he's based at the naval base in the harbour, he's unhappy that it's now a nightmare to go there.
Tis a shame indeed.
Tis a shame indeed.