FlyBe - 6

[Andrew R]

Thanks everyone.

I booked the flights via Opodo, not sure if I contact them or Flybe? Who is most likely to be most helpful?

[Cazza_fly]

I booked the flights via Opodo, not sure if I contact them or Flybe? Who is most likely to be most helpful?

Call Flybe up directly. These are the ones who Opodo will have to contact anyway so it's better to do it directly with them. Obviously just use the Flybe e-tickting number/reference.

[ib26uk]

I`ve just had a schedule change on a flight in October, I rang up flybe and was told that because I`d rang within 48hrs of recieving the email about flybe making a schedule change - its freeeeeeeee - after 48hours they charge

[redED]

Whilst it would be good to have the E175 based at Southampton, there wouldn't be enough room for one in the summer unless it replaced an Embraer E195, which is unlikely given the amount of summer routes it will be doing in 2012.

I think the aircraft stands need to be re-arranged first, maybe we'll see them based in 2013?

There would be enough room, the 175 can use the Dash stands, it's dimensionally smaller:

Dash: 32.81m x 28.4m
175: 31.68m x 26.00m

[Lord Spandex Masher]

RedED, that's what I used to think but the baby Embraer is about 4 feet too tall for the cheap seats. It would need to park on stands 2-5.

[adfly]

Surely it can park on stands 1-5, as the Dash is able to squeeze onto 1 and the E175 is shorter in length and wingspan, and I don't think there is any sort of tail height restriction on 1. This would theoretically allow a maximum of 2 E175's to be based in addition to the current 3 E195's.

[PrestonPilot]

hi everyone, you all seem to know a lot about flybe, was wondering if you could help me. Potential interview with them through PTC, was wondering is their shortest route Jersey - Guernsey? and their longest route, birmingham - dubrovnik?

Any other interesting things you think I should know which might be relatively unknown about routes or the airline etc...
Thanks

[Lord Spandex Masher]

Adfly, you're right, I always forget about stand 1 for some reason!

Preston, if you include Loganair Westray to Papa Westray is the shortest.

[ara01jbb]

Westray / Papa Westray is not part of the FlyBe franchise. Although I'd be surprised if that would lose you the job

[Exasperated]

This is one way of making sure no one can take advantage of cheap flights

Ex

[johnnychips]

Well spotted! Not exactly cheap either - is that typical of flights to Scottish extremities?

[edi_local]

That is fairly typical. They are not the busiest of flights outside of the peak summer/Christmas seasons and unless there is a major event happening on the mainland or the Islands. The flight costs are comparable to driving or getting the train to Wick/Aberdeen/Ullapool to catch the ferry and obviously have far more convenience, and that's just the EDI routes.

I think local residents still get a certain discount on flights to mainland Scotland and I believe children get x number of flights or ferry crossings for free per year, to help with the high cost of running them.

[Exasperated]

That is fairly typical. They are not the busiest of flights outside of the peak summer/Christmas seasons and unless there is a major event happening on the mainland or the Islands. The flight costs are comparable to driving or getting the train to Wick/Aberdeen/Ullapool to catch the ferry and obviously have far more convenience, and that's just the EDI routes.

I think local residents still get a certain discount on flights to mainland Scotland and I believe children get x number of flights or ferry crossings for free per year, to help with the high cost of running them.

The air discount scheme operates for residents of the islands to subsidise the cost of getting to the mainland and has been approved until 2015 by the EU.

It offers 40% discount on core fares (excluding PSO routes which are subsidised anyway)

Apparently it is cheaper to book BA even when using Loganair (at least it used to be anyway).

Ex

[ara01jbb]

Loganair routes are pricey, but unlike many of "mainline" BE's routes, the bulk of the ticket price is the ticket, not the tax. If (like me) you happen to fly BE on business a fair bit, you may have wondered what to do with your next-to-useless Rewards4All points. Someone pointed out to me last year that because you still have to pay "taxes and charges" when redeeming them, they are much better value on Loganair routes, where the taxes are a much smaller proportion of the fare. Thinking of a trip from Glasgow to Barra, Orkney or Shetland this summer; a return would cost 16 points plus about £40.

[PrestonPilot]

thanks for replies about the loganair route, so is the longest route birmingham - dubrovnik?

and the shortest route for flybe jersey - guernsey?

[Otto Throttle]

Preston Pilot,

I wouldn't waste your time digging up irrelevant trivia for your potential interview preparation. There are far more important issues you will be asked about and I suggest you concentrate your efforts in thinking about those instead. Knowing the aswer to your question will not gain you any extra marks in the interview process.

OT

[Serenity]

Back on course.....heard from someone that would know, that the CEO has been taking a few trips down to the headquarters of Flybe recently for meetings??? Anyone know anything about this???

This found found from the Easyjet thread. Any thoughts, news???

[davidjohnson6]

Not a lot will happen unless Rosedale consent to it.

Having said that,with the share price down 79% over the last 12 months, giving the market capitalisation (i.e. overall value) of the company as £47m, about the list price of a new A319, it's quite possible a company like Easyjet would be having a look.

[racedo]

Serenity

Not going to happen as will get tied up in EU competition review irrespective of what UK would want.

Issue is not what Flybe is worth on the stock exchange, it may be only be theoretically worth £47m if buy all the stock in one go. BUT its the assets/ liabilities that the company actually has that will be its real value.

This was same with EI when FR were having a look.

It may be the Easyjet think this could be a quick win but given market position in UK I struggle to see the fit between the 2 companies maybe as a feeder but even then I'm not sure.

One only has to look at the way BA were able to buy up and absorb BCal / Danair etc etc with Govt connivance but has it really built up BA other than to have made it largest airline operating from UK for a while.

Being the biggest player in a country is a bit like being the biggest in a single city, sounds great but perhaps focus should be on rest of the market as well.

[davidjohnson6]

Wingo - you are correct that only about 28% of the shares are generally available for the public to buy and sell. However the number of shares that have been issued by the company secretary is fixed - about 75 million. Around 48% of these are held by Rosedale (i.e. Jack Walker trust) - so nothing will happen without their consent. 75 million times 62 pence comes to about 47 million pounds. Rosedale have a holding worth 23 million pounds and the shares that are publicly traded are worth about 13 million pounds.

Yes this is low but one should remember that the share price has fallen 79 % in the last 12 months. If a company has good profits then the share price and thus the market capitalisation will go back up again.

Easyjet for reference currently have a market capitalisation of 2.05 billion pounds - and yes a big slug of that is owned by Stelios and his family.