NEWQUAY
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: cornwall, uk
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I'm still trying to figure, since the RAF have vacated St. Mawgan airfield, why a seaside town such as Newquay needs two airports!
I agree as stated previously that the only BIH ops at NQY will be MX, operating chopper flights ex NQY would never even break even, especially in direct competition with the fixed wing services already offered @ NQY
I promise not to repeat it again but NQY will only secure a profitable future by attracting ancilliary aviation related or other businesses. It will not please the spotters but that is the cold hard fact.
i can also see cargo potential, in the same way as EMA/STN etc but obviously nowhere near such a scale as these two airports
cs
Join Date: Jul 2004
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Simon,
Please allow me to assure you that a golden rule of an airline is to limit non revenue flying to as minimal as possible, non revenue in this instance referring to maintenance ferry flights.
Particularly during the winters there might only be a need for one chopper rotation to/from the island(s), it would take a chopper longer to ferry NQY/Heliport/NQY than it would to fly revenue Heliport to/from the island(s).
If you were to build your own home would you build the house in St. Erth but build the garage (to house your car) in Carloggas? Then when you get home of an evening, after a day's work, you can drive your car to Carloggas to then get a taxi home again to do the reverse situ the following morning and you can do this seven days per week, wouldn't it be great?
When I said "RAF vacated" i mean that it is no longer a MoD operated (funded) airfield, the military might be using it but they're only using it because it is there, the military won't have signed any long term contract with the airfield operator regarding continued usage thus there is no guarantee of continued revenue from military usage.
Continuing to operate St. Mawgan airfield will continue to be a drain on public funds, for years it was a turboprop airport with just the occasional jet visitor, indeed in crosswind conditions DHC7's would land across the 300ft wide runway! I still recall the NQY Airport fuel bowsers 'Sweaty Betty' and 'Fat Ann', I can't recall which of these they lit a bonfire under one morning to thaw the diesel in the fuel tank.
Meanwhile just down the road there is Perranporth, an already demonstrated viable aerodrome operation, ask any (honest) beancounter what the most viable option would be, to continue funding St. Mawgan airfield or sell the airfield off relocating NQY airport to Perranporth whilst investing in resurfacing/extending Perranporth's runway 05/23 to a maximum length, instalingl lighting and generally upgrading the aerodrome to an 'airport'.
But anyway, what your suggesting is ludicrous, PZE has a hangar and maintenance facility, it is being proposed that they relocate the heliport to St. Erth but you're suggesting that they forget to plan for a hangar in St. Erth and be forced to use an airfield on the other side of the county for hangarage!
Please allow me to assure you that a golden rule of an airline is to limit non revenue flying to as minimal as possible, non revenue in this instance referring to maintenance ferry flights.
Particularly during the winters there might only be a need for one chopper rotation to/from the island(s), it would take a chopper longer to ferry NQY/Heliport/NQY than it would to fly revenue Heliport to/from the island(s).
If you were to build your own home would you build the house in St. Erth but build the garage (to house your car) in Carloggas? Then when you get home of an evening, after a day's work, you can drive your car to Carloggas to then get a taxi home again to do the reverse situ the following morning and you can do this seven days per week, wouldn't it be great?
When I said "RAF vacated" i mean that it is no longer a MoD operated (funded) airfield, the military might be using it but they're only using it because it is there, the military won't have signed any long term contract with the airfield operator regarding continued usage thus there is no guarantee of continued revenue from military usage.
Continuing to operate St. Mawgan airfield will continue to be a drain on public funds, for years it was a turboprop airport with just the occasional jet visitor, indeed in crosswind conditions DHC7's would land across the 300ft wide runway! I still recall the NQY Airport fuel bowsers 'Sweaty Betty' and 'Fat Ann', I can't recall which of these they lit a bonfire under one morning to thaw the diesel in the fuel tank.
Meanwhile just down the road there is Perranporth, an already demonstrated viable aerodrome operation, ask any (honest) beancounter what the most viable option would be, to continue funding St. Mawgan airfield or sell the airfield off relocating NQY airport to Perranporth whilst investing in resurfacing/extending Perranporth's runway 05/23 to a maximum length, instalingl lighting and generally upgrading the aerodrome to an 'airport'.
But anyway, what your suggesting is ludicrous, PZE has a hangar and maintenance facility, it is being proposed that they relocate the heliport to St. Erth but you're suggesting that they forget to plan for a hangar in St. Erth and be forced to use an airfield on the other side of the county for hangarage!
Perranporth? YGBSM, as they say. Even poorer road/rail communications, restricted site, no closer to potential customers, and in need of huge investment.
I thought you might have pushed for Portreath, which is close to the C-P-R conurbation, a mainline railway station and the Redruth junction of the A30, is secure and the main runway is in arguably better condition than Perranporths. Just have the incumbents move the RRH closer to SHQ and the bunker.
I thought you might have pushed for Portreath, which is close to the C-P-R conurbation, a mainline railway station and the Redruth junction of the A30, is secure and the main runway is in arguably better condition than Perranporths. Just have the incumbents move the RRH closer to SHQ and the bunker.
Last edited by diginagain; 1st Jun 2011 at 04:42.
Join Date: Jul 2004
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diginagain,
Portreath has a 'chemical (biological) germ warfare' or similar testing background which seems to be somewhat offputting to many people!
It's about the size of the field, Cornwall has no need for a mega expanse field and certainly no need for a 9,000ft runway such as St. Mawgan, the larger the field the more expensive the operating costs, just to illuminate a 9,000ft runway is 50% more expensive than it need be!
St. Mawgan will drain public funds this year, next year, the year after and for every year they continue to keep it open with public funding, Perranporth would be a 'one off' cost, Perranporth is already commercially viable (Portreath is not), give them a shiny new runway and taxiway or two, lighting, perhaps an ILS, a parking area and terminal, car park and then the council can wipe their hands of this annual financial burden whilst leaving Perranporth to get on with it.
As for road and transport (rail) connections, well the current Newquay airport doesn't have those anyway so any new airport has little, if anything, to improve upon in this respect.
Portreath has a 'chemical (biological) germ warfare' or similar testing background which seems to be somewhat offputting to many people!
It's about the size of the field, Cornwall has no need for a mega expanse field and certainly no need for a 9,000ft runway such as St. Mawgan, the larger the field the more expensive the operating costs, just to illuminate a 9,000ft runway is 50% more expensive than it need be!
St. Mawgan will drain public funds this year, next year, the year after and for every year they continue to keep it open with public funding, Perranporth would be a 'one off' cost, Perranporth is already commercially viable (Portreath is not), give them a shiny new runway and taxiway or two, lighting, perhaps an ILS, a parking area and terminal, car park and then the council can wipe their hands of this annual financial burden whilst leaving Perranporth to get on with it.
As for road and transport (rail) connections, well the current Newquay airport doesn't have those anyway so any new airport has little, if anything, to improve upon in this respect.
PF, I agree; the legacy of CDE Nancekuke isn't going to be overcome any time soon, sadly. I'm also in agreement with your view on the expense of maintaining all that Tarmac near Newquay. It could be put to use as an industrial estate, taking direct access onto the site at Spitfire Corner, if we didn't have enough vacant units and not enough industry already.
While both Perranporth and Portreath have their attractions, its a moot point anyway as we're unlikely to see either of them developed to their fullest potential.
While both Perranporth and Portreath have their attractions, its a moot point anyway as we're unlikely to see either of them developed to their fullest potential.
Join Date: Mar 2002
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NQY could mitigate some of its losses by addressing the incompetence of its retail offer.
Went through LGW-bound the other weekday evening at 5pm; no local beer (Tribute) or any draught beer available, no pasties or other hot food (nothing even available to defrost), no newspapers left for purchase except two well-fingered copies of the Independent and nothing sensible to purchase in the magazine section either. The solitary staff member was not a product of charm school and the landside cafe was closed altogether. It pains me to say that Flybe got my catering £££ instead.
Went through LGW-bound the other weekday evening at 5pm; no local beer (Tribute) or any draught beer available, no pasties or other hot food (nothing even available to defrost), no newspapers left for purchase except two well-fingered copies of the Independent and nothing sensible to purchase in the magazine section either. The solitary staff member was not a product of charm school and the landside cafe was closed altogether. It pains me to say that Flybe got my catering £££ instead.
NQY could mitigate some of its losses by addressing the incompetence of its retail offer.
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Why should the airport concern itself, the airport isn't a commercial enterprise, it doesn't need to make a profit, indeed the more it loses the more the state will subsidise it!
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PF, Coffee Republic will take over the concession on 1 July 2011. They were voted best coffee on the London high street by the London Evening Standard - Feb 2011.
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Well there you have it Mr Jamieson ..... you make mention of a lack of local produce and Nookie Airport's solution is to bring in some coffee company, allegedly, well known in London!
Only a matter of time before the Airport becomes reknowned for it's Cornish produce, genuine pasty recipes and cream teas etc.
Only a matter of time before the Airport becomes reknowned for it's Cornish produce, genuine pasty recipes and cream teas etc.
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<sigh>
Indeed. Nothing people want more to take home from Cornwall than its famous, erm, coffee.
I've taken part in numerous pax surveys at NQY and it has never made any difference. Unless everyone else actually asked for crap food and drink, nothing to read, no bar, no mobile phone signal, uncomfortable seats and a shop stocked like a Russian supermarket circa 1986.
Also, how come there are always about six staff on duty on the security 'hall' and yet it still never takes less than five minutes to clear? There's a pre-rummager, a scanner watcher and a post-rummager, but what do all the rest of them do? It is like the Standing-about Olympics.
Shame, because NQY should be able to make a virtue of its size by providing a unique and engaging airport experience. Sadly it merely provides a lesson in why councils shouldn't run airports.
Indeed. Nothing people want more to take home from Cornwall than its famous, erm, coffee.
I've taken part in numerous pax surveys at NQY and it has never made any difference. Unless everyone else actually asked for crap food and drink, nothing to read, no bar, no mobile phone signal, uncomfortable seats and a shop stocked like a Russian supermarket circa 1986.
Also, how come there are always about six staff on duty on the security 'hall' and yet it still never takes less than five minutes to clear? There's a pre-rummager, a scanner watcher and a post-rummager, but what do all the rest of them do? It is like the Standing-about Olympics.
Shame, because NQY should be able to make a virtue of its size by providing a unique and engaging airport experience. Sadly it merely provides a lesson in why councils shouldn't run airports.
Question;
Answer;
Also, how come there are always about six staff on duty on the security 'hall' and yet it still never takes less than five minutes to clear?There's a pre-rummager, a scanner watcher and a post-rummager, but what do all the rest of them do? It is like the Standing-about Olympics.
Sadly it merely provides a lesson in why councils shouldn't run airports.
