BIRMINGHAM - 5

[GayFriendly]

Mahan

BHX website has a Mahan arrival listed for tomorrow W5 010 @ 2030 from IKA - an error or their long rumoured return?

Also does anyone know why LH have added a flight number as codeshare on CO flights from EWR? Surely they are not expecting LH pax to choose to route through BHX travelling from the US to/from Germany?!

[airhumberside]

You never know. I'm sure I read that when AF flew CDG-SNN they used to send overflow passengers for JFK via SNN

[Jamie2k9]

LH and CO are menbers of Star Alliance.

[grundyhead]

Heard a rumour from a handling agent today that Emirates were planning a early morning B777 followed by an A380 at lunchtime.

Just read an advert in the Birmingham Mail for Emirates Cabin Crew. If they wish to seek propective candidates from this region, could this mean possible expansion of the ops from BHX???

Fingers crossed.....

[crewmeal]

Just read an advert in the Birmingham Mail for Emirates Cabin Crew. If they wish to seek propective candidates from this region, could this mean possible expansion of the ops from BHX???

They have roadshows where recruiters go around different countries to recruit local people. They sometimes go to smaller towns and cities to interview. It's probably Birmingham's turn for people to turn up at whatever hotel they have booked. Don't read too much into that, because locally recruited Brummies won't necessarily fly into BHX.

I think BHX has to increase the passenger load and yields before anymore expansion happens.

[bazzab68]

Co and Lh

They code share and route px via bhx onwards to both DUS and MUC on the morning LH departures! Generally only 2-3 px but the other day it was over 30 odd onwards! Shows how code sharing on routes works..

Regards

Barry

[GayFriendly]

LH/CO Codesharing

Thanks for the info guys, am amazed that pax route through BHX to get from EWR to MUC and DUS but there you go! I knew they were both *Alliance but didn't think this would be a priority codeshare route for them, but as they say, every little helps!

Be interesting to see if Mahan turn up tonight........

Thanks for the heads up on EK recruitment, might go down and give it a go

[Monty Gordo]

Disappointing

While the past week or so has seen some encouraging news, particularly with regard to route development by ZB and LH, and earlier with Baby this must be tinged with disappointment at S12 plans by Flybe.

While they have retained most if not all of their 'holiday' routes, both Bordeaux and Toulouse have been dropped. Both the latter two cities are major business communities in France and it must be viewed with concern that they are now no longer figuring on the Flybe timetable.

It is to be hoped that other airlines see this and take advantage of what I would think would be valuable 'business' routes. Long term, I believe both could perform well.

Maybe Baby could be tempted back into Bordeaux....

[Cyrano]

Originally Posted by GayFriendly

Thanks for the info guys, am amazed that pax route through BHX to get from EWR to MUC and DUS but there you go!

It's not a priority, and most of the time the numbers connecting will be low (naturally, if direct flights are available), but every so often, for whatever reason, there will be blips in demand and thus less capacity available on the direct flight, so - because of revenue management - prices on the direct flight will be higher than on the connecting flight. Therefore Joe Bloggs in New Jersey, who's trying to book a ticket to Munich on Star Alliance for that particular day, will find he has a choice of the direct flight at $900 or the connection via BHX at $700 (for example) and he'll go for the cheaper alternative.

In general this traffic will be made up of price-sensitive passengers choosing the cheapest routing. It's not US tourists who really want to check out the Balti Triangle en route to the Oktoberfest...

As Airhumberside mentioned earlier, this was also the case when SNN-CDG operated. There were passengers routing CDG-SNN-JFK despite the large number of direct CDG-JFK flights. Only a few, but Every Little Helps.

[scott737]

Flybe

Thanks to OltonPete for working out the schedules on Flybe's French regional routes from BHX for '12.

I'm not sure if the glass is half-empty or half-full. Initially when next summer's timetable appeared, it seemed as though there would be no French routes (save CDG and Avignon) from BHX next summer. So the re-instatement of another 4 is at least positive, even if the frequencies are reduced from this year.

It is, I agree, odd that Bordeaux and Toulouse are left out. But I'm sure I read somewhere a while ago that Air France were due to base Airbuses at those airports - along with Nice - to operate point-to-point services from, instead of everything routing via Paris or with Brit Air or Regional. Is it out of the question that BHX may feature in those plans? Or is this entirely wishful thinking?

Scott

[OltonPete]

French routes/Ryanair summer 2012

scott737

I have checked the CAA stats and BOD was reasonable and beat Bergerac
the months it operated and I can only assume yields were lower. Air France are indeed rumoured to open a Bordeaux base but the latest it will be scaled down from the A32S to E190's. You would think flybe would try a code-share on a Q400 or once they materialise the 175. Toulouse I think will be 320's and again if anything at all in the future, a code-share on flybe metal?

Ryanair 2012 - no dobut more adjustments to come

Still looking like four based with possibly one new routes due cutbacks on
existing services? The latest to be released are: -

Tenerife Tu/Th/Sa down one from last summer (Wed gone)

Reus Wed/Su down one from last summer (Fri gone)

Montpellier Mo/Fr down one/two from last summer (Wed all summer & Sat high
summer)

Faro - Tu/Th/Sa down one (no Wed) all Faro based aircraft

Bydgoszcz Tu/Th/Sa - same

One Sunday Dublin removed back to two and one Saturday Malaga removed back to daily.

Girona is looking like it will be Su/Wed/Fri and Alicante is rumoured to be
daily.

Assuming they operate with BHX based aircraft then the gaps are: -

Monday none

Tuesday Tue afternoon (aircraft sat on the ground this summer)

Wednesday evening and afternoon

Thursday Afternoon & evening (aircraft sat on the ground in the afternoon this
summer)

Friday evening or afternoon

Saturday - Potentially two Saturday evening or one morning one evening

Sunday - No gaps.

Pete

[crewmeal]

Car parking

This morning I went to collect a friend and parked in the short stay car park at 8.15 Delay in getting the bags as the belt hadn't even started with everyone waiting around.

Result 21 minutes - £7. Why does this airport take great delight in making waiting for passengers an absolute misery?

[Monty Gordo]

once bitten, twice shy...

Having been caught in this trap myself I now adopt a different and cheaper strategy.

If I am picking up I wait for a text from the passenger to say they have collected their bags and that they are making their way to the rail station via the overhead link.

Parked away from the airport I then drive in and pick them up in the rail station car park.

I even think there is 20 minutes free parking there if you need it...

[ssflyer]

Like MG, I park up locally and ensure the Pax I am collecting has collected all their luggage and are on the way out (quick mobile call) and by the time they are over the road and in the ST carpark I am on the way.

[delta154]

Rumours that Comtel have gone under already. All flights cancelled since Friday and passengers being refused a refund. Are we shocked?

[CabinCrewe]

Website still accepting bookings. ATOL protected if not

[jetsgo]

Comtel

Just because the airline has canx 2 flights does not mean they have gone under!

Having said that it does not look good for the future.

[delta154]

Actuallythey have cancelled 3 in a row so far, Friday sat and tonight. Wonder if tomorrows will operate?

[nigel osborne]

Comtel

Just checked BHX website and Comtel not showing in the drop down box for next 48hrs arriving or departing.

At least they did more than a handful of flts,which is a few more than the other micky mousers to ATQ out of BHX in recent years !

Nigel

[S78]

Looks like Comtel have sorted out their problems and are playing catch-up with any stranded pax - there are 2 inbound COE flights today.