SOUTHAMPTON
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Southampton, U.K
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It would seem so taking a closer look. the website has been updated with the route being advertised & on the route map. Odd that Hamburg is advertised as a route even when there is a 7 hour (!) total duration getting there which is rather off putting! 3hrs 25 on the way back is not too bad but those timings could do with some tweaking, the route starts on 23rd April and appears to be 5 weekly Mon-Fri.
Join Date: Dec 2011
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VLM
Great news to see a new airline seeing the potential at Southampton. It really is perfectly set up for business pax and these routes will also tap into the cruise industry.
The figures do not surprise me either. The south is one of the most affluent area in England so holidays/business is always on the agenda but the costs have to be proportionate. Looks like BE are finally realising that if you give a little you will get a lot in return. Why they want to dilute these figures by operating at that shower down the road is anyone's guess.
The figures do not surprise me either. The south is one of the most affluent area in England so holidays/business is always on the agenda but the costs have to be proportionate. Looks like BE are finally realising that if you give a little you will get a lot in return. Why they want to dilute these figures by operating at that shower down the road is anyone's guess.
Join Date: Nov 2002
Location: Brighton uk
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Good news for Southampton with VLM and good to finally see a few more carriers with some different destinations that have been needed for quite a few years now
Hope the Hamburg route is sucessful as been on the cards then off for a fair few years , but with the right price and times should be a winner
As for the last posters comments as usual a big " Yawn " from most readers …
Hope the Hamburg route is sucessful as been on the cards then off for a fair few years , but with the right price and times should be a winner
As for the last posters comments as usual a big " Yawn " from most readers …
Last edited by MARKEYD; 17th Mar 2015 at 21:01.
Join Date: Dec 2011
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Funny how you saw fit to comment on my post Markeyd?
Let's take the bias out of proceedings. Some quick facts:
SOU 128k pax and a 21% increase last month;
BOH 20k pax and down 11% in same month.
Not sure what your background is markeyd, but you don't have to be Bill Gates to have the business acumen to decide which horse to back.
That's before we even get to talking about infrastructure and usability which BOH at best could only match SOU. That's after BOH had a motorway and train line/station built on it's doorstep, a few 100 million might get the ball rolling I suppose. Looking at close to a billion though.
Oh and yes of course the few hundred cruise passengers would love a small detour to BOH not to mention the rest of us who would quite happily fly to MAN from SOU and then back to BOH on the way back. Why not, it is perfectly logical.
If anyone can present a case for BE operating at BOH whilst it has the SOU monopoly in it's back pocket I am all ears. More than happy to hold my hands up if you can convince me.
Let's take the bias out of proceedings. Some quick facts:
SOU 128k pax and a 21% increase last month;
BOH 20k pax and down 11% in same month.
Not sure what your background is markeyd, but you don't have to be Bill Gates to have the business acumen to decide which horse to back.
That's before we even get to talking about infrastructure and usability which BOH at best could only match SOU. That's after BOH had a motorway and train line/station built on it's doorstep, a few 100 million might get the ball rolling I suppose. Looking at close to a billion though.
Oh and yes of course the few hundred cruise passengers would love a small detour to BOH not to mention the rest of us who would quite happily fly to MAN from SOU and then back to BOH on the way back. Why not, it is perfectly logical.
If anyone can present a case for BE operating at BOH whilst it has the SOU monopoly in it's back pocket I am all ears. More than happy to hold my hands up if you can convince me.
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Northern Ireland
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I have to say all of this expansion by Flybe feels very 'Eurodirect', if anybody can remember this fast growing regional airline that was big in the South and Southwest of England in the 1990's.
That said they had impressive stats for FEB. Perhaps the more BE way is working....
That said they had impressive stats for FEB. Perhaps the more BE way is working....
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Waters edge
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For those struggling to understand Flybe strategy, the airline management set it out clearly in a capital markets day in November.
http://www.flybe.com/corporate/inves...ember-2014.pdf
http://www.flybe.com/corporate/inves...ember-2014.pdf
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: The glasshouse, a stone's throw from you
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Rivet Joint, to quote Markeyd
YAWN!
See Flitefone's link and read this bit
• UK infill
Return to Aberdeen, creating up to 100 jobs
Bournemouth to complement/back-up Southampton
Do you have shares in Flybe/Southampton Airport or land speculation in Bournemouth and hoping for closure, I'm really can't see why you're so anti-BOH
YAWN!
See Flitefone's link and read this bit
• UK infill
Return to Aberdeen, creating up to 100 jobs
Bournemouth to complement/back-up Southampton
Do you have shares in Flybe/Southampton Airport or land speculation in Bournemouth and hoping for closure, I'm really can't see why you're so anti-BOH
Join Date: Oct 2013
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That said they had impressive stats for FEB. Perhaps the more BE way is working....
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: UK
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SOU and BOH should try to work together to complement each other. They should try and co-ordinate some sort of policy where business or high frequency routes go to SOU and leisure/LCC/longer haul services go to BOH. Wouldn't that help both airports in the longer run? To approach airlines as two partners rather than competing for finite passengers within a tiny catchment area dwarfed by LHR just 60-90 mins away!
Join Date: Nov 2014
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EI-BUD (737-300 right?)
Euro-Direct-Airlines, that's a blast from the past. They made ridiculous choices towards the end of their existence such as single routes from LGW and unknown forays into mainland Europe - Kortrijk in Belgium for example. I think they also did a bizarre Exeter to. Bournemouth shuttle service almost hourly at peak times. It lead to their downfall.
Similar route behaviour at Flybe (not as crazy I would say) but they have more strength with improved cash-flow and reduced costs and complexity.
Similar route behaviour at Flybe (not as crazy I would say) but they have more strength with improved cash-flow and reduced costs and complexity.
Join Date: Feb 2007
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It would seem so taking a closer look. the website has been updated with the route being advertised & on the route map. Odd that Hamburg is advertised as a route even when there is a 7 hour (!) total duration getting there which is rather off putting! 3hrs 25 on the way back is not too bad but those timings could do with some tweaking, the route starts on 23rd April and appears to be 5 weekly Mon-Fri.
VG162 HAM 09:05 ANRa 10:35/ANRd 11:05 SOU 11:30 x67
VG163 SOU 12:00 ANRa 14:25/ANRd 18:30 HAM 20:00 x67
The 4hr 5 min transit time in ANR on flights ex SOU seems very excessive. Especially with the limited facilities available at ANR airport
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Northern Ireland
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Sharklet321,
You are right EI-BUD was in fact a Boeing 733!!!
Nakata,
Your suggestion of collaboration sounds nice, but I'd suggest SOU would have more to loose here. They'd like the business to themselves and it would seem BOH has posed little threat to SOU hitherto.
BE has been at BOH before and recently enough tested BOH MAN, without Satisfaction. Some will argue now that costs are lower, therefore routes may be viable. As I see it, BE have dived into this and it is to say the least a risky strategy...
EI-BUD
You are right EI-BUD was in fact a Boeing 733!!!
Nakata,
Your suggestion of collaboration sounds nice, but I'd suggest SOU would have more to loose here. They'd like the business to themselves and it would seem BOH has posed little threat to SOU hitherto.
BE has been at BOH before and recently enough tested BOH MAN, without Satisfaction. Some will argue now that costs are lower, therefore routes may be viable. As I see it, BE have dived into this and it is to say the least a risky strategy...
EI-BUD
Join Date: Mar 2003
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Wondering why they don't let the Fokker 50 sit on the ground at SOU until 3:30 pm - no apron space at SOU even during that off-peak hours? As VLM only operates one other route fron ANR, it is not as if they would need the Fokker 50 at ANR earlier. Only explanation I can think of is crew hours. But the schedule simply ruins any chance of HAM travellers - 7 hours travel time is excessive given competing nonstop HAM services from LGW, LHR, LTN and LCY.
Join Date: Feb 2007
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Wondering why they don't let the Fokker 50 sit on the ground at SOU until 3:30 pm - no apron space at SOU even during that off-peak hours? As VLM only operates one other route fron ANR, it is not as if they would need the Fokker 50 at ANR earlier. Only explanation I can think of is crew hours. But the schedule simply ruins any chance of HAM travellers - 7 hours travel time is excessive given competing nonstop HAM services from LGW, LHR, LTN and LCY.
Meaning that as things stand the aircraft will remain there for the duration of the transit
Would there be a market for flights to RTM or BRU from SOU. VG could operate a 12:00 departure to RTM or BRU arriving back in SOU at 15:00.
Then the HAM could depart SOU at about 15:30 and arrive in ANR at about 18:00. meaning the aircraft would only then have 30 mins on the ground before flying off to HAM.
Join Date: May 2013
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Finally I have mentioned it before but SOU fits well with Volotea in the sense that it fits their business model of avoiding competition from the main LCC's and the 717 is quite a good fit for SOU from both a runway performance and physical dimensions point of view.
Also I've heard that there is also a small change this year to the SOU-PMI operations, the 717s flying for Thomson will no longer be NTE or BOD based and will instead be operated by the aircraft based at OVD, so it will now be OVD-PMI-SOU-PMI-OVD
Last edited by MattBAe146; 19th Mar 2015 at 22:05.
Join Date: Nov 2014
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Is there space at SOU for a 4 or 5 aircraft LCC base? Something like EasyJet A319's to give competition to Flybe on JER, GLA, EDI, NCL, BFS, AMS, CDG, NCE, BCN, VCE, INN, SZG, PRG, BER, CGN, MUC. Etc...
Would there be payload penalties - given SOU runway length - on those routes?
Would there be payload penalties - given SOU runway length - on those routes?
Join Date: Dec 2011
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You would think so Sharklet but unfortunately a LCC operation cannot even be considered at SOU in it's current form. They foolishly sold of part of their prime apron space to Royal Mail who built a depot (yes this really happened) on it. This depot could have been built on any number of the surrounding industrial estates but welcome to SOU airport. The airport of low aspirations. Investment involves setting aside a few thousand pounds for a lounge/toilet refresh every 3 years and that's it. Despite now having new owners it looks like they are going to be no better than BAA treating SOU as a pot to hold some money in. They could quite easily build some new stands in the north east of the airport (part of their master plan) but still noting 10 years down the line.
BOH on the other hand had a new terminal/instrument landing system off the back of a couple of flights a day. You have to speculate to accumulate as they say and unfortunately I do not see that happening at SOU. They have always been in the hands of investment portfolios rather than someone like the Manchester airport group who want to run successful airports.
BOH on the other hand had a new terminal/instrument landing system off the back of a couple of flights a day. You have to speculate to accumulate as they say and unfortunately I do not see that happening at SOU. They have always been in the hands of investment portfolios rather than someone like the Manchester airport group who want to run successful airports.
Rivet Joint
The airport operator never sold the Royal Mail building site, they never bought it.
When the complete site was purchased from Nat Somers by Gazeley Developments it was broken into three sections. First was that now housing Royal Mail, Mercedes, Premier Inn etc, the present airport site, and the area to the NE in vicinity of the "SAM" VOR (when I was a lad runway10/28).
When BAA bought the current site they initially chose not to buy either of the other two sections. They subsequently purchased the NE corner when Gazeleys worked out it would be a nightmare to develop due to access problems to the site. Subsequently along came the Airport Master Plan with the intent to site their new Terminal Building in the NE corner, having missed the boat with the obvious site for it!
The airport operator never sold the Royal Mail building site, they never bought it.
When the complete site was purchased from Nat Somers by Gazeley Developments it was broken into three sections. First was that now housing Royal Mail, Mercedes, Premier Inn etc, the present airport site, and the area to the NE in vicinity of the "SAM" VOR (when I was a lad runway10/28).
When BAA bought the current site they initially chose not to buy either of the other two sections. They subsequently purchased the NE corner when Gazeleys worked out it would be a nightmare to develop due to access problems to the site. Subsequently along came the Airport Master Plan with the intent to site their new Terminal Building in the NE corner, having missed the boat with the obvious site for it!