BELFAST AIRPORT INTERNATIONAL
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: UAE
Posts: 670
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Can't see an A320 being the weapon of choice if Qatar were going to venture north of the border. Apart from it not being able to make it without a stop the fares would need to be very low to make spending 8 hours in one seem like a decent proposition compared to EK into Dublin.
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: N Ireland
Age: 55
Posts: 133
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I think this often-stated notion of '7m Belfast passengers pa so we should have xy or z international services' overlooks some important unique characteristics of the NI market.
And I would have thought that a mid east route would be one of BFS' primary targets for the future....
First, most of the services that make up the 7m are flights to GB - someone will be able to provide the actual figure but this is the bread and butter business of airports in NI.
Secondly, since NI has obvious political and cultural links to GB but is physically detached, the number is distorted because the same kind of journeys if they were in GB would be made by train or car.
Secondly, since NI has obvious political and cultural links to GB but is physically detached, the number is distorted because the same kind of journeys if they were in GB would be made by train or car.
allows it to punch above its weight already.
Fourth, Dublin and the new improved motorway that gets you there from Belfast in less time than it takes to drive from Central London to Gatwick.
Anyway, hardly unique. There must be plenty of cities with perfectly adequate, if geographically lengthy, road links to airports serving another city.
The fact that Belfast has only just been able to attract KLM Cityhopper on a modest frequency should serve as a reality check.
the distance from DOH-BFS is approx 3541 miles (yes I know it's not 100% accurate due to winds, detours etc) and the range of an A320 is around 3600 miles
Yes it would be nice if it happened, but my guess is that if QR want to start flights to Ireland then it is more likely that they would start with DUB (hope I'm wrong of course!). If they (ME3) all end up at DUB then perhaps at some time in the future one of them will look at also serving BFS.
Last edited by madgav; 21st Nov 2015 at 23:17.
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: N Ireland
Age: 55
Posts: 133
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Not going to happen.
What about in the next few years? Hope you're not saying 'never'. Never is a long time
Any long haul at Aldergrove .
such as the former CO route.
Last edited by madgav; 22nd Nov 2015 at 08:19.
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: Middlesex (under the flightpath)
Posts: 1,946
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Former? Eh?
I take it you are referring to the EWR route formerly operated by CO and currently operated by UA?
'Any' long haul? Long haul already exists at BFS with UA, VS, TCX. ...
Not going to happen now? Realistically that is probably the more likely outcome What about in the next few years? Hope you're not saying 'never'. Never is a long time
What about in the next few years? Hope you're not saying 'never'. Never is a long time
Let me rephrase: balance of probability is against, think it's very unlikely.
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Severnside
Age: 35
Posts: 99
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Forgive my perhaps total ignorance, but really why Not Qatar from Northern Ireland??
Despite the obvious hurdles of the occasional lunar spectacles of fleg waving and bottle throwing which the media so helpfully shy away from covering in glorious techno colour & the bin lid dummy-spitting up on the hill and so forth, afaik Etihad, Emirates and Turkish all employ dedicated sales resources in the NI market. Are they doing that coz they're totally clueless about where business is coming from??
And, whether people like to believe it or not Ireland is still a small, recently badly struggling economy out floating in the Atlantic off Europe. There is not the genuine base in the economy of London or other major capitals, or even Manchester or Birmingham.
So why would Qatar want to try to establish themselves as very much the last of the four Asian hub carriers from DUB at a time when Etihad have seen enough of the mad land-grab of the last few years and are radically cutting back?
Is a free run at the northern market with a sensible size of aircraft to mop up local business which clearly the other three are all clamouring to court not a reasonably attractive opportunity?
You have to presume if QR managers have actually mentioned Belfast in media coverage that this thought has at least crossed their mind n all.
Despite the obvious hurdles of the occasional lunar spectacles of fleg waving and bottle throwing which the media so helpfully shy away from covering in glorious techno colour & the bin lid dummy-spitting up on the hill and so forth, afaik Etihad, Emirates and Turkish all employ dedicated sales resources in the NI market. Are they doing that coz they're totally clueless about where business is coming from??
And, whether people like to believe it or not Ireland is still a small, recently badly struggling economy out floating in the Atlantic off Europe. There is not the genuine base in the economy of London or other major capitals, or even Manchester or Birmingham.
So why would Qatar want to try to establish themselves as very much the last of the four Asian hub carriers from DUB at a time when Etihad have seen enough of the mad land-grab of the last few years and are radically cutting back?
Is a free run at the northern market with a sensible size of aircraft to mop up local business which clearly the other three are all clamouring to court not a reasonably attractive opportunity?
You have to presume if QR managers have actually mentioned Belfast in media coverage that this thought has at least crossed their mind n all.
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: N Ireland
Age: 55
Posts: 133
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
@Cozy F
I was going to ask the same question but decided not to bother. Not being privy to the route planning strategy of the ME3/4/3½ or the intricacies of the NI aviation market, I cannot offer any real evidence as to if/why any route may or may not be viable either now or in the foreseeable future.
I would certainly think it's possible though and would stand by my earlier statement that I think one of these carriers will serve us at some point in the future.
I would certainly think it's possible though and would stand by my earlier statement that I think one of these carriers will serve us at some point in the future.
A saw an ad in an American radio station promoting Northern Ireland.
Why not one of the ME3 in Belfast? Well never say never but looking at some of the airports ahead of the combined NI throughput gives you the following and the dominant hub with ME3 connectivity.
STN / LTN / BRS (LHR)
LPL (MAN)
Oddly enough NCL does but EK don't serve EDI. DUB is just a much more commercially attractive given the fragmented market in NI. Also the balance between inbound business and outbound holidaymakers may also play a part.
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Northern Ireland
Posts: 464
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Looks like Ryanair are going to BHD! Can BFS not get any new airline this year!!
Last edited by SecondDog; 30th Nov 2015 at 14:01. Reason: Added Quotation