Europort Express
It's interesting though that the airports they claim to be planning to operating from have nothing about this . Granted HUY won't after making a big announcement about jetxtra .
But MME needs all the help it can get and they haven't even bothered
But MME needs all the help it can get and they haven't even bothered
Humberside have been in talks with whoever is behind this, so the relevent people there know about them.
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I've a resort website that remains under construction, in some respects it's a load of bollox
What evidence do you have that a paper airline is anything more than just that? Are there aircraft on the production time waiting for the Europort logo to be applied? No. Are there airport buildings being extended to make room for this new airline? No.
So most of what we have to go on is based on rumour or assessment of the market. I don't doubt that there are people who want to fly from the airports in question to RTM. If these new routes were to Norway or western Denmark, and research had proven a market, maybe we'd be less sceptical. But this is RTM, just down the line from AMS.
I just don't see how an airline can compete against such a large, well connected and established hub - even if RTM will be a much smaller airfield to use, AMS is just too close.
I just don't see how an airline can compete against such a large, well connected and established hub - even if RTM will be a much smaller airfield to use, AMS is just too close.
It could be just another 17 year old 'baby branson' type. However it could also be backed by a major shipping firm based in Rotterdam. Despite the first scenario probably being the most likely, we just dont know for definate as no official announcement has been made.
Last edited by pug; 11th Jun 2012 at 14:15.
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I have negotiated with the owner of a DC-10 which is currently parked in Arizona and they are going to lease it to me for $500 a day. I'm going to fill it with fuel and fly it to CPT from where I'll start a service to LHR to replace the service which SAA are dropping. We will give all the passengers first class seats for a flat fare of ZAR2500 each way, all dates. I know I can make money as it is a gap in the market. We're going to call it 'Head in The Clouds Airlines'.
The above is about as plausible and as likely to come to fruition and be successful as Europort Express.
The above is about as plausible and as likely to come to fruition and be successful as Europort Express.
Maybe Europort will do some commercial flying of passengers, or maybe it won't get to that stage - I'm not qualified to give a definitive opinion.
However, if it doesn't actually put tickets on sale, that might actually be a good thing. If you are in the process of setting up a business, and realise early on it's not going to make any money, much better to admit defeat and pull out at an early stage with a slightly red face rather than hire people, take people's money for bookings and then end up with a disastrous failure.
You can't be an entrepreneur and never make mistakes.
However, if it doesn't actually put tickets on sale, that might actually be a good thing. If you are in the process of setting up a business, and realise early on it's not going to make any money, much better to admit defeat and pull out at an early stage with a slightly red face rather than hire people, take people's money for bookings and then end up with a disastrous failure.
You can't be an entrepreneur and never make mistakes.
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I'm tentative about putting my resort rooms up for sale at the moment for fear that they may not be ready to go on sale by the deadline I had hoped for.
Am I right, to hold back until I am more sure, or am I wrong, that I should start selling, take the punters money, only to utter thereafter "Up Yours"?
Am I right, to hold back until I am more sure, or am I wrong, that I should start selling, take the punters money, only to utter thereafter "Up Yours"?
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Am I right, to hold back until I am more sure, or am I wrong, that I should start selling, take the punters money, only to utter thereafter "Up Yours"?
Your uncertainty is whether or not the rooms will be ready for the first few weeks (months) of your opening.
You still have a fixed asset in the hotel.
Not the same as a paper airline using someone else's AOC.
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Considering IATA's revised financial forecast for European airlines, it would seem reasonable to assume that the usual business model is well and truly defunct and any alternative can't be worse so might in fact be better.
This thread (and others) make frequent reference to competing for a slice of the same challenging market. What is it about the airline industry that feels the need to perpetually cannibalise itself and while desperately trying to cling on to customers that are voting with their feet (and wallets) against the status quo? There are other opportunities out there, but that means doing things differently, maybe even floating an idea and letting the paying public shape the product before it's launched.
And FGS would someone point out to the industry that we're all suffering the effects of high fuel prices (and some of us even have to pay tax on it) so stop using that as an excuse for bad business management.
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jabird,
I see where you are coming from, that I have concrete blocks and mortar as opposed to, perhaps, merely a reservations system of another party(s) aircraft, perhaps this is a general distrust of the paper airline concept, I don't know.
But it's not merely blocks and mortar vs paper airline ... both are businesses that need to have all the pieces of the jigsaw in place before opening the doors.
Of course, the sooner I start selling the better chance I have of filling the rooms but ..... to get our 'brand' known, and talked about on such site(s) as tripadvisor, I'm planning an introductory room rate for the initial 6 months (ish), this is to hopefully prove positive, get us a good reputation and well talked about ..... or should I put the rooms on sale too early and then have to contact clients, who have paid up front, "we're sorry etc." to get ourselves talked about negatively and, from before we even start, receive a negative reputation?
I prefer to hold out for a little while longer ... patience is a wonderful thing!
I see where you are coming from, that I have concrete blocks and mortar as opposed to, perhaps, merely a reservations system of another party(s) aircraft, perhaps this is a general distrust of the paper airline concept, I don't know.
But it's not merely blocks and mortar vs paper airline ... both are businesses that need to have all the pieces of the jigsaw in place before opening the doors.
Of course, the sooner I start selling the better chance I have of filling the rooms but ..... to get our 'brand' known, and talked about on such site(s) as tripadvisor, I'm planning an introductory room rate for the initial 6 months (ish), this is to hopefully prove positive, get us a good reputation and well talked about ..... or should I put the rooms on sale too early and then have to contact clients, who have paid up front, "we're sorry etc." to get ourselves talked about negatively and, from before we even start, receive a negative reputation?
I prefer to hold out for a little while longer ... patience is a wonderful thing!
Last edited by Phileas Fogg; 12th Jun 2012 at 02:18.
I think all this comparison of a "paper airline" to a resort under construction is pointless. An progress trail presumable exists for the resort over some considerable time with enough information in the public domain for a judgement to be made on its genuineness or not.
Europort Express isn't even strictly a "paper airline"; it's a virtual internet invention which may or may not have any existence beyond the fantasies and/or hopes of its originators. Those who view Air Humberside's forum will know that someone claiming to be a representative of EE has posted there a few times with the rationale behind the project, but when asked to elaborate or to offer some convincing evidence of its ability to commence services as claimed, they offer no response. Why would they fail to do this? I leave you to draw your own conclusions.
What annoys me about 'start-ups' which claim so much and yet offer no evidence to back up their claims is that in the internet age it is easy to make it look as if there is substance there when none actually exists. Each time this happens it makes it even harder for genuine start-ups to achieve any credibility when seeking funds. Two examples of genuine, asset based start-ups trying to establish themselves are JOIN and FlyGLM. I happen to know personally the people behind both of those and can assure you that the will and the effort is still being put into making their plans a reality, whereas I have yet to come across anyone who knows from personal experience that Europort Express is anything more than someone's ego trip dream. I don't know that for a fact of course and really do wish them well if they are genuine, but experience has taught me that rising smoke doesn't always mean that there is a genuine fire beneath it.
Europort Express isn't even strictly a "paper airline"; it's a virtual internet invention which may or may not have any existence beyond the fantasies and/or hopes of its originators. Those who view Air Humberside's forum will know that someone claiming to be a representative of EE has posted there a few times with the rationale behind the project, but when asked to elaborate or to offer some convincing evidence of its ability to commence services as claimed, they offer no response. Why would they fail to do this? I leave you to draw your own conclusions.
What annoys me about 'start-ups' which claim so much and yet offer no evidence to back up their claims is that in the internet age it is easy to make it look as if there is substance there when none actually exists. Each time this happens it makes it even harder for genuine start-ups to achieve any credibility when seeking funds. Two examples of genuine, asset based start-ups trying to establish themselves are JOIN and FlyGLM. I happen to know personally the people behind both of those and can assure you that the will and the effort is still being put into making their plans a reality, whereas I have yet to come across anyone who knows from personal experience that Europort Express is anything more than someone's ego trip dream. I don't know that for a fact of course and really do wish them well if they are genuine, but experience has taught me that rising smoke doesn't always mean that there is a genuine fire beneath it.
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Rise above it Expressflight, you live in UK, why should a Dutch start-up operation be of annoyance to you?
Everyone to their own though ... I prefer to become annoyed when the San Miguel isn't cold enough.
Everyone to their own though ... I prefer to become annoyed when the San Miguel isn't cold enough.
I thought I had made clear the reason for my annoyance with unrealistic start-up projects. Obviously not, so again it's because they have a knock on effect as to the credibility of genuinely thought out start-up projects in the eyes of potential investors. It has nothing to do with this being a potentially Dutch-based operation - why on earth would you think that?
