Cardiff-2

[PDXCWL45]

Flybe have started to put winter onsale .So far nothing for Cardiff.

[PDXCWL45]

Apparently selected routes will go onsale at a later date due to ongoing negotiations between the airport and Flybe.

[PDXCWL45]

Just over a year since Qatar Airways started flying to Cardiff!
https://www.cardiff-airport.com/news...rdiff-airport/

[bycrewlgw]

No details of flights at mo and nothing being able to book but looks like BE are updating flights for Cardiff. Booking engine has preloaded dates into ‘20 which weren’t there before. Fingers crossed the core routes are saved.

[PDXCWL45]

Originally Posted by bycrewlgw

No details of flights at mo and nothing being able to book but looks like BE are updating flights for Cardiff. Booking engine has preloaded dates into ‘20 which weren’t there before. Fingers crossed the core routes are saved.

Probably be lucky to retain a daily flight each on Dublin, Belfast and Edinburgh. Still means the loss of 400,000 passengers a year unless the airport can pull something out of the bag with another airline. The place will be empty in winter.
I also think it may question the WGs ownership as well as I doubt that they bought the airport to be a bucket and spade airport!

[SWBKCB]

I also think it may question the WGs ownership as well as I doubt that they bought the airport to be a bucket and spade airport!

Good point - ignoring intangibles like national prestige, presumably the financial business case would have been around maintaining/increasing employment and increasing "global connectivity" to encourage economic development. It could be argued that a bucket and spade airport is just bleeding money out of the economy...

[Sharklet_321]

Cardiff catchment area is a sizaeble one but challenging in terms of the numbers of people traveling for business. I would say their forte should be low cost and long-haul to attempt to draw more people in from further afield. Flybe doesn't fit that model and is not sustainable across most of the network not just CWL. If I were management at CWL I would be throwing all my weight behind low cost carriers.

[southside bobby]

Would that be like Bmibaby?

[Midland Alpha9]

Originally Posted by southside bobby

Would that be like Bmibaby?

Baby left for two reasons
1/ the airport authority welcomed flybe with wonderful marketing open arms on routes which competed with baby thus diluting any hope of future profit.

2/ As a result of the aforementioned baby was wooed by other airports and offered a better deal.
Let's hope the current commercial management at the airport learns from experience and solidly backs a low cost carrier to fill the void. My personal choice is Sleazyjet but would be greatful to see any serious outfit.

[PDXCWL45]

Ryanair has expanded at the airport this year so I'd imagine that they would look to them to continue to expand.

[zoomboy]

This may not turn out to be relevant, but the just published Inghams 2020 brochure advertises Flybe flights to Milan on Mon/Wed/Fri/Sun and Verona on Wed/Sat. We will see if confirmed.

[PDXCWL45]

Originally Posted by zoomboy

This may not turn out to be relevant, but the just published Inghams 2020 brochure advertises Flybe flights to Milan on Mon/Wed/Fri/Sun and Verona on Wed/Sat. We will see if confirmed.

Milan used to be on those days but now it's only Monday and Fridays. I'd be shocked if that happens but it's a case of wait and see.

[SWBKCB]

Brochures tend to have long lead in times, may have missed the BE changes.

[PDXCWL45]

The only way i could see Milan and Verona remaining is if another airline took them over. Maybe TUI for Verona or someone elsewhere suggested Volotea for Verona and Venice. Maybe Air Italy for Milan? Ryanair for Rome maybe? But i doubt very much any of the Italian routes will be operated by Flybe.
What will be interesting is too see how and if the airport manage to salvage many of the lost routes especially the Italian ones.

[fanrailuk]

Originally Posted by SWBKCB

Brochures tend to have long lead in times, may have missed the BE changes.

And often published with a “speculative” timetable

The aforementioned flights, however, are nowhere to be found on the Inghams website...

[Reversethrustset]

There's no way the Milan will be flown at those frequencies during the winter schedule so I would hazard an educated guess that they are indeed out of date rather than new.

[rog747]

For Verona TUI already have a SAT weekly op'd by a Neos 738 VRN-BRS-VRN for some years for Thomsons and Citalia Holidays, Inghams have now taken seats on it - they used to charter BMI for their own flight BRS-VRN.
(seems now there are 2 x BRS SAT Neos flights)

Re Inghams from CWL-VRN they took large allocations on Flybe or chartered their own whole plane series (same from SOU) but it seems for S19 CWL has now been dropped?

WEDS and SATS are the historic days for package holiday flights to Verona and the Lakes from most UK airports.

[PDXCWL45]

Originally Posted by Reversethrustset

There's no way the Milan will be flown at those frequencies during the winter schedule so I would hazard an educated guess that they are indeed out of date rather than new.

It used to be. Milan used to be 5 weekly if I remember correctly but was reduced over time to make way for other routes.

[Reversethrustset]

Yep it did, this stopped last winter.

[PDXCWL45]

Cardiff Airport calls for APD to be devolved to the Welsh Government.
In his letter to Roger Lewis the First Minister Mark Drakeford said ''It cannot be fair that Wales is remains the only devolved nation in the UK that does not have some control over APD''.
https://www.cardiff-airport.com/news...o-be-devolved/
https://www.cardiff-airport.com/uplo...RL%20FEB19.pdf