Excel Airways to become Low-Cost Carrier
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Excel Airways to become Low-Cost Carrier
Excel Airways have been suffering from lower pax loads than normal this summer season on flights from Gatwick & Manchester. The reason for this is the competition from Easyjet. People today can jump on the internet and book a flight with easyjet and a hotel or apartment in Tenerife for two wekks and get a better deal than going thru travel agent.
Excel were thinking of entering the long-haul charter market with B767s but management opted out of that one.
Having good slots both out of Gatwick & Manchester puts Excel Airways in a very good position to become a low-cost carrier. So this is what management are currently thinking of doing.
Excel were thinking of entering the long-haul charter market with B767s but management opted out of that one.
Having good slots both out of Gatwick & Manchester puts Excel Airways in a very good position to become a low-cost carrier. So this is what management are currently thinking of doing.
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Low cost carrier my posterior.
Its a bit more than just selling the first row of seats for £9.99 and having a website.
Lets face it, easyJet/Go and Ryanair have the sector sown up. Their brands have been established with £millions of advertising and endless hours of product placement and column inches in the press. For years.
Any new entrant to the sector is facing a massive uphill battle to rival this head start.
Ask any Punter in the high street to name a low cost airline and he'll say Ryanair, Easyjet and Go. He probably WON'T say Buzz and will NOT say FlyBe OR MyTraveLite. All of whom are already trying to "become" low cost airlines.
The only way to do it is to start with a clean sheet of paper, a single fleet of B737/A319 and a strong brand that you market at an annual spend of at least £5million. You have ONE base and at least half a dozen aircraft with no more than 500 employees and Engineering, Catering and Cleaning contracted out.
Excel are some way there in that they have the right aircraft and not bad 2 bases. But its a looong way to go.
And all the time Ryanair and Easyjet have nie on a HUNDRED aircraft flying right now and if they parked themselves on your fledgling route they could blow your whole operation out of the water inside one summer season.
Oh and they'll shortly have another 200 aircraft arriving.
Forget it.
All you'll do is create a niche threadbare airline, with zero brand, that makes a mediocre profit.
I'd just love to read the business plan that says "We will enter a sector dominated by Ryanair and Easyjet who are both strong brands and who both make substantial profit - we will enter their market and outsell them with our unique selling proposition of err, umm, ahh, ooer..."
Is the whole thing hinged on the hub being MAN? Nothing stopping EasyJet or Ryanair moving there if you start doing OK and putting you out of business. easyJet are already at Gatwick and sound as if they are going to expand this winter.
BMIBaby are about the only player making a decent stab at entering the sector.
Good luck to Excel though, seem like an efficient bunch.
Ben.
Its a bit more than just selling the first row of seats for £9.99 and having a website.
Lets face it, easyJet/Go and Ryanair have the sector sown up. Their brands have been established with £millions of advertising and endless hours of product placement and column inches in the press. For years.
Any new entrant to the sector is facing a massive uphill battle to rival this head start.
Ask any Punter in the high street to name a low cost airline and he'll say Ryanair, Easyjet and Go. He probably WON'T say Buzz and will NOT say FlyBe OR MyTraveLite. All of whom are already trying to "become" low cost airlines.
The only way to do it is to start with a clean sheet of paper, a single fleet of B737/A319 and a strong brand that you market at an annual spend of at least £5million. You have ONE base and at least half a dozen aircraft with no more than 500 employees and Engineering, Catering and Cleaning contracted out.
Excel are some way there in that they have the right aircraft and not bad 2 bases. But its a looong way to go.
And all the time Ryanair and Easyjet have nie on a HUNDRED aircraft flying right now and if they parked themselves on your fledgling route they could blow your whole operation out of the water inside one summer season.
Oh and they'll shortly have another 200 aircraft arriving.
Forget it.
All you'll do is create a niche threadbare airline, with zero brand, that makes a mediocre profit.
I'd just love to read the business plan that says "We will enter a sector dominated by Ryanair and Easyjet who are both strong brands and who both make substantial profit - we will enter their market and outsell them with our unique selling proposition of err, umm, ahh, ooer..."
Is the whole thing hinged on the hub being MAN? Nothing stopping EasyJet or Ryanair moving there if you start doing OK and putting you out of business. easyJet are already at Gatwick and sound as if they are going to expand this winter.
BMIBaby are about the only player making a decent stab at entering the sector.
Good luck to Excel though, seem like an efficient bunch.
Ben.
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On the subject of air fares I tried to book myself and my mate on a flight from BHD to LGW with that born again low cost mob FlyBe.The flights were on a Saturday morning returning on a Saturday afternoon two weeks later(start of September) and the low cost figure for that?? £205.60!!! EACH **** ME I WOULD LIKE THE AIRCRAFT WASHED WRAPPED AND SENT TO MY ROOM FOR THAT!!!Bmi offered BFS LHR for £79 ....guess who got the business and who will not even be considered in future?(incidentally the reason I chose to enquire with Fly be was the HUGE number of posters around the province screaming London £29 and I tried to book over a month in advance!!) A lot of jumping on bandwagons I think!.
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Eastern Wiseguy
I'm sure you know this well, but it is pretty damn obvious that the headline fares posted by many airlines are merely attention grabbers (though they work) and are generally rather limited in number and availability, with numerous conditions attached.
It helps if you book WAY in advance, fly at awkward times, and avoid Fri/Sat/Sun flights like the plague. Anything other than this, and you'll be paying more (or much more) than the absolute lowest fare.
Just because you did not find a cheap seat with one airline at one time, does not mean that you should rule them out completely in the future...you may miss out on a bargain, and get ripped off by someone else instead....if you really want to scrape the barrel for those headline fares, you've got to do the research and be flexible with times, dates and which airports you use.
Try easyvalue.com in future, as well as the usual sites.
Otherwise, the big boys are starting to offer some pretty reasonable fares, providing you book in advance.
I'm sure you know this well, but it is pretty damn obvious that the headline fares posted by many airlines are merely attention grabbers (though they work) and are generally rather limited in number and availability, with numerous conditions attached.
It helps if you book WAY in advance, fly at awkward times, and avoid Fri/Sat/Sun flights like the plague. Anything other than this, and you'll be paying more (or much more) than the absolute lowest fare.
Just because you did not find a cheap seat with one airline at one time, does not mean that you should rule them out completely in the future...you may miss out on a bargain, and get ripped off by someone else instead....if you really want to scrape the barrel for those headline fares, you've got to do the research and be flexible with times, dates and which airports you use.
Try easyvalue.com in future, as well as the usual sites.
Otherwise, the big boys are starting to offer some pretty reasonable fares, providing you book in advance.
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and the low cost figure for that?? £205.60!
C
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.........Well I guess someone is definately talking out of thier posteria!! Why would Excel want to totally change their customer base when number one in LGW, MAN during August for punctuality amongst the Charter carriers! Excel are a charter carrier and doing very well with a good reputation and company ethos, why change.....!
............Obi Wan stop casting out rumours! Is your management (or even yourself!) fed-up as Excel are doing rather well and are "showing you up"!? 
............Obi Wan stop casting out rumours! Is your management (or even yourself!) fed-up as Excel are doing rather well and are "showing you up"!?
Last edited by Mad-Air; 27th Sep 2002 at 08:18.
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poppycock
excel do not suffer from easyjet competition - in fact easy is used to move crews around. And the general opinion of the 767 pilots is that their aeroplanes are more full than they have ever been.
excel have had a great summer and will continue to do what they do best - punctual charter flights!!!
excel do not suffer from easyjet competition - in fact easy is used to move crews around. And the general opinion of the 767 pilots is that their aeroplanes are more full than they have ever been.
excel have had a great summer and will continue to do what they do best - punctual charter flights!!!
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Obi Wan Kirk seems to be slightly confused when he links Excel passenger loads to competition from Easyjet and I guess any other low cost carrier.
Whilst I have no doubt the low cost carriers are and will continue to be significant players in the seat sale market, their success or failure does not directly affect charter carriers.
The number of passengers on any particular charter flight is not determined by charter airline. It is determined by the number of passengers who have booked a holiday or flight with a particular tour operator. Whilst ultimately poor sales/ increased competition might affect charter airlines in the future, it has less of an immediate impact as the tour operator pays for the seat irrespective of whether it is or isnt sold.
It has been rumoured over the last few months that Excel might start a low cost airline and indeed they might. But as long as you have tour operators who are prepared to commit to the seats why take that risk on as well ?
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eastern wiseguy
From the flybe.com
Sat 28 September 2002
Belfast City (Depart) London Gatwick (Arrive) Fare
07:00.........................08:35......................... ....£41.50
Sat 12 October 2002
London Gatwick (Depart) Belfast City (Arrive) Fare
17:55................................19:25.................. ....£22.00
£205.60 Dont think so
and this off bmi web for the same date and times.
Both are basic fare with tax to be added
Date: Saturday 28th September 2002 Flight: BD081
Departs: 06:45 From: Belfast City
Arrives: 08:15 (Sep. 28) To: London - Heathrow
Airline: bmi british midland
Date: Saturday 12th October 2002 Flight: BD088
Departs: 15:20 From: London - Heathrow
Arrives: 16:40 (Oct. 12) To: Belfast City
Airline: bmi british midland
Price 1 adult/s at £ 89.00
£25.50 more expensive than flybe
Sat 28 September 2002
Belfast City (Depart) London Gatwick (Arrive) Fare
07:00.........................08:35......................... ....£41.50
Sat 12 October 2002
London Gatwick (Depart) Belfast City (Arrive) Fare
17:55................................19:25.................. ....£22.00
£205.60
Dont think soand this off bmi web for the same date and times.
Both are basic fare with tax to be added
Date: Saturday 28th September 2002 Flight: BD081
Departs: 06:45 From: Belfast City
Arrives: 08:15 (Sep. 28) To: London - Heathrow
Airline: bmi british midland
Date: Saturday 12th October 2002 Flight: BD088
Departs: 15:20 From: London - Heathrow
Arrives: 16:40 (Oct. 12) To: Belfast City
Airline: bmi british midland
Price 1 adult/s at £ 89.00
£25.50 more expensive than flybe
Last edited by dv8; 27th Sep 2002 at 15:00.
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Dv8 BELIEVE me when I say that is so ....the dates where 7 sept 0700 returning 21 September 1815......the FlyBe operative on the phone started by saying "ooooh this is quite expensive" and I can assure you it takes a LOT !! to entice me to fly from the Harbour!.I was stunned and amazed that having turned down their kind offer to let me pay them vast sums of money that the flight was not in fact full on those dates ! (wonder why?) I am aware of the need to hunt around and be flexible BUT in many cases the low cost boys are quite simply NOT!.Having said that though they have injected some serious competition and bargains are there to be had .The ordinary punter is no longer just there to be "milked":
The flights were on a Saturday morning returning on a Saturday afternoon two weeks later(start of September) and the low cost figure for that?? £205.60!!! EACH **** ME I WOULD LIKE THE AIRCRAFT WASHED WRAPPED AND SENT TO MY ROOM FOR THAT!!!Bmi offered BFS LHR for £79 .
Last edited by eastern wiseguy; 27th Sep 2002 at 23:11.
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eastern wiseguy:
What your experience ought to be indicating to you is that flybe had sold all their cheap tickets, and a large proportion of their expensive ones, before you enquired... whereas bmibaby hadn't. In other words, flybe were (are?) the more popular airline between Belfast and London, on that day.
Other than that, day for day, the two companies have broadly similar fare structures (in line with all low cost carriers).
What your experience ought to be indicating to you is that flybe had sold all their cheap tickets, and a large proportion of their expensive ones, before you enquired... whereas bmibaby hadn't. In other words, flybe were (are?) the more popular airline between Belfast and London, on that day.
Other than that, day for day, the two companies have broadly similar fare structures (in line with all low cost carriers).
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Sorry I am with Eastern Guy on this. Just booked to go to BHD in Oct to see my Parents. Flybe, on one of those bumpy dirty Dash efforts from LCY..inclusive of taxes etc £214.60 for Mr JFK and myself..........
BMI from LHR on a shiny A320, with a decent service and a very regular service..... £122.80 for 2 adults. Guess who got My CC number.
Sorry Guys. I did like FLYBE or whatever they are called this week, but they should stick to what they are best at. JER- LON and have done with it.
Oh and before the argument that.. BE have sold more seats etc than BMI.. Well news there. I know the loads on the LCYBHD flight. I have a friend that works there and see assures me they are running on about 30% occupancy on average these days... And thats on a DASH!!!!!
BMI from LHR on a shiny A320, with a decent service and a very regular service..... £122.80 for 2 adults. Guess who got My CC number.
Sorry Guys. I did like FLYBE or whatever they are called this week, but they should stick to what they are best at. JER- LON and have done with it.
Oh and before the argument that.. BE have sold more seats etc than BMI.. Well news there. I know the loads on the LCYBHD flight. I have a friend that works there and see assures me they are running on about 30% occupancy on average these days... And thats on a DASH!!!!!
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GVJFK - believe me when I say that the LCYBHD loads are well above the 30% you have been informed.
Flybe. are consistently competitive on both the LCY and LGW routes into BHD. However, Saturday is always booked along way in advance. There is only one southbound sector in the morning and both VS and DL use this as a connecting sector for their transatlantic services. Therefore the load factor is always very good.
I just think you chose a bad day, if the price was going to put people off then I don't think Flybe. would be adding the seventh daily rotation that features in their new winter programme.
Flybe. are consistently competitive on both the LCY and LGW routes into BHD. However, Saturday is always booked along way in advance. There is only one southbound sector in the morning and both VS and DL use this as a connecting sector for their transatlantic services. Therefore the load factor is always very good.
I just think you chose a bad day, if the price was going to put people off then I don't think Flybe. would be adding the seventh daily rotation that features in their new winter programme.
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Jobs-a-Goodun
Whilst I know the LGWBHD routes are doing well, my statement was made about the LCYBHD route which is not doing well at all. I have it from inside LCY that the route is performing well below what was expected. The aim was to take some of the old BA passengers and that never materialised. Admittedly the Saturday morning route from city is always full (37 or 50) but a good half of passenegrs are going to the Isle of Man where the aircraft first stops. As for a bad day whilst pricing, I have to say that BMI are cheaper a good 90% of the time. Bad luck all the time?? I think not. Even taking into account LCY been a VERY expensive airport to fly from, Flybe prices are almost always £100.00 dearer that BMI. And with parking at LCY at £15.00 PER DAY and no dirsct train link there, it is little wonder this Herts girl goes to LHR!
Whilst I know the LGWBHD routes are doing well, my statement was made about the LCYBHD route which is not doing well at all. I have it from inside LCY that the route is performing well below what was expected. The aim was to take some of the old BA passengers and that never materialised. Admittedly the Saturday morning route from city is always full (37 or 50) but a good half of passenegrs are going to the Isle of Man where the aircraft first stops. As for a bad day whilst pricing, I have to say that BMI are cheaper a good 90% of the time. Bad luck all the time?? I think not. Even taking into account LCY been a VERY expensive airport to fly from, Flybe prices are almost always £100.00 dearer that BMI. And with parking at LCY at £15.00 PER DAY and no dirsct train link there, it is little wonder this Herts girl goes to LHR!
