Fossett
 

It's a shame Manston did'nt get it's 15 minutes of fame from Fossett

Well it needs 15 minutes of something!

hmm
 

don`t get excited people.

the airline industry is more than familiar with the `new management` and their modus operendi and will probably steer clear and not touch them with a bargepole.

there was more chance of this airport getting going when OI was in charge.

Prudential threw it away wasting millions on EU jet which is why Planestation went broke.

Give Infritil perhaps two years max before they go bankrupt then a decent owner will come in and the place will then be good for the future.

In the meantime just sit back and watch cos there will be a lot of hot air and no action:ok:

Manston
 

What if anything is there to stop Infatril closing MSE and building 1000's of houses on it and thereby not going bust?

"Prudential threw it away wasting millions on EU jet which is why Planestation went broke" - Speed 5

Planestation "went broke" because they were foolish enough to be talked into buying EUJet by McGoldrick, even though it was clear to almost everybody (see archive posts on this) that EUJet would not survive.

"the airline industry is more than familiar with the `new management` and their modus operendi and will probably steer clear and not touch them with a bargepole" - Speed 5

Except of course, the aviation industry does touch them with a barge pole - look at the success of their operation in Prestwick.

"there was more chance of this airport getting going when OI was in charge" - Speed 5

Then why didn't it happen?

"Give Infritil perhaps two years max before they go bankrupt" - Speed 5

As Desk driver suggests, they'd sell the place to new owners (don't think Kent County Council would permit housing there) before they'd go bust, if only to safeguard their future at Prestwick, so I really don't think that this is a concern.

I am afraid that I am not convinced by any of your points. Maybe there will be hot air and no action for a while, but I for one have my fingers still crossed for scheduled services in the not too distant future.

What MSE needs is a decent Rail connection before Pax services will make money in my opinion, until then it's got to be Cargo & poss maintainence if they can build the facilities. In fact are'nt Marshall looking for a new home?

Here we go again!

The last thing I wish to see is an airport struggling to survive. There are
people hanging onto their jobs, with families, and mortgages to pay here. BUT:

Manston is not a scheduled service airport. Where is it's catchment area?
Where are it's good rail and road links? It is on the edge of the known
universe, a little like Ostend, but with far worse surface access.

It may well have a future as a freight airport providing operators are given an
incentive, and charter companies may consider it, but where are the pax
going to come from to support a lo-co scheduled network?

I hope I am wrong.

Passenger flights from Kent to USA imminent
 

How about this then?

The county could become a gateway to the United States by
next spring, Kent on Sunday can reveal.

Negotiations are at advanced stages to operate passenger flights between Kent International Airport at Manston and Norfolk, Virginia, on the east coast of the US.

Alex King, deputy leader of Kent County Council, told KoS: “Although nothing is yet settled, we think there is a high probability that it will go ahead.” And he emphasised KCC was using no public subsidies to help the operation get off the ground. He added: “I am hopeful that there will be flights to the US out of Kent and vice versa by the beginning of April or May next year.”

The timing could prove crucial if the county is to capitalise on two major American celebrations. First, there is the 400th anniversary of the first American colony at Jamestown, also in Virginia. Many of the first settlers were from Kent, and KCC has taken an active role in promoting a series of celebrations, planning for which are already well under way – both here and in the US. And Kent is the first English county to be invited to attend the major Smithsonian Folklife Festival in the centre of Washington DC in the Summer of 2007, as a result of its participation in Virginia. Some one and a half million people visit the 10-day festival that includes the 4th of July – America’s big holiday. More than 100 Kent businesses have so far expressed a serious interest in taking up the invitation to attend the festival, which will also feature a mix of arts, crafts and culture.

Mr King said he believed there was a lot of mileage to be made from the 2007 celebrations, “not only in terms of tourism, but in the longer term trade relationships across the Atlantic, using Kent as a gate-way to Europe and the US respectively”.

He predicted the flights to Kent would prove popular with American tourists, who would be on the doorstep to Europe from Manston. “There is a big NATO base in Norfolk, Virginia, and there is already a significant number of people travelling every week between there and the NATO base in Belgium,” said Mr King. “This is a regular opportunity for quite a few passengers every week.”

An official at Norfolk International confirmed to KoS he expected “some key decisions would be made during the next week”. The airport offers more than 200 arrivals and departures daily to major cities throughout the US, serving almost 3.8 million passengers in 2004. Mr King said: “There is now a lot of work to be done in terms of getting people on both sides of the pond together to finance the project and make it happen. “That is already happening in Virginia and will begin to happen here.”

A spokesman for Kent International Airport said: “Details of individual discussions are commercially confidential, but we would naturally be delighted to explore the opportunity of such flights.”

Isn't this exactly the sort of ****ocks that the previous owners of Manston used to spout?

Indeed, I think the the most pertinent quote is hidden towards the bottom.

bonkers is the only word for it

An article UK-Airport-News.Info lists Monarch as the most likely airline to operate a Norfolk route

There have been plenty of US tourists winging into MSE every Summer from all over their Country for some years now, usually in a World Airways MD11, to join a cruise ship down the road in Dover.

Are these flights continuing/able to operate under the current set-up?

Wycombe

Yes, but the cruise flights stop after 9/11, World Operates last years and this years flights for a another customer.

they fly for a insurance company (state farm) last year and planned for thisas well but they are also looking at STN, as they are concerned at how MSE is these days

A post on the MSE yahoo group says World Airways will operate the cruise charters to MSE again this year

same old same old!
 

just like the old days, derelict aircraft litter the airfield.
MK and Cargo Lion DC8 on charlie, two rusting 747's on delta. when is the rosey future going to get here? rumour has it that the fire crews are no off-loading the cargo flights and no casual labour is being used.
does anyone know how well the token holiday flights are looking re:booking numbers ?

All casual ramp crew finished at end of Feb, will MK stay or will they go they not happy bunnies

Fire crews are turning MK 747's around with ramp crew and doing a good job considering the time given.
NOT HAPPY - but doing what they need to do, to meet the airports business.
I have no doubts that they will stay as they still get a good service.

It is said that Newmarket Holdays/Travel will operate charters this summer.
Taken from the KIA website.....
Does anyone have any idea's when and how frequent these flights operate? Which airline/aircraft operate these routes ???

fom the Infratil website:
http://www.infratil.com/1/5848.htm
Kent International Airport
Freight volume of 1,388 MT for the month of February continues to be delivered in the main by three weekly MK Airlines 747 freighter aircraft. The average weights of freight are slightly lower at 63 metric tonnes as opposed to an average of 74 MT since operations restarted in September. Included in the 1,388 MT was 133 MT of ad hoc charter business.
A program of minor servicing for Air Atlanta 747 aircraft has commenced. These aircraft are undergoing some deep cleaning and basic maintenance generating landing, parking and associated revenue.
Charter passenger services from Kent Escapes, a new trading name of Prestwick based Seguro Holidays, have been announced and will commence in late May. Two destinations, Barcelona and Faro, will be served on a weekly basis for 26 weeks and early indications are positive in respect of ticket sales.

Be interesting to see how they manage to handle the few pax flights with limited staff, or if hiring how they will manage to comply with all legislation on security etc or perhaps they still as flexible, good luck anyhow

new air line at manston
 

Ryanair web site quote
Two new bases which are due to be announced this summer.
Is one of these MSE

verification
 

Could you provide a link to this announcement. There does not appear to be anything obvious on Ryanair's web site

thanks

At the risk of being told (Again) that I am a naysayer, NOTHING has changed. The airport is still in the same wrong place at the end of the road, and the new operators have only attracted a once per week service to two destinations, during the Summer season. The future for MSE lies in developing the Cargo (And Maintenance) business, (Some success there then) but it geographically is in quite the wrong place to do any significant Pax work other than the local Summer catchment business. Some of you beleive that wishing it were otherwise need, ahem, their bumps felt. If any of you care to put significant money on it, I would be happy to take your cash. When Infratil took over, I was impressed by their grasp of the size and scope of the business. I still think that. Unless they thought up the Manston - Rhode Island wheeze.
There seems to be some out there who think that passing Stanstead, Luton, Heathrow and Gatwick to fight their way to Manston will work. The catchment area East of Maidstone and all of Thanet does not make a market of any size other than the Palma on a Saturday that used to be. :hmm:

RyanAir
 

You need to look at the ryanair web site pages for jobs for pliots and air crew.
I used to live in Tonbridge driving to to gatwick took me over an hour at busy times and parking long term you had to give your self at least a further hour, Heathrow round the M25 with parking and two hour check in I had to leave home 6 hours before flight, and as for Stanstead I remember 3 hours on the M11 and the Dartford Crossing.
To drive to manston from south london takes less than an hour in far less traffic, you park outside the airport.
I used Eujet a few time, and the plane was full to Spain, however to other times I was one of only 5 pax

FR @ Manston
 

There are some that say it would be cheaper for Infatril if FR did'nt come to MSE, but I'm sure they will tie it in with the PIK deal.

I totally agree with Taildragger that MSE is in the wrong place for Pax.
Until the M2 & M20 pass right outside.

I tried to do some business with Planestation last year and at the time it did seem to be EUJET calling the shots, while every now & then the fences were moved in as more & more land got sold

Is there somebody who can tell me why Infratil cannot get or doesn't want to get MK Airlines back at MSE? Or is Infratil waiting until MK obtains its UK AOC and the opportunity to enter the US airspace again?

MK Airline
 

I live at Herne Bay and a MK 747 pass's over my house at about 2000 ft at least 3 times a week

MK will not get a UK CAA AOC. It will cost them too much in maintanance to get the aircraft up to the standard of a G- registration. None of their engineers are UK CAA licensed either, they all use the FAA A & C which isn't sufficient. It will cost too much in re-quailifying the engineers.

if MK were flying over my house, i think i would move!!!!
so we get the "i told you so" and " the airport is in the wrong location" brigade comming out for an airing. it is fact that by the time eujet went tits up most routes were nearly full capacity, it failed due to running before walking and too many overpaid staff on the books, those who were there know

Kellyoldsmunt:

If most of EuJet's flights were operating at near capacity , and the only reason for it's economic failure were the 'highly paid staff' why is it
that Ryanair and Easyjet aren't beating a path to Kent International's door?

I have a feeling those who were there did not know, and that was the
problem. The whole EuJet enterprise was like watching a slow motion tram
smash. Everyone else in the industry knew exactly what would happen.

Wrong aircraft, wrong business plan, wrong airport. Like so many other
professionals have stated since the 1960's, Manston has no catchment area,
no surface links, and therefore no real future as a scheduled service airport.

Perhaps one day when a motorway and rail link are built, but certainly not now.

"If most of EUJet's flights were operating at near capacity, and the only reason for its failure were the 'highly paid staff', why is it that Ryanair and easyJet aren't beating a path to Kent International's door?"
How do we know that they're not? Infratil are very well in with Ryanair, but my information is that they don't want to become too dependent on them. Both of these airlines have a long lead-in for allocating aircraft, particularly when deliveries have been interrupted.
"Everyone else in the industry knew exactly what would happen. Wrong aircraft, wrong business plan, wrong airport. Like so many other professionals have stated since the 1960s, Manston has no catchment area, no surface links, and therefore no real future as a scheduled service airport."
Who are these experts? If they have been stating this since the 60s they would have started at the time that Manston had a lot of passenger traffic.
"Perhaps one day when a motorway and rail link are built, but certainly not now." Have you heard of the M2/A299 connection? Have you heard of the CTRL being used for domestic high-speed services from 2009?
Manston is not a London airport; it's Kent's regional international airport. EUJ did pick up a lot of custom from SE London, but most of the traffic was from Kent and Sussex.

Jes;

The pax traffic Manston had in the 60's was cheap IT work, coached in
and out by the likes of Invicta. Those days have long gone, and airlines
and passengers have different requirements.

Manston has what the South East is desperately in need of, a long
runway. But something is sadly lacking otherwise it would have been
swamped by passenger airlines long ago. And what it lacks is a catchment area. It's in the wrong place.

No catchment area, no good surface links and infrastructure = no customers.

It's not rocket science, and all the wishful thinking won't make it so.

Try reading the 'The Future of Air Transport' The Government's White Paper
for air transport published in 2003 and you will see exactly what constrains
any major development at Manston.

tilewood
Pro airport people, unlike yourself, do have realistic hopes. We don't expect MSE to be anything like Stansted. It is a regional airport, from which some routes proved themselves with Eujet. Had Eujet had the chance to keep going they would now be using ATRs on the shorter, less popular routes. There is a catchment area to sustain that, though agreed not to as many routes as Eujet tried.
The roads are not that bad. People will use MSE because it is less hassle to get to and use. I think it will eventually be a successful passenger airport on a limited scale. It is not top priority for Infratil in the short term it seems.

manston
 

Is s2adt still parked at manston?

Yes, but reg is now N801KH.

manston
 

thank you, has it been sold and if so to whom? or has it merely reverted to one of it's numerous previous registration details

Still available according to the Langdon website.... Not suprised really, maint wise its a horror story.

I can tell you that "unlike yourself" is way off!

'Realistic' would be more appropriate.

You couldn't be more wrong. It will take a litle time but I can see the corporate will to do it and it will happen.

As to whether this will bring MK back to Manston, I doubt it. As I understand it increased costs at MSE prompted them to move out in the first place and they are now happily established with ops in Ostend and maintenance at Filton. Why should they want to move back?