Manchester - 3
 

Manchester Part 2 now locked. Previous posts here.
http://www.pprune.org/forums/showthread.php?t=225259

Does anyone know whether the DL JFK route has been pulled for the winter. I am booked on this flight going out on 01/11, returning 06/11. When trying to book for a friend the outbound on 01/11 is showing okay but returning 06/11 is via ATL. I have recieved no e mails from the outfit I booked with informing me of any changes to the return flight.

Thanks in advance

NICK B----no it has not been pulled,the search you are using is showing you the cheapest fare available, which is to return via atlanta. The direct flight coming back is about £30.00 more in economy.

Regards
peakp

And about 6 hrs fly time shorter! Atlanta is in the wrong direction for JFK - MAN.

Terminal 2
 

Dropped daughter off early this morning and I have never before seen such queues at check-in and to pass through security.

I must say the organisation was excellent under such difficult circumstances. Well done to all concerned.

July Provisional Pax Figures
 

From the CAA website - 2,422,504 pax, up 1% on last July. Rolling year is 22,245,675, up 2.6%.

Meanwhile, Stansted continues its surge past Manchester. July figures show 2,391,507 pax, up 10%. Stansted's rolling year shows 23,166,399, up 6.7%.

Not a good year at Ringway.

Regarding the MAN v Stansted passenger figures, I believe that its going to be short lived as soon as RYR starts to feel the pinch with rising fuel prices, the bargain basement passengers that currently artificially inflate the figures will vanish. I know MAN has LOCO carriers but it also has a much more stable portfolio of flights.

Why do I think this ? well its to do with my circle of friends who travel extensively, they all say that Ryanair is only an option when the fares are rock bottom, so if they all say that (about 20) presumably the same feeling is widespread.

Discuss !

MAN Queues
 

Does anyone have real-world experience of current queue time at MAN for BD shuttles to LHR?

I'm due my bi-weekly trip on BD581 this Monday @ 0640. Up until two weeks ago I had this down to a fine art. On-line check in on Sunday, up and out of house by 0520, arrive, park up, terminal, lounge for a coffee, on to flight.

Now, I do expect to have to arrive a little earlier this time around, but at 0640 in the morning would I realistically have to expect to be there 0.5, 1, 1.5, 2 hrs early? If its a long wait I'll give it a miss and drive South. I know there will be the 'official' advice of arrive early, but I really don't fancy getting up at 3am for a flight when I could wait until 5 and drive instead.

Whether or not the STN boom is shortlived or not, that airport will still have had the benefit of having them along with the jobs they have brought. Hopefully it will continue thus. Although MAN isn't exactly quiet, growth seems a bit stagnant, particularly longhaul. MAN really needed a big LOCO, by which I mean Easyjet.
Also STN must be looking very profitable for BAA, 23,000,000 plus through 1 terminal smaller than MAN T2.

So is it true Manchester is to get t three times a week service to Bangkk this winter? Which airline? Thai?

TG Chairman said in an interview earlier this year that they hoped to be serving MAN by or in 2007. They have been supposedly coimg for years (a la CX) so I'll believe it when I see it.

Having said that, he did also say they were trying to do it with a stop in India, which they couldn't sort out. He believes they will shortly have the right aircraft for the route so it they do start it will probably be a 2 class 772ER.

Interesting that TG are looking to route through India. CX were reported in the HKG press to be looking at the same routing for HKG/MAN, following their failure to gain traffic rights for Moscow/Manchester sector. Would guess that this may well happen as most Asian airlines are increasing their regional flights to the sub-continent.

Hopefully so. However, it's curious how airlines never let anything whatsoever block the way of getting into LHR, or expanding at LHR (i.e. ANZ 2nd daily, the 4th QANTAS etc) yet for MAN it's one excuse/reason/problem after another, year after year after year. If the constantly mentioned carriers really wanted MAN they'd be at MAN. I hope things pick up for the future, or will completely give up on the place.

I understand that flyGlobespan are to use and be based at Terminal 2 from this winter, which is strange as I would have thought T1 would have had more capacity for a longhaul arriving at 1945 hours.

That'll clog up the baggage and immigration with a DXB, DOH and CPT all within the hour!

My Data-
Arrive about 0.5/1hr earlier, queues arnt too bad any more.
:ok:

Any ideas if the Luzair Tristar will still be there tommorow?

angelwings thanks for the response.

I arrived at 0530 for the 0640 (usually get there on the dot a 0610). 15 mins to do the bag drop :eek: , 15 more mins in the queue through the 'BA' control in T3. Shoes, belt, etc. at the scanner - just like being in the good old USA. :bored:

Made it to the lounge with plenty to spare. Boarding began around 0610. Departed on time but with a low load factor for a Monday AM flight.

So, 30 mins extra, at 0530 would be prudent. I counted that from the point of arrival at the BMI bag drop area, to sitting in my seat I had made contact with 10 'officials'. Is this a record? :uhoh:

Back to LHR this PM for the return. That will be fun.

Why? Supposed to be a modern international airport. Surely T2 can handle 3 flights in one hour.

Evening arrivals into T2 from DXB, DOH and CPT is just what T2 needs, especially in the winter. After the North American/Singapore morning arivals and departures, the place can seem a little surplus to requirements. We've all seen it on a wet Wednesday in February with just a KLM F100 and an Air France 319 parked up.

Roof collapse in T1
 

Those of you that work in Termainl 1 and have been in today will have seen the chaos caused by the wet weather. The roof in the departures lounge, close to Alpha Shopping collapsed under the strain of the heavy rain and submerged a section of the airside shopping area under around a foot of water. The departures lounge was closed for 90 minutes and pax that had already proceeded through security were escorted down B Pier. The arrivals area also suffered a similar problem, with the baggage reclaim area and arrivals hall also submerged in water and all arriving passengers into Terminal 1 had to be bussed to either T2 or T3 and collect their luggage from there. The majority of airside retail and catering outlets remained closed throughout the rest of the afternoon and into the evening as the area was cleared up. Only Starbucks and Boots were reopened and pax had to access the far side of the departure lounge by using the small passageway that runs behind Burger King. A chaotic situation that left many flights delayed, yet the consequencies could have been alot worse. Maybe this will open the eyes of the Senior management and push them into spending money on this ageing terminal. The whole place is in need of some investment. Time after time i have seen buckets of water placed under leaking roofs after a downpour and yet nothing has been done. Not to mention the atrocious state of the carpets, seating area's and gates. Today has proved the extent of neglect on basic care and maintenance and it's about time something was done about it.