Man Guy wrote
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Slot conference coming up.... are we all crossing our fingers for some exciting new routes for next summer?!
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The futures bright , the futures Orange ;)

The futures bright , the futures Orange
Thats "EASY" for you to say !!!

Oh my goodness, here we go again.

Do you remember all of the rumours and counter rumours that started 2 years ago (or was it longer).

Let's see what happens. IF easyJet were to come to Manchester then it would certainly help to boost figures at a time of quiet stagnation - at least it allows long overdue taxiway repairs etc to be done. In the meantime can I suggest that the speculation stop - until any announcement (again IF it were to happen) does come.

Will now retreat into my office work mode and prepare to be slagged for ruining the 'gossip mill'.

No slagging off from me Scottie ,i know exactly what you mean :oh:
I shall also retreat and let things unfold :ok:

Slot conference's rarely result in anything concrete for airports and airlines, they just help the rumour factory go into overtime. If an airline is looking seriously at starting a route, they don't need to attend a conference to decide whether to go ahead. Still, I suppose they allow a jolly in a nice city on expenses.

I accept I am probably in the minority here but I despair at the the thought of EZ or FR heading over to MAN on any sort of scale. The more the airport becomes an LCC hub the more you can wave goodbye to getting much more top class long haul airline activity here.

MAN has an amazing diversity of airlines, which makes it one of the most interesting UK airports. Do you really want to replace that with a sea of orange?

As other respondents have pointed out, if EZY built a hub at MAN, it would probably be goodbye to some of the legacy carriers that have used the airport for years, as well as a few of the more recent loco arrivals.

What MAN really needs are more long haul routes, so the airport can be a real alternative to LHR. Frankly I'm amazed that with the recent huge surge in flights to India from LHR, MAN still hasn't got a single direct flight to DEL or BOM.

Where do you think that many of the Etihad/Qatar/Emirates pax are ending their journeys from MAN?

vs to sha ?
 

the rumour of VS starting MAN-PVG in 2009 is interesting but this route would require a DAILY service to serve the predominantly Business traffic on this route and I cannot see this happening.As a Business Travel agent I can see the need for it however.Business seats are always at a premium and we have to dig around to find seats on airlines as varied as AY,QR,EK,KL,AF,LH and VS,BA,MU via LHR. The same applies to a lesser extent to BOM where we are using mainly KL,LH,AF(and 9W via LHR)
Certainly scope for direct services to both destinations.;)

How many aircraft to Jet2 have at MAN now? I recall a few years grand plans for up to 8 a/c but what was the most they got to as I doubt the current programme justifies that number?:confused:

How many aircraft to Jet2 have at MAN now? I recall a few years grand plans for up to 8 a/c but what was the most they got to as I doubt the current programme justifies that number

Thats a good point, I wonder who they are looking to give Jet2's primetime slots to?? or for that matter who might have applied for them??

One thing for sure is that Jet2 are pulling services back like they are going out of fashion and seem to be concentrating on Leeds.

It would be nice to see a new airline from Manchester make a go of things, not just be pretenders like Air Berlin and Jet 2 have been, there is room for a Lo-Cost hub at Manchester and i beleive that if the airline are willing to base aircraft then the rates that Man offers become attractive.

My money is on a lo-cost airline basing numerous aircraft...Cant wait to see those Laker Skytrains back in Man :O

Manflyer - Only true in that they fuel the rumour factory.:} Otherwise your statement above is rubbish.:ooh:

The Slot Conference is NOT a conference where everyone sits and listens to some notable spouting forth and then asks questions. It is a working conference where airlines can go to one place and sort out their slot problems at airports all over the world .

An airline seriously looking at a route and which has done a business case and wants to go ahead may not be able to get the slots it wants at either or both airports on the route. If you don't get matching slots for your block time at both ends it won't work. If you can't get the slots for a proper turnaround at either airport it won't work. If you get something acceptable at airport A by altering times then you will have to try and adjust your times at Airport B. So you have to go to the Conference to sort it out.

There, Airlines can talk it through with the coordinators in person to see what can be done.The solution could be to swap something with another airline: you can talk to the other airline fleet planners to see what might be achieved. They are all there on site.

Airports are present too and can talk about capacity constraints and meet airline planners. No doubt many airline route ideas have sprung from conversations at the Conference. And if there wasn't a system of slots at busy airports there would be chaos with more flights trying to operate at popular times than the infrastructure could cope with. So the outcome is crucial for both airports and airlines.

At the end of the day the objective is to get airlines as many workable slots as possible and use the capacity of the airports effectively.

Oh and by the way, one of the most effective ways of airports marketing themselves to airlines is the Routes CONFERENCE which allows airlines and airports to meet under one roof. Saves a lot of time and travelling. An airline which has several options for new routes can talk to a number of airports over a period of a couple of days. Similarly, airports can talk to a large number of airlines in a short period. If things get serious then follow up meetings will take place later either at the airline office or the airport.

So if these conferences "rarely result in anything concrete for airports and airlines", then what do they do?

Suzeman

I am not surprised that LS are retreating from MAN, they are just not a Europe-wide brand, and are totally unrecognised outside the North of England.
LPL's success as a low cost base is down to the near-globally recognised brands of the carriers which serve it.
ALL the routes abandoned by LS would work with either FR or U2 because EVERYONE in Europe, and not just Lancashire and Yorkshire, have heard of the carriers!
I am so looking forward to U2's arrival at MAN next summer, bring it on!

Vuelo, I couldn't agree more :ok:. To say that MAN does not need EZY beggars belief and I cannot understand such comments. This was exactly the kind of snobbish attitude from the management many years ago that's landed the airport in the mess that it's in now. MAN wanted nothing other than legacy carriers and now we find half of them have pulled out and we are lagging behind LPL to certain destinations. EZY's arrival may well see many legacy carriers disappear but don't forget it is these legacy carriers that have left us without a MAD service & left us without a LIS service until TOM took it on. There are many more examples. BA anyone?

EZY are ruthless but more importantly they have the guts to stick with routes rather than just pulling them at the first sign of trouble. If EZY do come to MAN, then I agree we'll see the likes of Jet2 and bmibaby reducing services. So what? They've both proved that they are non commital to Manchester and if EZY paves the way for their permanent departure from the airport, then so be it. It's about time MAN had a decent carrier that's willing to commit to the airport and develop routes rather than reduce services as soon as Nov 1st comes around. EZY is that carrier and I for one will have my fingers crossed that a sea of orange will decend on my local airport come Spring.

FlyZB

You have basically summed up most people's views in one post! Excellent writing!

LS, WW and AB will be leaving soon and there needs to be somebody to fill their boots! Bring on the orange buses!

I don't think that it will effect ZB, MON, TOM, XL etc. too much as I can't see EZY operating the hot spots yet. It will be more like the destinations not servced from LPL and also routes such as MAD where a service is desperately needed.

Anybody noticed that IB have been launching routes around Europe lately and MAN isn't even mentioned anywhere?! How come IB don't have regional services to the UK like LH, AF, KL etc.? I know that these carriers carry alot of transit PAXs but IB is the main airline to South America and also they serve all the regional airports around Spain and the islands.

Anyway - come on EZY!:}

One things for sure...... Iberia or Air Nostrum won't come near MAN again if Easyjet did come on the scene and start a MAN-MAD route

Why on earth would EZY operate MAN-MAD when they already operate a successful MAD service 30 miles down the road from LPL?

Mr A Tis...
 

I agree that if EZY do arrive in Manchester, they're going to have to be careful not to tread on the toes of their LPL routes. I think they're sensible and astute enough not to create too many replications and force pax off their Liverpool flights. However, MAD is an important capital city and although not as popular as more leisure orientated destinations such as BCN, I'm certain that there is enough demand from the Greater Manchester & Merseyside areas to sustain flights from both MAN & LPL.

Not everyone wants to see Easy or Ryanair take Manchester over for many reasons. I have no problem with them having a presence here but there are many people who dont want to fly with them. Not everyone wants to sit on a plane full of drunk Brits who clap when they land at an airport miles from where you want to be.
Now i realise thats not the case on every flight but they are some of the reasons people still want to fly with Legacy carriers.
Thats why you need the choice. Liverpool is a two horse airport thats about it and the North West as a whole will not benefit if you reduce airports to just a couple of airlines operating all the routes.
As for Liverpool losing pax i doubt that would happen as there are plenty to go around, however as Manchester was always the base they wanted then yes i can understand why Peel and some passengers may be wary of what may happen.

Now i realise thats not the case on every flight but they are some of the reasons people still want to fly with Legacy carriers

Thats all well and good but look at the situation with the "Legacy" carriers, they start from Manchester, operate for a limited time then vanish as quick as they start.

The airport has gotten itself into such a state when it comes to gaining new airlines that heads have actually rolled !!

I wonder how long it will be before FR start sniffing around for the Jet 2 slots that have been handed back ??

Why would FR operate from THREE North-West airports to DUB multi-daily? Why would Euromanx fly to MAN and LPL from IOM? Oh yeh...demand.

Just because they operate a route 30 miles down the road, what about the people that live East of Manchester? You can't just think about people in the MAN and LPL areas.

MAN and LPL could both easily support many routes by the same airline.