Seems to be alot of anti-EI feeling on this thread! Whats the problem? At least BFS has a proper airline again! More airlines = more competition which means my holiday will hopefully be cheaper this year :} NI plc can only benefit from the entrance of EI and RYR to our market!

FR - only if you want a sunny holiday to Glasgow, London, Liverpool or East Midlands!:ok:

I understand what you mean. I think most people are more concerned about the airlines than the benefits available to the Northern Irish public.

Personally, If I lived in NI, I would be booking as many holidays as I could!;)

How come on tuesdays through thursday there are 4 dep from BHD to STN and only 3 returns is that not difficult to utilise. I tried the booking engine on one of those days/and the timetable shows 3 returns on the 3 days-strange must be an error.

Either one flight is already sold out or its a glitch in the timetable. Glitches are very common with Ryanair, especially when timetables are first released. However Ryanair have been known to fix glitches after reading about them on PPRUNE!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/7247726.stm

MoL says he will launch 10 new routes as soon as the concrete is dry on the new runway at BHD, and in Business Eye last week the city airport say they are consulting with the planners about the runway extension, all very positive.
Will we see a formal application or when you are working with the new strategic planning board is this not required?

The strategic planning committee considers and assists projects that are of economic importance to the Province and can be consulted prior to making a formal application. The normal application process giving all interested parties the opportunity to have their say should still happen allbeit within a much condensed timeframe as the SPC expect decisions that will have a material affect on the future of NI plc to be made within 6 months of the official application.

material affect on the future of NI plc to be made within 6 months of the official application.

I don't think that the whole future of NI plc depends on whether FR get their way and have a runway extension at BHD.

tourists in particular feel when they arrive at BFS and realise how far they are out

I don't think that distance is the problem when arriving at BFS. For instance when travelling to most cities in the world you arrive at an airport a good bit outside, I am thinking of New York, London, Paris, Munich etc etc so I don't think that the tourists are going to be shocked!! A lot of tourists hiring cars would probably find BFS handier to get out of, composed etc. The railway line goes way out by Lisburn-it isn't exactly direct. Once the new M2 bus lanes are open the journey time at peak times should be cut to 40mins.

Gotta laugh at life in the NI cocoon :rolleyes:. Its takes as long to get from LHR into central London (unless you use the Heathrow Express cash grabber). Likewise in EDI and a great many other major UK airports.

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I don't think that distance is the problem when arriving at BFS. For instance when travelling to most cities in the world you arrive at an airport a good bit outside, I am thinking of New York, London, Paris, Munich etc etc so I don't think that the tourists are going to be shocked!!

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Most, infact all of these airports have decent transport connections to the city. Also these airports are located in the suburbs of the city unlike BFS which is not.

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A lot of tourists hiring cars would probably find BFS handier to get out of, composed etc

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Really? With BHD you’re right on the Sydenham Bybass and provided you don’t arrive between 8 – 9am there shouldn’t be a problem. I mean it’s a straight road into the city. It’s alot less hassle than taking the A57 (which is a dangerous old road) then the M2 (which is dangerous and busy at the best of time). Also tourists coming to Belfast are generally only staying for a weekend break and aren’t hiring cars.

Regarding the distance between the track and terminal…. I've heard plans that they'd either bus people to and from a new halt on the mainline from Lisburn to Antrim or a build a new track coming from the mainline into a new station in the long stay carpark.

To compare journey times from BFS to Belfast by comparing Belfast to London, Paris, New York is ridiculous. There is a slight physical size/population difference. Although I will admit to not being as well travelled as others on this forum I would suggest that most other 'regional' airports are not an hour removed from their base city.

The 'Knockmore' railway line also goes on to Antrim so any train leaving BFS could be on the main line back to Belfast within 5 mins of leaving the airport. Going by Lisburn would be 'the long way around'

"One mile from Belfast International Airport lies a disused railway line, and the biggest airline operating out of the airport want it back in action - writes BBC News today.

"Easyjet spokesman Tony Nicol told the BBC it was "absolutely ridiculous" that there were no plans to reopen the line.

"We've got this great asset... so very close to the airport and it's just a shame its not being used," he said.

I have always been a keen supporter of any forms of combining and integration of the public transport system including the railways in particular. The tracks were build in purpose and their existance should be tapped wherever possible. The Germans can demonstrate some great examples how it can be done, why not try the same in Belfast?

Because in concert with the recently agreed refurb of the Derry line, it might undermine the business case for expanding LDY?

BMI no customer service?
 

thanks to this website I was already aware BMI cancelling BHD flights most days. My flight was cancelled for today bd87 13.10, but how did I find out, I looked on bhd website. You would think as a bmi card holder at the very least would get a phone call or an email to advise me. Oh no it's down to me to find out myself and me to rebook through the indian res centre. On top of that because it is an ammended booking I can only checkin at the airport and not online. A middle seat next to screaming baby here I come. Thanks

So according to the latest Flying Blue email "Now fly KLM from Belfast International Airport to Amsterdam and get an easy onward connection.... Flights from Belfast are operated by Aer Lingus."

And if you got to the KLM website, is Belfast available in the dropdown on the UK or Ireland sites? Is it in the timetable? Of course not...

KLM BFS Codeshares
 

Nothing new there.
KLM/Air France have never been consistent about their alliance partner Continental's flights from BFS either.

According to the Bfs web site, the jet2 flight from Agp LS388 is delayed from 1600hrs to 2135hrs. On Ceefax, there is no info against that flight at all, no delay, expected at or anything. Words like delayed, cancelled etc rarely appear on ceefax, but they are available as info.

This is not the first time that I have seen info on the web site not the same as on ceefax, yet the airport has told me that they should be the same when i have raised this with them in the past.

As Bfs are trying to promote themselves as an international airport, I cannot understand why these areas cannot be made to work properly. What is the point of having flight info on ceefax, if it is not accurate? Or is this another example of don't do it well if half well will do attitude?

If anyone from Bfs reads this, please explain why these things can't be got right?

True Blue

The volume of flights at BFS is now such that their Ceefax page is next to useless. If anyone from BFS reads this.... please ask your marketing people to approach Ceefax about getting more info across a longer time period. One page (and a bit) was sufficient in 1990 when that included the flights for the whole day, but things are a little busier now. Even BHD have their full schedule for the day. :confused:

While we're at it... hows about doing the same on the website? In my opinion BFS has one of the most amaturish websites in the business. For example, 3-4 hours of flights is insufficient if you need to check an arrival/departure later in the day or before going to work.

Come on BFS, invest a few quid in technology!