That seems to be a matter of opinion - at least as far as the railway bit is concerned. It's easy to look on the ball when the only thing to compare it against is the fiasco-magnet that is Irish Rail.

EI-BUD - i will try and get the statistics but the EMA flights are above 100s most rotations.

Personally I believe that EI moving into LGW is a mistake that will be costly. Ryr can't be happy that EI are operating DUB-LGW and personally i cant see Ezy being too keen on them moving into London Easy.

Another crew base, aircraft base, ground staff, crews whilst reducing contracts and terms and conditions down south. Advertising will be very costly due to promote another carrier in London and also being a very small fish in the pond, I would say are paying high rates at gatwick but time will tell.

Another point I was wondering was, how many aircraft and where are they being withdrawn from because IIRC they only have one A32X due to be delivered soon?

''Personally I believe that EI moving into LGW is a mistake that will be costly. Ryr can't be happy that EI are operating DUB-LGW and personally i cant see Ezy being too keen on them moving into London Easy.

Another crew base, aircraft base, ground staff, crews whilst reducing contracts and terms and conditions down south. Advertising will be very costly due to promote another carrier in London and also being a very small fish in the pond, I would say are paying high rates at gatwick but time will tell''

EI have been operating LGW for nearly a year now, and will be up to 6x daily, so FR not being happy about them being on the route is irrelevant. Another crew base and a/c base wont matter to much, as a/c can be rotated from DUB through LGW etc. Also, EI will outsource ground staff like in BFS. LGW has lost a lot of airlines recently, so I would be EI are getting a very good deal. Also, look for some co-operation with BA ex LGW

Yes operating with DUB based a/c etc. Actually setting up another base is costly and enters into another realm of operations. Its a bigger chance for more problems to arise.

Suppose fantastic idea, during a recession and cost cutting measures im going to set up another base increase my daily operating and overall costs and over complicate my operation - thats good?

This works for EZY, RYR & BE because they have their costs right and business plans that suit. EI want to be business focused travellers with LCC prices with flexible tickets and prebooked papers blah blah blah

How to lose money in the industry? Copy the EI plan!

Regarding AC and its runway extension, how much is there to be made by enticing COA down the road?

If I am correct then AC will be within the operating limits of the 752 when the extension is complete. Rumour has it that COA are heading to Star Alliance therefore having COA and BMI in one location is a benefit not only for the airlines but also for BCA and frequent fliers who can utilise BMI's lounge. COA can then also offer flights to other european cities via Belfast then Heathrow with BMI. I just wonder if this could possibly happen?

The whole idea of COA running 757's into regions is to avoid the necessity for connections. They're hardly going to set BHD up as a connecting hub:rolleyes:

But financially make sense! BD ground staff handle the punters and use the biz lounge all in the while being able to say they fly into the heart of the city!

Don't think that is really a valid argument Husky One.

In these times of financial meltdown anything extra that helps beat of competition will be welcomed by managers. COA will offer yet another different alternative for Americans who might want to see Northern Ireland and London in one trip, especially if they can have it all for the same price as a direct flight from EWR to LHR!

Super737 also made a very good point that I overlooked ie. handling costs. If I was BFS management I would be worrying about the long term future of COA at my airport because BCA could snap them up in a flash once the runway is extended and COA join Star Alliance. The biz lounge at City would also be a massive positive for transatlantic business pax.

How many brain cells would you like to bet that COA don't set BHD up as a connecting hub, assuming they are even slightly interested in going there?

COA City Airport
 

I wouldnt be too worried about the idea of CO doing anything at BHD. If CO went to the city airport Aer Lingus would be in like a shot and launch a JFK Service from BFS,This will come anyway once the end of the current financial downturn is in sight Aer Lingus will be on the case.

Besides, I wouldn't be so confident that the runway will be extended quite as soon as many would suggest. Ryanair seem confident that from the 2nd half of 2009 they will be ready to launch flights beyond the UK from BHD ie when the runway is extended. This seems to the impression that MOL is under anyway!

The idea of a 500m extension at BHD, in place and operational by summer 09, is laughable!

2012 maybe 2011 at best...if, of course, it gets past all the red-tape...better make that 2022...

Guys I am not suggesting this will happen overnight or by summer 09 but when BHD gets its new runway, it make sense to me that they will look to for a coup to announce its new capabilities. Ryanair just doesn't make the imagination run wild. The sooner they disappear from BHD the better.

I would love nothing more than to see the EI JFK come back, but CO offer a better product. If EI were to compete they need a new A330 with decent cabins, would they risk another wrath from Dublin for sending a nice new plane to Belfast? Who would fly to JFK now? EWR is faster to transit and transfer in my experience and delays at peak times appear to be shorter than JFK. Not to mention you get to fly in a real plane :)

Huskyone you are missing my point, I am suggesting CO could use BHD as its final destination instead of BFS, however it would add the benefits mentioned above. Airlines are consolidating and our financial problems are here to stay for a while, sharing facilities with a partner makes commercial sense.

Aer Lingus will be starting an upgrade of the A330 cabins in January, it will bring most of the current fleet to the same standard as the new aircraft with lie flat seats in Premier and AVOD in both classes. I believe it will be completed by March. Other changes are also said to be on the way for the long-haul product, I'm hoping for an improvement in meal offerings and cabin service. So if Aer Lingus were to start JFK it would be in a good position product wise and it could also extend it's JetBlue partnership to Belfast.

Are EI not reducing the A330 fleet? CO have been in BFS for a while now and known within the province, why not offer direct to the heart of the city?

If EI want to send an A330 between BFS and JFK they should go for it, but have the administrators on speed dial!!!!! It would be financial suicide for them to do it!

EI "wont" jump on the route as previous posters have stated, if it was deemed to be so profitable, they would still be operating the route. Could you imagine the difficulties for them, contractual agreements, operational, route structure, business plan and financies!

Just like the Johnny Cash song, EI are walking the line!

Aer Lingus are not reducing the A330 fleet, it was planned to expand the fleet to 11 aircraft but this was reviewed due to the current environment and will remain at 9 until 2011 when more A330s arrive. I don't think Aer Lingus will start transatlantic from Belfast anytime soon but if they do it will be with a better product than what Continental has to offer at the moment.

Aer Lingus need to concentrate on short-haul from Belfast at the moment, long-haul can wait.

agreed with above..

altho if EI did offer a flight from BFS to JFK (or any other transatlantic destination) it would be a success as those locations are becoming a more popular destination for N.I travellers, altho with the economy at the minute theres a chance people wont go that far this year... now that theres no zoom/XL operating from BFS (or anywhere...) there is a gap for another airline to step in to fill those desintaions once the economy gets better

i know i would chose EI over CO any day for travelling transatlantic

as for all this "direct to the city stuff", lets be honest, its like a 15 min bus journey from BFS to belfast.. i cant see CO moving to BHD for the sake of 15 minutes.. besides, from what i have seen they dont seem to have a problem filling seats..

time will tell i guess

Tigger,

It is a 15 minute journey to Belfast City Centre from BFS only late at night or very early morning. Any other time of day you are lucky to do it in 30 minutes or up to 60 if you hit a bad morning rush on the M2. :eek:

I don't think the 'heart of the City' is what might attract CO, the potential cost savings and better passenger environment would be the main attractions. Lets face it BFS isn't going to get much better for many years yet.

Steve

If I owned the facility I wouldn't significantly invest in it until the free for all permitted by the authorities, is controlled, as per the white paper.
I wonder how many objections were received? They have at least one. BFS probably put one in therefore they have at least 2 objections. If it goes to public inquiry it will take years and legally BFS may have a case in that the majority of future growth is to take place at Aldergrove which it aint at the moment.

Hi Guys,
Only question I have is, where would you park a 757-200 at BHD? An A321-200 only just fits diagonally on Stands 4, 5, 6 & 7, so it would more than likely have to be remotely parked on the G.A. Apron or over on the North side of the Airfield. Plus, I can't see BMI and Continental using the Airbridge, when they both have A/C in at the same time.

Anyways,
All the best,
M-R-A.

Agree but it would have to go towards the Bombardier side of the airfield, stands V1 and so forth can't handle an airbus or a 73.

I would be willing to say that BHD could offer a very attractive deal to Conti. Also in the long run it would save costs on transportation of the crews to the airport and hotel although minimal it still a saving.