I would be surprised if EZY start up a route to Vilnius.

Star1 are planning to start the route at the end of June and airBaltic are expected to recommence in October so would be far too much competition.

brussles airlines operate lgw-bru

London - Brussels
 

In total for London then:
Brussels Airlines from Gatwick to Brussels.
BMI from Heathrow to Brussels.
British Airways from Heathrow to Brussels.
VLM from London City to Brussels and Antwerp.

British Airways code shared on LGW - BRU with Brussels Airlines up until recently. I think when the code share stopped the frequency reduced.
VLM's Brussels route is down to one daily.
BMI are now using much smaller aircraft.
Blue Air recently stopped flying between Stansted and Brussels.
Ryanair's relaunched Stansted to Charleroi didn't last very long...

So yes the London to Brussels market has seen a reduction in number of seats since last year, but maybe this is a natural adjustment.

Manchester
 

Anyone have any info on when the winter 09/10 routes / timetable is to be released for EZY at MAN?

RE: EZY to OTP

They did fly to OTP from LGW last year, but the route was scrapped due to poor loads. I think if you dig deep in to Easyjet 3 thread its mentioned there.

The winter routes from Manchester were released quite a long time ago. Indeed, the bargain fares have largely gone and you would be better off waiting for a winter sale to book. The routes to Greece, Turkey and Corsica stop in Oct/Nov but will presumably be back for next summer.

The OTP toute was a very good route load wise, 96% Load factor. The route was canned due to poor revenue from on board sales. Rarely took £200 most days. hence, aircraft used on a route with better revenue from sales.

So what will replace these destinations during winter, or is the 3rd based aircraft only based at MAN for the summer?

FAO CharlieRoy

The Brussels Airlines/BA codeshare probably ended when BA sold off BA Connect to Flybe

Out of NCL, Brussels Airlines now codeshare with flybe using a Brussels Airlines Avro RJ. I'm guessing the same is probably true out of LGW too.

RTG!

Rome FCO as a base?
 

Anyone know when FCO will be opened as an easyJet base?

and will they fly more routes from Bournemouth to places like Rome?

Easyjet At Newcastle
 

Does anyone know when they will base there 4th A319 at Newcastle and if they are going to do any new routes from Newcastle???

Stansted
 

Hey

I've been looking at the STN schedule for this Summer and Winter and I'm quite disappointed to see the operation being scaled back. Over the past 2 years we've lost BSL, LEI, VLC GVA (Winter only now), we have also seen a reduction in frequencies. The only new route we've had recently is the FNC and now that’s down to 4 weekly.

Does anyone know what easyjet’s plan is for the STN base. I'm getting fed up with my local airport being Ryanair Ryanair Ryanair. I know its their major hub but easyJet seem to be being frightened off by MOL.

I understand LTN and LGW are EZY's main hubs as it were but easyJet have cut themselves a little niche at STN flying to places that FR don’t or offering better frequencies, times, prices etc. STN does have a large catchment area and I know many people, including myself who will not fly FR if they can help it. I just think it's a shame we are now down to below 10 aircraft this winter and barely on 12/13 this summer. Id love to see EZY put FR in its place a bit. Just because they base 40 planes at STN doesn’t mean they can do what they like. The customer is loosing out......

ryand36 - the customer is, as you say, losing out. However EZY are scaling STN back because it doesn't really make much in the way of money, when there are more promising opprotunities for basing aircraft elsewhere in the UK (e.g. LGW, where EZY pretty much have a monopoly on LCC flying) or Europe (e.g. Italy where Alitalia although no longer in cardiac arrest is still in intensive care)

David

You raise a very good point, and i want easyjet to do well. I'm a big fan as you can see :). So we here at STN are going to have a half-hearted attempt by EZY it seems. I have a sneaky feeling they'll leave us and go to LGW or just give use 5/6 planes. If that happens I HOPE bmibaby or someone comes in to take over. Ryanair needs competition. Stansted is worth more than MOL and his heavy handed ways. But I guess for now I'll have to survive with watching 1 easyJet plane an hour and 20 Ryanair planes. Great lol. My flight this year with easyJet are quite expensive when compared to last year. If everyone’s paying that then they can’t be doing that bad. Great lol.

It's sad to see what easyJet has done to the operation at Stansted it inherited from Go.

On the other hand, it's partly the behaviour of passengers like myself that's responsible. I choose to fly Ryanair rather than easyJet out of Stansted mainly because: (a) the fares are - generally - cheaper, (b) I can't stand easyJet's awful "boarding experience" and (c) the airlines' relative punctuality (although my two recent easyJet flights, a few weeks ago, were both on time).

Seat62K - I'd agree with you that it’s the passengers partly to blame. Which makes it even sadder? I fly 6 times a year and pretty much 80% of the time I have 2 choice. FR or EZY same airport just different times. Ryanair may be on time and cheap but on destinations they compete with EZY on they are actually quite expensive. And to me I’d rather spend an extra £10 to fly with airline who in my mind are much more professional. The crew on both are great don't get me wrong and both airlines get you form A to B safely. But I always feel much more valued on EZY than I do on FR. And I cant stand the delightful adverts in their yellow cabin. EasyJet is just much more sophisticated to me. Even if it is a LCC they still have some standards. And as for punctuality EZY have improved a lot lately. I'm guessing most people now don’t look at EZY as much and just go with FR expecting them to be cheapest.

I think if easyJet committed a bit more they could really create a nice medium sized operation at London Stansted (STN) to add some variety and competition at FR’s beloved hub.

Some suggestions for a EZY larger STN base:
Lisbon
Vienna
Zurich
Lanzarote
Gran Canaria
Marrakech
Agadir
Malta
Sofia
Gibraltar
Menorca
Reykjavik
Bergen
Bucharest
Paphos/Larnaca
Jersey
Tunis/Monastir
Dalaman/Bodrum

Add to that list the reintroduction of the BSL route. When easyJet pulled it we got Ryanair. 3 times a week Tues, Thus and Sunday at hideous times. Maybe a Paris flight? A Brussels? Maybe restart the Almeria route and offer the year round connection they used to. Make Ibiza year round, to stop Ryanair getting established on the route.

Explain to me why this isn't seriously competing with their own efforts at Gatwick?

Ezy @ Stn
 

Easyjet's strategy for STN is an interesting question.

Last year Easyjet carried just under 20% of all passengers at STN, with Ryanair accounting for 67%. I'm struggling to think of an airport of a similar size where one carrier enjoys this level of dominance. This could raise a bit of a problem for anyone interested in buying STN from BAA.

I'm sure that STN has some strategic importance for EZY, but they have to balance this with their larger base at LTN and their recent clear preference for expanding at LGW whenever the opportunities arise.

If you look at the number of EZY flights at STN, it's clear that their priorities lie elsewhere. Last year the total number of EZY flights at STN was only marginally above the combined number of EZY and Go flights back in 2002. This year, they will almost certainly fall below that level. EZY flights at STN peaked back in 2004.

Interestingly, the reverse situation occurs at Luton, where EZY is the dominant carrier and Ryanair have achieved very little growth since 2005.

In the last couple of years Ryanair's intentions at STN have been very clear. They have launched STN - ALC, PMI, AGP, FAO and IBZ, which are all core routes for Easyjet. It will be interesting to see how much willingness EZY have for a fight on these routes. The precedents aren't great, as EZY finally gave up STN-VLC and STN-LEI last year after over 3 years of going head to head.

What will happen next? I suspect not a lot other than further frequency cuts until the economy improves. Once it does, I wouldn't be surprised to see Ryanair increase the frequencies on the routes mentioned above and launch the likes of STN-TLL, PRG and EDI. That would leave EZY with a difficult choice.

As for EZY restarting any routes that they have dropped, it seems highly unlikely. If those routes weren't making money before, it is improbable that they will do so in future. The market has already decided.

@Skipness One Echo: Spot on!

I'm aware that EZY have made the choice that LGW should be their focus and I think quite rightly. They are the dominate LCC at LGW and do a very good job of it too. I'm sure the cash flies in from LGW. LTN is a steady base and I think both FR and EZY live which each other and complement each other quite nicely. STN just seems like a bum fight. With FR winning, hands down.

As you say Anna FR launch routes EZY do well on such as ALC and as a result we now see less ALC flights with EZY. It's obvious FR wants STN to itself just as EZY wants to boot EI out of LGW to keep it all for itself. Understandable and a wise business move. It seems that EZY have made their choice. LGW and LTN. They're now playing the game of let FR get rid of me and I'll go if not I'll just stand still.

I disagree that launching new routes will counterbalance the LGW expansion. STN and LGW have two very different catchment areas. STN - North London and East Anglia. LGW- South London and the south east. Launching flights to the Canaries for example on a 3 times weekly basis shouldn’t effect LGW too much just grab a few more customers off the charters and allow EZY passengers in the east to go to new destinations.

Ezy @ Stn
 

This is an interesting discussion around EZY's future at STN and the sort of strategy that it is following.

I have spoken to quite a few Easyjet member of staff at STN both flight deck and cabin crew, many of which think Easyjet will not maintain the base at STN in the long run.

When Dortmund was announced as closing some of them said that they expected that STN would suffer the same fate in time and they also said that this was a common sentiment among many other fell Easyjet workers.

Not that this stands for much.

LGW is the focus for EZY and I think any additional resources that they get in Aircraft terms in the London area will go to LGW to ensure not too much opportunities left for the competition.

I too suspect easyjet will desert and focus on LGW and LTN in the near future. I just hope someone such as bmibaby for example takes advantage of the situation and creates its Lonodn base at STN. It woyuld be a sad day to have Ryanair soley at STN.

EZY projected movements/seats for Stansted this summer are 11 to 12% less than summer 08 and with Ryanair slightly more at about 12.5% less so both have cut back.

But relativity speaking easy jet's operation at Stansted is a third of the size as the Ryanair operation. So comparatively easyJet has reduced more.

Actually 12% of two thirds is more than 11% of one third. Ryanair have reduced more, proportionally and absolutely :}

OOpsh lol! Sorry too early in the morning for maths. My mistake.

For now any new route annunced for winter season on all Easyjet network. When will start these annunce?

29th Oct MAN-RAK 3/7
6th Nov MAN-CPH 6/7
6th Nov MAN-MUC 4/7

Routes go on sale from next week.

Great news, do you have any rumors about new Easyjet route from others base, especially MXP?

I know Easyjet have obtained slot to open several new route from FRA and MUC! LH is not very happy... :}

EZY will add 2 more a/c (then 17) at MXP at the beginning of 2010, right?
But FR is also very strong and growing at BGY. I doubt EZY would launch routes which FR is operting.
New routes from MXP could be MLA, BFS, TLS and BOD. FAO, SKG and CFU (or other Greek islands) could be some nice summer destinations. BUD, VIE, MUC, HAM, WAW and HEL are EZY destinations which aren't operate from MXP but I doubt they'll come.

What about a base at FCO? Any chance AMS, BRU or BCN will become a base in the near future (or what could be a new base/market)?

Is this the lot? EZY are supposed to have 5 based units by 2010 at MAN with c40 destinations! Is this still the plan or is it now under review due to economy?

I think any new route in this economic climate is a bonus !

I would imagine that there's still a little bit of room for growth this winter at MAN as I don't believe that 2 return sectors per day is utilising an A320 to its optimum. Unless they're adding more Geneva services? I would believe a 4th unit will be in use next year (probably from Winter 2010) with the 5th unit not until 2011 at the earliest.

The blurb that accompanied these new routes does indicate that there may be more of a focus to city break destinations away from the bucket and spade routes that has been the norm.

I cant see EZY doing BFS MXP any time soon as Aer Lingus is struggling on this route and it is being dropped at the end of summer season. I think if EZY cant make BFS FCO or PRG work for that matter, MXP is very unlikely.

EI-BUD

OliWW

Regards your post, I think that Easyjet will go BFS MAN and BHX being 2 of WW´s busiest routes and that would tie in nicely to your comments about the MAN base.

However, one would have to wonder in the current climate of cash strapped airlines and losses, who would splash the cash for bmibaby, with an aged fleet, and some weak enough markets. Would EZY be interested in CWL with such a strong position in BRS?
Would EZY see opportunity in EMA where they have been pretty stagnant for some time what with Ryanair being big there?

And more over would they want to take on bmibaby´s operation at MAN given that Ryanair has indicated that MAN is going to feature long terms as a big for them? Perhaps they would?

Some for and against cases there, but overall I think that if Easyjet want bmibaby markets so much they could probably start operating them and not even bother with WW. But then the price tag might be attractive enough?

Not a bad idea at all! Some great little money earners from MAN - plus all the flights from the other bases at EMA, BHX etc. It would also provide them with more a/c to replace which at the moment is quite a good idea.

Replace the 733s with 319s. Sorted!

Will be interesting to see if U2 are to look at WW!

I assume that BE would be the main, if not only bidders for BD regional.

I understand what you are saying about BRS and CWL, however LPL and MAN works well, LGW, LTN and STN work well together, EDI and GLA. On that note I still think that EZY at CWL would work well... 2/3 aircraft based, same as baby, perfect...

I know what you mean by their B733's. Some of them are on leases, so would not be renewed anyway. I wouldn't know what flybe would do with the B733 when the E195 is their biggest aircraft, and carries what, 118 where as the B733 carries 148. Quite a large difference.