UK airports closing
 

Apparently cargolux ops into STN next month, any truth ?

MichaelOLearyGeniusInteresting thought. If so - then it would be the natural progression as the newcomer strives to reach the 'top table'. VS started at LGW with one machine and have made a fair old impact of their 28 (or whatever) years.

If the LCCs do gravitate - even partially - then the bottom of the market opens up once again.

Cargolux
 

Cargolux already have an operation at STN so it makes sense for them to move there if and when Manston closes.

I wonder where Saudia Cargo will fly too as they have already announced that they are ceasing operating from Manston at the end of April but apparently they have said that it was the airport of choice for there customers primarily bringing in fresh produce from Kenya so maybe LGW might get this service if Saudia Cargo wish to retain their cargo flights to the south east of the UK.

Saudia to OSTEND
 

I guess they could come to Ostend-Bruges airport. From there incoming goods can be delivered to SE UK in a few hours.And Saudia is already using OST.

How about Manchester on the new scheduled service from next week

Ian

FLYAIR10,

heard from a reliable source that potentially all is not good at Ostend airport either. Any news or gossip?

Traffic in OST is lower than ever, so it wouldn't surprise me. Also announced in the local press today that basically if MST (Maastricht) don't improve their pax figures over the next two years they will operate as an cargo airport only!

Oxbridge fails to graduate
 

Further to my previous post #36 the recent failure of scheduled passenger services from Cambridge Airport follows a similar fate at Oxford Airport. These airports serve affluent regions - if they can't be made to work it tends to support the assertion that to get the best regional coverage we need to concentrate services at the main established airports and stop trying to provide flights from everyone's back garden. Cambridge is well served by Stansted and Luton, Oxford by Heathrow and Birmingham.

Airport Debt
 

I see no mention of airport debt in this debate there are some airports which have large amounts of debt like Leeds and Newcastle even with loads of flights.

Debts only an issue if it's not being repaid, so unless the airports are running at a loss not a problem.

Thought someone might of come up with a table of airport debts.

Depending where the ultimate final destination is, I would put money on STN (that's if the flights are to continue, it hasn't been said they will).
Gatters doesn't seem to do much in the way of all cargo flights, and with Saudia now having a relationship with MAG (in the form of MAN flights), and STN's good cargo sheds, it would be like missing an open goal if they didn't get the flights.

BBC News - London City Airport 'should close', think tank says

Surely not.......?

Perhaps a case of a think tank producing a report with a strong influence from the think tank's own ideals and policy aims ?

Surely not.......? :E

Any bunch of people coming up with a radical idea can call themselves a think tank. (Are we one?)

LCY is a very viable and valuble business caterring for mainly business passengers in what is a very efficient use of 500,000 square metres (or 50 ha (0.19 square miles, or 123 acres) that generates £750m from the economy which actually goes to the low paid rather than bankers.

Like all businesses, if it's not making a profit then it'll cease to be viable and it'll close. Then we can build houses on it, or more likely apartments for the well -heeled. (cetainly won't be 'affordable housing')

From the BBC article:
So ... you take a viable business, established across 25 years that provides jobs and income to the community. In the name of economics and 'green' you destroy it and build new things (taking energy and money) to provide jobs and income and housing?

As pottwiddler says, the housing would not be affordable and what do the folks do without jobs whilst waiting for new jobs to appear?

Staggeringly clever idea. Almost as good as building a new hub in the middle of the Thames estury ... :rolleyes:

I was working for a particular DHC7 operator during the test operations on Heron's Wharf prior to LCY being developed and much of the argument then was that the airport was needed to create local jobs etc.

So how is a housing decelopment, in the long term, going to create more jobs than an airport?

How times change :)