Was actually just talking about getting between the NW and Southampton.....never mind

I passed through LJLA on Saturday and didn’t notice any work around either the cladding or the frame, but that probably means nothing and I suppose any remedial work may not be in the public space. I have noted comments regarding the building requiring attention elsewhere.

They used to have the best (IMHO) domestic offering in the UK back when Pier A was rebuilt as T1 Domestic. It was an oasis of well behaved, suited and booted calm, where BA's Landor B757s mixed with Loganair and Manx offering more UK domestic destinations than any other UK airport. I always thought that was GLA 's crown with all the Highlands and Islands airports, but no, t'was MAN back then. Of course traffic some was lost to the trains but many were lost to the trauma that is modern T3. It was a passenger experience delight, even without lounge access. Nowadays, domestic at MAN is summed up by BA not even caring enough to have their own lounge anymore. Yeah, follow the money, I know....

Regarding your previous reply which I appreciate.

I totally agree with you regarding a resumption of a service between LPL-SOU.

There are many reasons why a Liverpool to Southampton route should be successful.

Liverpool and Southampton are two great maritime gateways.
Both cities are well established partners and in particular in the ever growing cruise industry.
Liverpool as a destination in itself is a good enough reason.
Southampton with it's large catchment area and Europe's busiest cruise port.
Southampton and it's business link's, huge catchment area which includes the Isle of Wight and Portsmouth International Port.

I would love to see a resumption of a Liverpool to Southampton route. Being born and bred from Southampton and having a maritime background. The City of Liverpool will always have a special place in my heart. My second favourite city in England, without a shadow of a doubt.

​​​​​​I've been to Liverpool many times for business and as well as Manchester for weekend breaks but the thought a long drive ahead of me or a cancelled or delayed train scares me off. I'd much prefer to take the short flight compared to a hellish journey by road or rail. I have not been to Manchester since the collapse of Flybe (mark 1), all because of the absolute unreliability of the incumbent part time operator.

But if no other airline are interested in MAN-SOU than Eastern Airways what would be the outcome. The market is definitely there but the real problem we have is an absolute basket case of an airline that's totally ruining the opportunities available to them. Who in their right mind would book a flight with Eastern Airways feeling totally confident in the knowledge that it won't be cancelled.

So if no other airline are interested in operating MAN-SOU what are the options. Considering that there can't be much hope for a resumption of a Liverpool to Southampton route, unless maybe easyJet took an interest. But if easyJet we're interested in flying between the northwest of England to Southampton I should imagine that it would more than likely be a MAN-SOU route.

Message to easyJet.

Maybe and I said maybe, can you please consider starting MAN-SOU so that we don't have to put up with the totally useless and incompetent and part time incumbent operator we currently have to put up with.

I said maybe, Your gonna be the one that saves me, And after all, You're my wonderwall 👍


​​​​

If there was money to be made, do you really think Eastern would be putting them off? Clearly Eastern think there is money to be made elsewhere, and so does everybody else.

When Flybe did LPL-SOU, they did a pretty good job, used it quite a few times, they even used BAe 146s at times, so was popular. Unfortunately when Eastern took over, they didn't offer the same type of service. Easyjet used to fly LPL-NQY and fly MAN-NQY now, so maybe, but I reckon their aircraft are well tied up for the summer.

But Flybe only flew between Southampton and Liverpool for two years or so. I can't exactly remember the year it stopped but I have a feeling that the route operated between 2005 and 2007. Eastern Airways took over the route shortly after. But as is usually the case with this part time operator, they abandoned the route cuz "they couldn't be bothered".

Regarding easyJet on MAN-SOU, I wasn't expecting any immediate announcement from the airline as I'm fully aware of the fact that their current fleet are tied up for summer 2023.

Although LPL/MAN-NQY are two totally different markets to LPL/MAN-SOU.

Eastern Airways had a SOU-NQY flight scheduled to start in summer 2019. It was on sale and bookable on their website. But surprise, surprise the route was cancelled before the first flight had even took off. Another example of a totally useless and incompetent operator.

Just very short of suitable operators these days, Wouldn't be so bad if Cross Country Trains were half decent .

It does make you wonder about the long term viability of regional flying in this country.... you would have thought Manchester - SOU would be able to sustain an airline where there is the potential for a huge time and cost saving over the train.

Eastern made an overall profit last year of 237k, on a turnover of 16m - a margin of 1.45%.

Surely there is a bigger margin to be made on a well run operation between Manchester - SOU? Flybe used to fly over 500k folk between the two cities pre Covid!

Lets face it Eastern are the most unpredictable airline who just don`t seem to be able to hack, it they chop and change on most routes and are not
an airline I would entertain or trust if I was making an important trip be it business or connecting with a cruise or long haul flight.

And still going for over 20 years - long after many of their rivals have faded away...

I've just been informed today that I am going to Liverpool for business during the coronation weekend and also on the 04 May for another event.

Another long and arduous drive from Southampton to the northwest cities of Liverpool and Manchester. But due to the fact that I have not been to either since before the pandemic I'm extremely excited about the upcoming visit.

Although a direct flight would have made the journey a lot more pleasant 😉

Started and still legally registered as Air Kilroe and formed at guess where ? Manchester Airport.
That said recent years were very much funded via Bristow and their US Parents .

Well I didn’t know that. Thanks Rutan.

Great that they made a profit, however, I wonder did they even fill half the seats? Their pricing is always off the charts. Even on DUB SOU, their pricing was up to 4 times greater than that of Emerald. Pricing that is commonly available on such routes by Emerald. Even eclipsing BACF who operate summer seasonally, argueably it's a sort of positioning flight for them but Eastern were up in the bushes. I've often checked easten for flying inside the UK and I personally would describe it as insult pricing ... Come back names like Manx Airlines (the original of the Manx brands), Suckling, or even Eurodirect who just were great at joining all the dots, though sadly that didn't list long, but they had ambition. With ATPs too.

You might want to re-read that. Making profits is how airlines survive - not joining dots. :rolleyes:

Thanks SWBKCB,
I completely understand.
However, pricing so far out of line with the competition means empty seats and on routes where they have exclusivity charging pricing so high that there are again 50% empty seats is not the route to profitability at a sustainable level. Anyway I'm sure you've got the full optics of what happens inside eastern. It's really irrelevant to my flying needs.

Blue Islands announced that they were going to run the route (in addition to Eastern) after Flybe folded in 2020, but it all went quiet.

I wonder if they'd reconsider given Eastern's lack of commitment to the route.

I'm hearing the airport had two brief closures last night, (Fri 28/29th April) causing extensive holding and at least three diverts out. Possible ATC staff shortages? can anyone confirm? Sounds like a case of cutting staff to the bone with no leeway in the system.

Bit of a strong statement when you don't even know what the cause was?