I live closest to BHX so I`m happy to see the amount of expansion easyJet has - FINALLY - announced at BHX...

Birmingham to Jersey
&
Birmingham to Newquay

Which bases will be operating those flights?... Will it be a W route from another base?........

A new route for us in GVA (EZS)

Geneva-rhodes 2pw
starting 21 July 2021

They used to operate LPL-NQY which was popular, not sure BOH has the same draw but it may for this year. They have left it rather late however.

Apart from the obvious pressure from BRS, cannot understand why EZY have not looked at EDI-CWL-EDI as it was the most popular CWL route with Flybe with 3 flights a day. Loganair are due to start in August but only 5 times a week.

I’d have thought this would offer more passengers than some of the domestic routes announced recently

Was EDI-CWL primarily business or leisure pax ? If you strip out maybe 50% of business pax, how many people are left on a weekday ?

ABZ-MAN and EDI-MAN dropped already. What’s going on there ?

Blamed on Sturgeon’s travel ban to/from parts of Greater Manchester and Lancashire allegedly.

EasyJet scraps Aberdeen to Manchester route after new travel restrictions (eveningexpress.co.uk)

RYR will outfly EZY by a factor of 4 to the new green list resorts.

Possibly the "new" EZY domestics looking a little silly now?

until the govt turn them all amber at the click of the fingers :(

Plenty of people still not willing to risk it with Hancock and Shapps constantly changing the rules and there’s a good chance the destinations also change their rules (like Malta did).

I don't think it needed a change in the Green list to achieve that. I'm still amazed that Liverpool-Bournemouth made it off the route planning dartboard into real life.

Maybe quit bashing airlines doing an almost impossible job, whilst reducing cash burn. The commercial department at ezy know what they’re doing and know where demand is/ or isn’t.

Alot of the new UK routes are being launched to support the crew training plan. Bringing back those who haven’t operated in months, and trying to keep everyone else legally current. So it’s not all about routes being highly profitable but ensuring the airline is ready to react and expand the flying as and when they can. That’s impossible with such few flights being operated so adding UK domestic sectors makes logical sense.

RYR have been ensuring they are ready to react for many months with continual daily base training at STN keeping crews & the aeroplanes valid.

No requirement then on behalf of RYR to launch new UK routes to support crew training...just straight to service.

Do the commercial department at EZY know what they`re doing and know where the demand is/or isn`t?...debatable...will have to wait & see which decisions have produced for the airlines.

PS...Not bashing airlines just pointing out the blindingly obvious & the markedly different approaches perhaps.

Appears the airline is being wrong footed by Mr L attempting "political" moves in flying short domestic bucket & spade trying to embarrass HMG over their stated green credentials.

You keep stating that EasyJet is trying to be political and embarrass the Gov but what evidence do you have for that? They are just opening routes which can actually be flown by pax given all the restrictions. The Gov isn’t embarrassed by some short haul flights. Boris flew to Cornwall for the G7. He couldn’t care less what EasyJet does (hence the limited support). Is BA also trying to embarrass the Gov launching flights from Belfast or Southampton to UK destinations?

errrrr...perhaps the evidence was the media attention & headlines generated with the announcements pretty much condemning very short mainland bucket/spade.

Nothing embarrasses this Government & leader all too evidently which is perhaps why Mr L has wrong footed his airline in launching or proposing those services.

It looks apparent he has been on his own independent political manoeuvres.

If the reasoning only is to work up the crews & aeroplanes then see the RYR example for instance which appear will leave EZY floundering somewhat too.

Just because the media ran those headlines does not mean it was EasyJet’s doing. Plenty of carriers have different approaches. EasyJet trying new domestic routes, Jet2 just not operating and Ryanair trying every route going.

I think you’re over egging it a bit if you think the CEO of EasyJet is trying to bring down the most shameless Gov in recent memory through embarrassment...

Gross exaggeration to suggest embarrassment will bring down a Government of course.

Different approaches by airlines indeed...merely suggesting the EZY position is to be proven too.

After recent ‘revelations’, shall we say, the Government is doing a perfectly good job of that on its own. 🤦🏻‍♂️

easyJet has traditionally had a policy of <4 hours over land, it doesn’t operate. EDI was perhaps border line but ABZ and BOH (ex LPL) are over that threshold be it by rail or road. Plus these routes are at a relatively low frequency, with relatively height capacity aircraft and in fact I think the LPL-BOH is only twice a week and explicitly targeted at the staycation market.

As other have said, airlines have to reduced cash burn and keep crews in check. Operating revenue generating flights is the optimal execution of that in the current circumstances.

EZY’s programme in general seems to have been parred back considerably, particularly when compared to FR. I’m not convinced that FR have been filling MAN-CHQ twice a week so banging on about environmental credentials is a bit ingenious.

My understanding is that the manufacturer's requirements for the airworthy preservation of non-flying aircraft is quite different Airbus v Boeing. Perhaps this is a more logical explanation of what's happening than any wild claims of embarrassing the Government.

LGS6753...
Correct Airbus v Boeing but see Post #93 where the launch of the new EZY domestics though was stated as "supporting the crew training plan".

For fear of repeat RYR were flying "preservation circuits" coupled with base training at STN for many months on a continuous basis as were & still are EXS to a smaller extent.

This appears to have aided RYR with their very different full throttle latter day approach to the crisis.

EZY are a very careful conservative airline whereas the RYR philosophy at the highest level is...never let a good crisis go to waste.

Outcome?...time will tell...time will tell.

Hopefully everyone is a winner.

I had assumed that FR were flying to Amber countries to avoid refunding fares.

easyJet were also flying plenty of 'circuits' before they resumed passenger flights, in order to keep aircraft and crews active. There were also regular flights between bases for maintenance purposes. So no different to what Ryanair were doing.

The easyJet circuits were solely for aircraft maintenance reasons. Only 1 per aircraft every 30 days. So only keeping a handful of crews current.

Been plenty of circuit bashing at MME in recent weeks - not purely maintenance.

Yep, quite a few base training days have been carried out for new cadet pilots who were in the easyJet MPL scheme and needed the base training to finish the course.

No circuit training for current ezy pilots other than for maintenance reasons.

Ryanair are just dumping cheap seats onto the market, knowing they aren't going to make any money, but they'll prevent other companies making any money too. They're also often the only airline serving a destination, thanks to EZY and BA's far more conservative approach. The OH flew to Poland a couple of weeks ago with Ryanair, £5 there and £8 back, but with around 110-120 passengers. Clearly that's not making any money, but if it captures enough of the slimmed down market to prevent competitors even operating there, then it's somewhat achieving it's aim.

EZY ran an inflated schedule for far too long last Summer (LGW-PMI was still up to 4x daily over six weeks after having its "travel corridor" removed) and was flying empty aircraft all over Europe. The same Wizzair. Routes like Liverpool to Bournemouth and Inverness to Newquay aren't going to make any money, but they're low risk routes that aren't subject to a Grant Shapps tweet, using little more fuel than a maintenance flight, and keep pilots out of simulators which are going to be in short supply should there be a sudden restart - because as we know with this government, airlines aren't going to get a great deal of notice for it.

The OH flew to Poland a couple of weeks ago with Ryanair, £5 there and £8 back, but with around 110-120 passengers. Clearly that's not making any money, but if it captures enough of the slimmed down market to prevent competitors even operating there, then it's somewhat achieving it's aim.

It's not making money if everyone is paying these prices but every passenger is probably paying a different price, some with bags, flexi tickets etc. The whole low-cost model is based on flying one standard aeroplane type. Price tickets low initially and high as the departure date approaches for those that can't/won't plan ahead of those who need business style flexible ticketing. If you can't make money, drop the route and fly somewhere else.

Generally the algorithms devised over decades within the RYR booking system cannot be bettered within the travel business...But this is the EZY thread.

Blackfriar

Well she booked it 9 hours before departure, so I’m not sure many were paying more for their ticket. Your point stands during normal times, but right now Ryanair are just dumping capacity into a depressed market.

Yes, would look like the algorithm has been dumped currently, it's all about flooding to market for the long game, the weak will perish.

£5 there and £8 back? To Poland?
Assuming no taxes, charges or APD?

You must mean basic fare ...without the add-ons

I’m not sure what’s so unbelievable. A quick search shows £15 return (yes, including taxes, charges, APD) from STN-WMI for most of July. 5-8 July is an example. Or £13 return to Krakow on the same dates. The Polish and Eastern Europeans are happy with a middle seat, a tiny bag crammed under their seat and eating their own home made sandwiches, Ryanair aren’t making any money on auxiliaries on these flights either.

£13 is APD. Hence it’s dumping capacity to prevent competitors from operating. Ryanair have the financial might and cheaper cost base to do this, easyJet and others don’t. Which is why EZY are being much more conservative than Ryanair.

Blackfriar

That's the rub, MOL certainly knows how to turn a crisis into success and he will be banking on several of his competitors going to the wall, paying his workforce bellow the 2019 market value will help, coupled with their ruthlessness when it comes to negotiating with airports and suppliers, I would not bank on them losing out.

Having said all that, I don't blame Easy doing some domestic routes, it keeps the aircraft flying and some crews current, so if and when things open up, they can respond.

Out of curiosity which operators are being precluded operating over STN-WMI or STN-Krakow or even over London generally?

I wish you’d learn to string a sentence together in English, it would make it far easier to reply to you.

I’m assuming you’re asking which operators aren’t operating these routes as a result? In which case, easy aren’t operating LGW-KRK, BA weren’t operating LHR-WAW until yesterday and BA aren’t operating LHR-KRK.

Wizzair was (is?) less than daily on LTN-WAW in early June (3-4 daily pre pandemic), although Wizzair are capacity dumpers themselves, a little more conservative after being stung by doing the same last year in a market that never opened up.

Jamesair1

Ryanair often used to do a cheap fare with all taxes included, I flew to Oslo for £1! Assume this is the same ploy.

New Route - Liverpool to Malta.


Flights begin 25th July, 2 x weekly (Tue & Sun)