Happened on BHX - ABZ this evening, I’m sure it was resolved however unaffected pax were off before someone from maintenance would come and release it, cabin and flight deck crew tried and were unable to open the door, it looked like the bin had moved slightly after an unsuitable bag was rammed in before anyone could intervene.

Art to releasing the lock if the hatch is jammed shut.

What’s with all the cancellations the last few weeks? At least a flight a day cancelled at SOU. NCL flight cancelled this morning and the EDI route just did one loop then went into BOH. Another flight was in the hold and after a few loops landed at SOU without issue. Must say I will have no sympathy if EZY move in at SOU.

400m RVR on R20 on the 2050 weather probably has something to do with it. 375m on the 1950s, cleared briefly and then back to 400m RVR on the 2050s so clearly floating in and out. All three of the morning wave ended up in Bristol last Tuesday in similar conditions. I don't think an easy 320 will do any better!

Think this morning's NCL disruption was crew-related but no airline can fix weather below minima.

Surely it would have landed only if the RVR improved OR their landing CAT was higher than the diverting Loganair. If easyJet did knock Loganair out of SOU, do you think they'd offer business friendly day returns on EDI/GLA/NCL? I don't, but that said, a once daily might be all that's needed nowadays? Views?

Daily? Maybe...
Regular times? Maybe....
Long-term commitment? Maybe...

I'd suggest the fact that Loganair seem to be quite successfully sustaining their operation on SOU-GLA/EDI/NCL and increasing frequencies year by year despite not being a cheap option at all suggests that they are doing quite well. I would think that there must be a reasonable proportion of business travel on the routes to justify the fares typically being charged.

It would be a real shame if they were to end up being bullied/priced out on the routes by EZY leaving the airport with inconvenient schedules, regardless of how loud some of the cries may be about the cost of Loganair fares. See some of the BHX, BRS and even LGW domestics on some days for an example of how poor the timings can be on EZY with no competition to worry about!

It looks as though the viz dropped last night, lifted, then dropped again in the space of an hour. Not unheard of but not an everyday occurrence either.

The other issue will be holding fuel. Take stacks of it, you’ll be over your IFLD calculation for landing (particularly on a wet runway) at SOU if you do happen to get straight in. You tend to be limited in what you can carry so a couple of runs round the hold then divert will be about the norm. And obviously if the RVR is below minima, there’s no point wasting what fuel you have by initiating an approach that you cannot complete.

Thanks for the suggested answers. An ATR landed whilst the 145 was diverting to BOH but perhaps it doesn’t have the same limitations or fuel played a part. It was just unusual to see it do one loop and then divert. Usually would see a few loops to see if conditions improve.

I hope LM stay at SOU but they have had a monopoly and not really done much as a result. Upgrading the cabins of the 145s is a real shortsighted decision for me. They have no business operating in Europe any more despite being very quick. I don’t really understand why LM are getting quite a few newish ATR-72s and then putting them on the silly Scottish only routes that can’t justify a 70 odd seater plane. If they are deemed too slow for the SOU routes then they should be replacing the 145s with larger embrears. Even tinpot Eastern have got 4 of them now.

God, don’t let anyone hear you say “silly Scottish only routes”. That’s heresy.

Some of those routes do have passenger volumes to justify the ATR72.

The jet can do four rotations a day to Southampton in the time it takes the ATR to do three. The question is whether frequency or capacity is the right answer.

The 145 refit is the right answer as the airframes are low cost but need to look the part for passengers. Same as Jet2 still flying some 737-300s. They have a job to do, so need to maintain a standard to do it. Cost of a new aircraft with all of the crew training and transitions costs versus refitting what you already have are in two different worlds.

Wow! Is this for real? What a ludicrous thing to say. Aside from a morning and evening day return option, what exactly more do you want? If "lower fares" then you cannot get that from Loganair on their business model, easyJet will give you that, but likely not at business friendly times....Loganair operate on fairly thin margins but have been around for 60 years. Not splashing the cash on shiney new toys with ZERO ROI will hopefully see them to 70. It's not glamorous, but it is what it is.

Yet E190 G-CLYU has yet to operate a revenue service since being delivered 23 Oct.

Eastern's association with the Embraer fleet is suspect to say the least!

Talking of which, has the latest Eastern thread been removed, or has a glass of Scotland's finest impaired my search skills?

Seek and thee shall find
https://www.pprune.org/airlines-airp...hlight=eastern

Another award for Loganair
 

LOGANAIR is celebrating winning yet another award after having been named Domestic Airline of the Year by the Scottish Passenger Agents’ Association (SPAA).

It follows hard on the heels of being named Airline of the Year for 2023 by the European Regions Airline Association (ERA) just three weeks ago.

Airline boss Jonathan Hinkles said the announcement marked the end of a successful year for the airline, during which Loganair also scooped the Regional Airline of the Year award at the CAPA (Centre for Aviation) Aviation Awards for Excellence.

“Winning the SPAA Domestic Airline of the Year award for the second year in a row is a tremendous achievement, and it’s a testament to the hard work and dedication of our incredible team,” Hinkles said.
https://www.shetnews.co.uk/2023/11/0...ents-and-more/

Loganair to end Inverness to Birmingham and Dublin flights next year
 

BREAKING: Loganair to end Inverness to Birmingham and Dublin flights next year (inverness-courier.co.uk)

Loganair to also end

Aberdeen - Oslo
Derry - Liverpool

And the summer seasonal Edinburgh- Stavanger and Dundee - Belfast

Credit to @SeanM1997 on X

“The partly public-owned NATS – which runs air traffic control at Birmingham airport…”

That’ll be news to NATS and BHX!

It looks to me as though there is a requirement to reduce costs, and focus on profitable parts of the business, perhaps because having failed to sell the it, it needs to be made more attractive a proposition before a new attempt to shed it to new owners.

If change is needed, I don't think it really matters who your owners are or aren't. Costs going up all over the place like ground handling, engineering spares and the NATS stuff mean some routes will just stop working as the income won't cover the inflated costs.

If routes don't cover costs, you don't fly them. ABZ - OSL will most likely be back in the Summer Season next year. You don't use profitable routes to cover non profitable ones either.

And the standard of those services is not improving either.

Might we see EI (Emerald) at INV?

Loganair announces retirement of the Saab 340 fleet..

https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/...ires-saab-340/

LOG SF340 Final departure from Sumburgh plus another retiree.
 

https://www.shetlandtimes.co.uk/2024...the-final-time Aviation enthusiasts have been bidding a fond farewell to a popular plane which takes off today (Tuesday) from Sumburgh airport for the final time. The Saab 340s have been a mainstay of the region’s aviation sector for decades – but Loganair is removing them from service this week. Thursday’s flight from Kirkwall to Inverness and onto Glasgow will be the last ever flight with the airline. But today is the Saabs’ last in Sumburgh – with typical Shetland weather to mark the occasion.Loganair is phasing the Saabs out as it makes the switch to the larger, more efficient ATR turboprops.

Initially, the final flight had been expected over the summer, but industry-wide supply chain issues delayed the fleet upgrade.

The airline’s chief executive Jonathan Hinkles paid tribute to the Saabs during the December meeting of the Shetland external transport forum.

He said: “That will be a fond farewell to an aircraft that has served us and our customers well over the course of the last 24-and-a-half years.

“But it’s time to go and time for us to continue developing our fleet.”

Loganair is holding a number of events to commemorate the Saabs’ service.

Well known pilot Captain Eddie Watt is set to retire the day after the Saabs – on his 65th birthday.
https://shet.news/loganairsaabeddiewatt

Not just the Saab that had it's last day at Loganair... Jonathan Hinkles has resigned with immediate effect from the airline.

https://dailybusinessgroup.co.uk/202...oard-approval/

A loss for the company. You will never work for a more professional CEO in this industry. His style and knowledge compared to others was obvious in the NATS fiasco in the Westminster committee rooms.

Could be interesting times ahead for the airline. A sale last year that failed to materialise and now increasingly stiff competition from the low cost carriers, along with a jet fleet that seems ever more unsuitable for modern day regional flying

LCCs do not do the routes Logan EJRs do. For obvious reasons they do not fill a 73/319. Stiff competition my backside.

Just don’t mention easyjet GLA-SOU or Ryanair BOH-EDI inside LM towers!

I’m not so sure that Loganair’s fleet is ‘ever more unsuitable for modern day regional flying.’ There turboprop fleet is ideal for the services on which they are used and in many parts of the world, particularly in the USA, the EMB 145 is considered the ideal aircraft for the higher frequency, longer-distance, low-density routes.
They must be doing something right as they are still in business and making money, unlike Flybe and BMI Regional!

If they do face stiff competition from the LCCs they don't stick around. They have plenty of routes no LCC will ever touch with a proverbial barge pole.

Not a happy ship inside LM at the moment. Mass pilot resignations, base reductions/ redundancies, route closures and staff being asked to relocate and Royal Mail contract being changed. Does JH know what’s ahead? For those that know, was the recent ‘Social Media’ production and subsequent email from JH to all staff the straw that broke the camels back?

JH has gone.

What was the social media controversy? I thought their recent output was good with the Saab farewell etc.
When I started out in business I used to model company's survival records and companies which had a stable workforce and were slow to adapt quickly to trading changes had a higher propensity to fail. If the market changes then they have to cut their cloth accordingly and do it quickly.
Paid off but old and maintained in house, it's that or the ATR which is relatively slow, regional new builds are a vanishing species.

From the very little I hear, this was in train before that blew up. I am sure the immature acts of a departing pilot would not trigger this - most airlines would change CEO every week if they left office on the basis of a stupid social media post by an employee! The pilot concerned has some long overdue growing up to do. They take a very dim view of that sort of thing in Holiday House.

I suspect JH has a very good idea of what’s ahead.

Indeed Regional airlines are stepping stones for pilots to.go onto bigger things. Was before the pandemic and certainly after.

Which is probably why JH has left as he can forsee a very difficult future. For the 6 years I worked for them from 2014-20, he certainly did an excellent job, especially from the useless one before him. I do feel the board have a very critical decision who replaces him. I fear that things will only go down hill from here.

I hear Maurice Boyle is the new CEO. A safe pair of hands?

Maurice is COO and Accountable Manager. Peter Simpson is acting CEO.