The CWL-VLY public service obligation route has officially been scrapped:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-61733850

Wizz Alicante delayed four hours yesterday, Palma six, Faro cancelled. Supply chain is weak in Cardiff as well I assume?

The Tenerife arrival in the early hours diverted to Luton and didn't position back to Cardiff until 0915 messing up the schedule.

PAX numbers
 

Have any figures been released recently. Be good to see how things have picked up.

I hope this helps:
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....095292bdf1.png

BHD returns to the CWL schedule, Aer Lingus this time which should hopefully be more successful than what Eastern made of it !!

May 2022 CAA stats
 

Top 10 destinations for May 2022 according to passenger figures released by the CAA

ALC: 12,785
PMI: 10,191
AGP: 8,150
TFS: 7,372
ACE: 6,012
DUB: 5,648
FAO: 5,034
AMS: 4,805
LCA: 3,746
DLM: 2,888

Paris/Vueling
 

How long in advance to Vueling tend to release their Paris schedule as it’s only showing until Oct 2022.

Potentially that means route has either been dropped, is under review or has become seasonal? The only UK services bookable throughout winter are ORY - LGW and ORY - BHX, nothing bookable from end of Oct for EDI, GLA, NCL or CWL so far.

BHX has been increased from 2 to 3 weekly in winter so must be doing well

CWL was also increased from 2 to 3 per week for Summer 2022 season so that suggests it was doing well too, although not as popular as CDG was (but then that was daily).

Correct me if I’m wrong going on previous years but Vueling tend to release schedules in stages don’t they ?

looking at the departures board online there does not appear to be much in the way of domestic destinations. Is it really only a daily Edinburgh and occasional Belfast ? That's a lots of class "A" controlled airspace for next to no aeroplanes .

As a Welsh taxpayer it is heartbreaking to see how much vital revenue is being sunk into this airport that should be standing on its own feet , or at least almost washing its face in revenue terms.

Completely hamstrung by being owned by the Welsh Government who are against flying and have a crippling green climate agenda. A perfect storm with no possible clear outcome as far as I can see.

What Welsh Govt green policies are impacting the airport?

Might be something do with the global pandemic that occasionally gets talked about?
Throw in the failure of Flybe who operated those domestic routes and you'll get your reason.
Loganair are the right airline for Edinburgh, hopefully they'll increase, and Aer Lingus are the right airline for Belfast. They only started this month so hopefully will grow as well.
Ryanair have increase their DUB offering this month too.
Things are improving, slowly.

Wizz to Milan & Bucharest just annonced

Good to see, but is the base being closed? Nothing on sale beyond mid September?

Hope not the case, have read all disappeared from the website but now starting to show again to certain destinations so maybe a “glitch” with loading the flights.

MXP & OTP are non-based aircraft using the “W6” prefix, our based flights use “W9”…..I hope I am right in saying (and hoping) that Wizz stay at CWL….it’s only been a matter of weeks and loads appear to be healthy.

Milan and Bucharest are the only two destinations currently in the booking engine for W22/3. Both 2pw, Milan W/Su, Bucharest Tu/Su and all flights on away-based aircraft.
The only other destination showing after September 22 is Arrecife, 3pw M/W/F from 27th March 23.

Seems they are going to seasonal summer base. The destinations are all being reloaded.

It will just be MXP & OTP for Winter 2022/2023 season then the base comes back in March 2023 with same destinations as this year.

At lease they are not pulling out completely, more or less similar now to the old Thomas Cook base which is not all doom and gloom and in fairness will give them the opportunity to improve things going forward.

Obviously gutting for the crew but this “could” be a wise move for them given the current situation worldwide.

it is certainly not just a Wizz issue, look at easyJet, they are getting hammered beyond belief with cancellations and crew shortage.

Wizz are being proactive here for once and hopefully things will improve come 2023 with time to fully cover all flights etc and staff up.

https://travelweekly.co.uk/news/air/...ices-suspended

Not sure I can see those two new routes lasting if the bread and butter routes already casting doubt

The routes they operated this summer had good yields….the issue sounds as if it was lack of crew to operate effectively. Come next summer there should be an improvement with crewing levels. Maybe as suggested elsewhere the A320 would be better suited at present.

As for the 2 new routes announced today, MXP was a popular route pre-covid with Flybe and x2 flights a week could be a good move. As for OTP, who knows if this will be popular, yes it is an “unusual” destination for CWL but Wizz are big in Romania plus some cracking places to visit over there…..Transylvania plus Bucharest itself.

But not good enough to finish the season?

So, London then… same as when they pulled out of DSA ‘to shore up operations at other bases’. Good luck to the Cardiff based staff, hope you get to work in Cardiff next year!

Better to be unemployed than live in Luton.

And good yields, or good loads, or both?

And still nothing “official” from CWL…..airport web page has not been updated at all regarding the winter situation for Wizz. Also no mention of the new OTP & MXP flights……

Notably their recruitment page is advertising for a Marketing Executive…

Sums it up !! Well let’s hope they find someone that actually markets the place as it is pretty shocking at the mo compared to other airports.

I've said this before, CWLs marketing 'team'/person is one of the worst I've seen. Absolutely shameful. Hope someone competent takes on the role and starts marketing CWL as an airport, not they're personal Facebook page.

Well something has clearly gone wrong along the line , pre Covid or not as they haven’t kept there marketing team in place

Seem to remember 2 series on national TV about the airport and an incredibly flamboyant marketing manager Deborah Barber doing a wonderful job promoting the airport

Even BOH and EXT are streets ahead on promoting their airports since covid

I hear what you say, but new airline business isn't brought into the airport on the back of some Facebook or TikTok presence, and they did bring in Wizz which looked promising, as was also done at DSA. Sadly a combination of Covid-19 and airline that I believe we know now may not be trusted to deliver on the promises they make has created a poor situation.

Surely the limiting factor for CWL is that they have a much more successful (affluent) area just over the Severn bridges, and despite pretty appalling road and rail links, BRS has managed to develop into the major player in the region and getting large development into CWL from a passenger perspective may prove somewhat difficult as a result. Add into all that the absolutely dire economic situation, with the cost of living and the constraints that will put on potential passengers spending power and for 2023/2024 airports, including CWL may have to be happy with what they can cling on to.

That is most certainly the lesson that has been learned by people of an age who lived through the recessions of the 1970s, 80s and 90s.

Don't count out a full withdrawal by Wizz from CWL unfortunately, they are a shambles of an airline!

And still nothing on the CWL webpage, no reference to the new OTP & MXP flights……you think they would have officially announced this by now or how on earth are people going to hear about it ???

The Marketing Executive job description talked of reporting to an interim Marketing Manager until early next year before i'm guessing a new person takes post? It does seem there is a lot of change in the marketing team.

A lot of work needed. The website is terrible, very outdated, mistakes on social media posts etc.

But the biggest issue - The people who live in the catchment area, especially in South Wales, still don't know the routes on offer. I've had two recent examples of someone not knowing Ryanair fly to Dublin (flight booked from Bristol instead) and KLM Amsterdam (again went with Easyjet Bristol).

Loganair appear to have had a fall out with NQY airport and their press release below refers to focussing more on other regional airports and CWL is one they mention along with SOU & EXT.

I wonder if this means double daily for EDI and/or a NCL or GLA flight ??

“In the meantime, we’ll be directing our efforts towards other UK regional airports such as Southampton, Exeter and Cardiff, where airport managements recognise and appreciate the enormous value that year-round, sustainable regional air services can bring to their communities and local economies.”

I booked tickets to Milan with Wizz for December and only 8 other seats were unavailable. I really hope there is some sort of marketing push in the coming weeks or I suspect that route won’t be returning.

Definitely needs some advertising, as said before on here CWL have not even announced the MXP or OTP routes on their own webpage as nothing has been updated since June when EI started BHD. Marketing is pretty naff.

People need to be made aware of where they can fly….look at BRS and that awful Jet2 advert but at least people talk about it !!!

Yes we may not have a Wizz base this winter but we do still have flights……..

Now on the airport website and in local media

https://www.cardiff-airport.com/news...r-this-winter/

Geeeee better late than never !!!! Not many airlines announcing new routes from CWL so you’d have thought and expected them to officially announce at least a month ago !!