Gaz

Chill...

This is only a forum. Nothing childish in my posts - just opinions and observations.

By nature of a sale of one of the 'central belt' airports, competition WILL intensify making it better for you and I as passengers.

Lets wait and see what happens in the comming months.

Raf Turnhouse Barracks
 

Hi Joe, yes sad day. Many a happy night spent in one or other of the messes there. It had to happen one day though and better rid of them than turning them into a refugee camp as one previous plan was.

The area is supposed to be earmarked for freight/industrial use, not sure if
BAA still own it since being bought by Ferrovial.. There used to be a web site detailing planning etc but it seems to have disappeared.

Sorry I just dont get it at all, somebody comes in and pays 500/600 million to buy Edinburgh ( if we are lucky in this market). So then how much money do they have to invest??? Look at all the non BAA airports, do we want to be like a Teeside, Leeds/Bradford, Newcastle??? Do you really want to be travelling from sheds like that? Name me one non-BAA airport in Britain that you would rather be travelling from. Ill give you Manchester unless you have beeen there recently, you will know what I mean.
As someone who has worked day in day out at Edinburgh for the last 15 years I think they have done a bloody good job to attract the flights they have and I sincerley hope they keep the contract.

.Except in the case of those missing long haul routes that long-suffering pax
have no choice but surface travel elsewhere for? I'd personally write on their report card, "Could have done better".

I think the question now is "Will new owners" - be it BAA or whatever - "address this anomaly"?

The only missing long haul route that EDI is likely to see is Emirates.

Americas :
They already have Delta and Continental to the US and there is no way United will fly outside of London to the UK, American have left Scotland already, NWA are now part of Delta which leaves US Airways to be tempted over from Glasgow.
Now that Zoom have gone and Air Transat show no appetite for expansion, the only possibilty on the Canadian front is Thomas Cook

Middle East
Emirates is a good bet as mentioned above.

All the alliances have their feeds to their long haul hubs in place so who does that leave?

A question of wait and see what an independent EDI owner can tempt.?
We wont be getting adverts at EDI's front door informing pax they are 'Going the wrong way"...

Air Transat and Thomas Cook are flying for the same tour operator over the atlantic, so could effectively be considered as in the UK-Canada market, especially as I think they have swapped flying between each other in the past. Air Transat's parent company own Canadian Affair. They used to use TCX/MYT for their flights until Air Transat bought them and they then started using Air Transat but retained TCX as well

Ryanair Expands again.
 

Ryanair are to base two further 737's at Edinburgh bringing the total to four.
From March 7 new routes will commence, these are Carcassonne, Limoges, Altenburg for Leipzig, Malta, Poitiers, Rome and Zadar.

They will also be an increase in frequencies to Alicante and Dusseldorf.

Good news for Edinburgh.

Birmingham :ok: And I think you'll find Bristol a pretty good option too (in terms of the airport not the actual practicality of using it if you live in Scotland)

Birmingham is a decent airport, however the duty free is pricier than most other airports and the business lounges are distinctly underwhelming. It was a sad day when BA pulled out of there.

Departure Lounge
 

Has EDI become so cash strapped that it needs to suppliment it's advertising income by boarding up the glass panels that face the apron/runway in the main departure lounge area and plastering them with commercial adverts?
It's gone from being an open aspect lounge with a decent view to a boring hemmed in lounge that could be anywhere (or nowhere).

No.
If you look more closely at the notices on the hoarding, you'll find that they say BAA are "improving" the terminal by adding more seating, shops and space for security.

Or, as the FO on a recent BA flight arriving there said "Sorry about the delay in disembarking but our usual stand is closed because BAA have decided Edinburgh Airport needs more shops, so we're waiting for another stand to become vacant"

13Alpha

Evidently BAA are extending the main departure lounge area a few metres outward toward the main apron.. If it is to accommodate shops at the expense of an open aspect, BAA should hang their heads in shame..

Erm, yes - well I have to admit I took a closer look this morning and realised the error of my ways. I hope when they finish the lounge will be as open as it was up until they started the works. It would be unfortunate if the area around gates 7-12b became enclosed like the distinctly unpleasant area around gates 1a-2.

Wholeheartedly agree - it would be a shame to lose any more daylight from the building.

And the last thing Edinburgh Airport needs is more empty shops with bored staff trying to sell stuff people don't need - and can't afford anyway - at prices which can be bettered just about anywhere else you care to look.

The only places doing much business whenever I travel through Edinburgh seem to be the newsagent, the coffee & pastry vendors and the bars. The "duty-free" shops seem routinely empty.

If BAA really want to make more money out of retail at the airport and give the people what they want, maybe they should forget this "expansion" and replace the "duty-frees" with a decent eating place, an airside bookshop and a bigger bar.

And, should BAA wish to briefly turn their attention to the world outside the shopping centre^D^D^D^D^D sorry terminal building, a bit less having to walk across the tarmac to distant aircraft in the rain would be nice. ;)

13Alpha

Edinburgh
 

Whilst I would also not want to see anymore daylight lost in the terminal it is one of the best airports to see what is going on, i.e runway, etc. I have been in several, notably in Germany where you cannot see anything and the shops and cafes airside are minimal. Having spent 5 hours in the terminal recently due to delays from the incoming aircraft we found we had plenty to do and the time passed. I can think of some airports where I would not want to spend 5 hours. Generally visitors to Edinburgh that I meet are impressed with the airport.

BA will move its operation from current location (Gates 7-12) and relocate to the SE Pier, within the next week or so. This is due to the terminal work in progress, and access to these gates and airbridges being denied during the work.

Flights arriving at said gates above, will require their pax to be bussed a short distance to the 'Domestic Arrivals' (Sliding doors, which open by Costa Coffee / baggage belts 4,5 and 6) in the main terminal.

BA do not want pax to be bussed at all...

Interesting and challenging times ahead for all!

That'll be fun! Would not be surprised if we'll see an A321 at gate 13! Whoever came up with that one... :ugh:

Most flights arriving (domestic obviously) use the walkway back to the main terminal though - so surely BA would do the same? I don't think users of the Terrace lounge will be chuffed at having to leg it down to gates 13+ I know I wasn't when I was catching a flight to Sumburgh that was parked up at gate 13 (I think) last year.