Continental announce Bristol - New York service

[LTNman]

The first direct scheduled transatlantic service between the south-west of England and the US is to be announced on Tuesday with the launch by Continental Airlines of flights between Bristol International airport and its New York hub at Newark.

Continental, one of the top five US international airlines, has led the way in opening services between the US and the UK regions.

In addition to its services from Newark, Houston and Cleveland to London Gatwick, its main UK gateway, it has served Birmingham, Manchester and Glasgow since the late 1990s and earlier this year it added a service between Newark and Edinburgh.

Continental is unable to operate from London Heathrow to the US under the terms of the restrictive Bermunda II air services treaty between the UK and the US.

This agreement currently allows only two airlines from each country on Heathrow/US routes, American Airlines and United Airlines from the US and British Airways and Virgin Atlantic from the UK.

Instead Continental has sought to build a stronger presence in the UK regions. It is offering local business and leisure travellers direct flights to New York with onward connections into the US domestic market without having to fly via main European hubs such as Heathrow, Paris Charles de Gaulle or Amsterdam Schiphol.

Bristol International, the main airport in the south-west of the UK, handled 3.8m passengers last year. It has grown rapidly in the last couple of years, as it has been developed as a base by the low cost airlines, chiefly EasyJet and FlyBE.

[ATCO1987]

Hey,
Sounds good, is that a definite for EGGD-KEWR then? Or is it to be announced whether its going ahead or not? Stupid me asking most probably as I'll probably find out in the morning <G>.
Dan.

[LTNman]

If this service is a success then there must be a further half dozen UK airports that could get a potential Continental service to New York.

[Terror_is_firmer]

Speaking to people who work at bristol, they say that they have not been told that the route is a diffinate.

[Buster the Bear]

American Airlines has won the race to introduce direct daily flights from Bristol to New York. Full details of the South West's first scheduled transatlantic service, likely to begin next summer, will be announced formally at the airport this morning.

It is the culmination of an intense campaign to woo US airlines to the West.

In the end, it was between American Airlines and Continental, both of whom sent delegations to Bristol earlier this summer.

It is expected that 100,000 passengers will use the service, flying in a Boeing 757-sized aircraft capable of carrying about 180 passengers.

At the heart of Bristol's success has been the support of the West's business community.

The South West is home to 425 US-owned companies and 645 UK firms that trade with the US, many of which have said they would switch from Heathrow and Gatwick to a service from Bristol.

http://whipsnade.co.uk/picturelibrary/jpeg150/br/brown_bear_120_wide.jpg

[Daza]

If AA are to commence BRS-?JFK following Sept 11 there service BHX-ORD failed due to Birminghams apparent proximity to London lets hope that they dont decide that BRS is too close to London if times get a little hard.
Daza

[GrahamK]

So is it CO or AA then? And are they any links to these stories? :confused:

[Mark Lewis]

One from the FT about CO, but have seen nothing about the AA proposal:

http://news.ft.com/cms/s/0917c5a8-0041-11d9-ad31-00000e2511c8.html?referrer_id=yahoo&ft_ref=yahoo1&segid=03058

[TwinAisle]

Just appeared on the BBC site:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/bristol/3634206.stm

Well done BRS! Can only be good news for the South West/South Wales.

For those who haven\'t followed the link, its CO.

Rather strangely tho (poor management??) they have not loaded flights onto the res systems at www.continental.com..... that is a bit daft, since there is likely to be a wave of interest as soon as the press release hits (ie, about twenty mins ago!)

Website is still shovelling you through AMS with KLM, or via Houston (????)

Presumably, this is going to cause KLM some probs at both BRS and CWL. If you are heading west from the South West/South Wales area, you\'ve got a change in AMS (wrong way) with KLM, or a change in EWR with CO..... and if the CWL rumours are true, the eastbound choice could open up soon as well.

Interesting times!

TA

[Flightmapping]

The FT article syas "In Scotland, BAA operates a £60m route development fund to attract new routes.

Recent successes include winning Emirates to open Dubai/ Glasgow , Continental Airlines to open New York (Newark)/Edinburgh and US Airways to open Philadelphia/ Glasgow.

The support is paid through discounted airport charges and financial support for marketing campaigns, normally across three years."

Is this in addition to the £6.8m route development fund operated by the Scottish Office, which presumably applies to all Scottish airports, BAA or not.

[Confirmed Must Ride]

CO starts 20th May (19th ex EWR).....B757-200, and in June the 757-200 with winglets will start to appear

[Wee Weasley Welshman]

Its an impressive move - I hope it works out. The folks running Bristol airport do seem to be switched on. They moved early and decisively to attract a low cost airline in 2001. Once again they may be ahead of the game in attracting a scheduled USA service from the region.

In 2001 it looked optimistic for little old Bristol to have 19 newscheduled low cost routes within 3 years - but thats exactly what they've got. Lets hope it goes bobbins for Continental as well.

Cheers

WWW

[terrier21]

This is the press release from www.bristolairport.co.uk:-Tuesday, September 07, 2004
CONTINENTAL AIRLINES ANNOUNCES DAILY NON-STOP SERVICE BETWEEN BRISTOL AND NEW YORK


First scheduled trans-Atlantic service from Southwest England

BRISTOL, September 7, 2004 * Continental Airlines (NYSE: CAL), the world's sixth largest airline and OAG Airline of the Year 2004, today announced it will launch daily non-stop flights between Bristol and New York/Newark effective May 20, 2005 (westbound).

The new service, the first scheduled non-stop trans-Atlantic service from Southwest England, will link Bristol with New York, the world's financial capital and the number one U.S. business and tourism destination, and provide a new gateway to the region for North American visitors, creating additional inbound tourism opportunities.

"We are delighted to bring our award-winning service to Bristol and proud to pioneer trans-Atlantic service from Southwest England," said Jim Summerford, Continental's Vice President * International. "The Bristol flights will create easy, convenient travel options for our customers in this vibrant region, as well as for visitors from the U.S. and beyond. They will also consolidate Continental's status as the leading airline on routes between the United Kingdom and the United States."

Andrew Skipp, Managing Director of Bristol International Airport, said: "Continental Airlines' decision to operate a non stop service to New York from Bristol International Airport is fantastic news for both the airport and the South West region. The commencement of this transatlantic service will give a huge boost to the regional economy and will elevate Bristol and the South West of England onto the world stage.

"This is a momentous occasion, and will promote Bristol International Airport into the premier league of regional airports in the U.K. Bristol International is the only airport in the region to offer this economically important route and I am hugely proud of the role that Bristol International Airport continues to play as an 'ambassador' for the South West. I am confident that the demand from businesses, alongside inbound and outbound tourists, will make this service a resounding success."

Bristol is the largest city in the South West, which in turn has the second strongest economy in England outside London in terms of per-capita GDP. The city is home to the national headquarters of over 160 companies and is one of the U.K.'s major centres for financial services, which employ around 40,000 people. Bristol is also a centre for high-tech businesses, aerospace industries, and is one of Europe's leading locations for micro-electronics and silicon design, with over 400 such companies.

With an 800-year history and a wealth of cultural attractions, Bristol welcomes over nine million visitors every year and is the 7th most popular destination in the U.K. for overseas visitors. The airport is located within 15 miles of the world heritage city of Bath, and just few hours away from the beautiful holiday regions of Devon and Cornwall.

Bristol International Airport is one of the fastest growing regional airports in the U.K. Its catchment area covers 10 counties in the South West of England and South Wales, with seven million people living within a two-hour drive time of the airport. Bristol International Airport serves over 90 direct destinations and will carry 4.5 million passengers in 2005 * double the number of passengers when the new £27m ($50m) terminal opened in March 2000.

Continental's Bristol-New York/Newark flights will be operated with a 172-seat Boeing 757 aircraft, carrying 16 passengers in the BusinessFirst cabin and 156 in Economy.

Flight CO77 will depart Bristol daily at 9:00 a.m., arriving at New York/Newark at 12:00 p.m. the same day. The return flight, CO76, will depart New York/Newark daily at 7:30 p.m., arriving at Bristol at 7:30 a.m. the next day. Flying times will be approximately eight hours westbound and seven hours eastbound.

Over the next few months, Continental will hire staff for its ground operationsat Bristol. The exact number of positions to be filled has yet to be finalised.

The Bristol flights have been conveniently timed to connect at New York/Newark with an extensive network of service throughout the U.S.A., Canada and Latin America. Continental is the only major airline to operate a hub in the New York City metropolitan area * Newark Liberty International Airport. Located just 16 miles from downtown Manhattan, Liberty International offers the fastest surface transfer journeys to many parts of the city, including the AirTrain service to New York Penn Station in midtown Manhattan. One-way fares between Liberty International and New York Penn Station are $11.55 on NJ Transit and $23 on
Amtrak and journey time is less than 30 minutes.

Passengers arriving at Liberty International on Continental flights from Bristol will be able to use exclusive immigration and customs facilities in Terminal C3, Continental's Global Gateway, and connect quickly and easily with Continental's 407 daily services from Liberty International to 170 destinations throughout the Americas, including 143 served non-stop, in almost all cases without changing terminals

The new flights will feature Continental's renowned BusinessFirst service, which won the Best Executive/Business Class award in the OAG Airline of the Year Awards in both 2004 and 2003, based on voting by frequent flyers worldwide. BusinessFirst was also voted Best Transatlantic Business Class among U.S. airlines in Conde Nast Traveler magazine's Business Travel Awards 2003 * for the 6th year running.

This premium-class cabin features extra-wide electronic sleeper seats with 55 inch pitch/140-cm pitch, adjustable winged headrests and personal video screens. Other BusinessFirst amenities include gourmet menus and award-winning wines and champagnes.

Continental's complimentary door-to-door limousine transfer service for qualifying BusinessFirst customers features the most comprehensive geographic coverage in both the U.K. and the U.S.A. A specially selected and trained corps of more than 200 Concierges provides individualised pre-flight and post-flight services for BusinessFirst customers at 21 key international airports worldwide. Continental Airlines has been serving the U.K. since 1985 and flies non-stop across the Atlantic from more airports in the U.K. and Ireland than any other airline. In the U.K., the airline operates non-stop flights to New York/Newark from London/Gatwick and Birmingham (each twice daily) and Manchester, Glasgow and Edinburgh (each daily); to Houston from London/Gatwick (twice daily); and to Cleveland from London/Gatwick (daily, seasonal). In Ireland, the airline operates daily non-stop services to New York/Newark from both Dublin and Shannon (triangular routing in winter). In addition, Continental and Virgin Atlantic Airways codeshare on Virgin Atlantic-operated flights from London/Heathrow and London/Gatwick to several U.S. cities.


Continental's U.K. reservations number is 0845 60 767 60.



Just think you can walk up through BRS's departure lounge on to stand 1,2 or 3 and the next time you touch terra firmer youll be in the US. I know that sounds a bit sad but today is an exciting day for all involved at BIA.
:D :O :p :ok:

[Cyrano]

Flightmapping:

You were asking about the Scottish route development fund. The official "fund" is the Scottish Enterprise one, which is hard cash. I think the BAA £60m figure was calculated using the accountancy firm on which Ryanair regularly calls to get another "we've saved the consumer £xxx million" soundbite: it's calculated in terms of discounts off the notional landing-fee tariff, the equivalent of Recommended Retail Price, and about as realistic. Not sure, but they may also bundle things like free advertising into that number: "we'll give you this advertising hoarding free, and if you wanted to rent it normally we'd charge you £1000."

C

(but back to the main topic: well done to Bristol! But I'm curious as to the source of the article Buster posted: "AA wins the race..." Not the same paper that ran "Dewey beats Truman" all those years ago? ;)

[a bristolian]

Hello Mv.

Where have you been !!!

See we did it and it was ' Not if but when' and its 20 May 2005!!

BRS 1 the rest 0

[MerchantVenturer]

WWW

BRS has been fortunate with its top management. Right through the1980s and half way through the 1990s the man at the helm was the late Les Wilson, someone who lived and breathed Bristol Airport. His enthusiasm was unbounded and he had a nose for publicity and keeping the airport at least in the local limelight if not nationally very often. He was killed in a motoring accident in the mid 90s, a personal tragedy to his loved ones of course, but also a great loss to the airport. I am sure even he would be amazed at what the airport has achieved and, IMO, great credit goes to him for laying the foundations.

Fortunately, John Parkin (now at Newcastle) was then recruited to lead an umpressive team that included the current MD, Andrew Skipp.

I am sure the management recognises the fortunate situation they find themselves in with an airport right in the middle of one of the most vibrant business areas of the the country, coupled with a large wealthy population within its hinterland. As for the US service, the business and tourist links have already been mentioned in the press handout.

Neverthless, management has to work hard to take advantage of these plus points which have also to be taken in the context of a not ideally placed location, either in overall field size, surface links, weather, runway and being on the 'wrong' side of the Greater Bristol conurbation.

The West's business community has been demanding direct access to the USA for many years. It is now up to them to take advantage.

a bristolian,

I have been to Austria and returned today with Excel Air. What a friendly and helpful cabin crew we had today and I hadn't realised they (the cabin crew as opposed to the flight crew) were Bristol based.

I had just completed a post at the time you must have posted yours.

It is very good news and must be taken advantage of. 'Use it or lose it' is an old cry but never more apposite with this service. I think it will be used in great numbers.

[terrier21]

I must agree MV about the service being used in great numbers. It looks like the seats are selling fast. I was looking at booking a flight for my Birthday (23may) yesterday for myself and a few friends; cost was $437 today $637 and there are no severe drops in price for months following.

Looks like a trip to scotland with BACx and a couple of rounds of golf for my 22nd instead!!!;)