Hop Airways - AGAIN???

[thefareguru]

I subscribe to an Italian [which I can't read] travel agent's newsletter and it says today that Hop is 'on' again. It also mentions Spirit of Balkan.

First the Italian, then the Google, then the link:

Continua l'impressionante serie di annunci di nuove compagnie low cost. Se la Hop Airways doveva prendere il via già a fine anno con una flotta di Atr72 per voli domestici dall'aeroporto britannico di Exeter, nel 2005 è previsto il via alle operazioni della prima low cost bosniaca, la Spirit of Balkan. Con base a Banja Luka, il vettore ha in programma collegamenti dalla sua base e da Sarajevo con Niedreheim e Stoccarda in Germania e con Istanbul in Turchia

The impressive continues announcement series of new companies low cost. If the Hop Airways had to already take to the way to year-end with a fleet of Atr72 for domestic flights from the British airport of Exeter, in 2005 the way to the operations of the before low cost Bosnian one, the Spirit of Balkan is previewed. With base to Banja Luka, the carrier has in program connections from its base and Sarajevo with Niedreheim and Stoccarda in Germany and Istanbul in Turkey.

http://www.ttgitalia.com/newsletter/news_dettaglio.asp?IDNews=36917

Can anyone help with more info, better translation, or even some syntax?

[jabird]

http://www.scanair.no/newarrivals/hop.htm

Has a bit of info, but can't see any other website for them on Google yet.

Just like now became never, will hop become no hope? Stupid names are so eary to ridicule, but so are stupid business plans.

Which destination has a market for 10 daily rotations from Cambridge as the above suggests? Even if they do build a business based on a lower cost per seat than Ryanair, will they really be able to gain the sort of ancillary revenues MOLs team have built up? You seem to need both these days for long term viability in the lo-co market. Business passengers need the frequency, which can take years to build up.

I don't see Flybe taking too kindly to attempts to move in on their Exeter patch, but again they already have most of the viable routes served with their Q400s. Just exactly where would Hop hop to from EXT, apart from perhaps their suggested "base" at Cambridge (how big is that market?), and maybe an LCY run, where they'd have hefty entry costs and two rail routes to compete with. What cost savings, or other market advantages, would they have going up against the well established Flybe, who's Q400s must surely offer at least the same operational characteristics of Hop's ATR 72s, if not better?

[thefareguru]

Yes, that's old info...whose time has come and gone. I had thought that the project was dead until today when I saw the above article. But I've seen no corroboration yet, and would expect to see it on this basically British board, if anywhere. So until someone has something fresh, from England, I have to wonder where Travel Trade Gazette [Italia] got this.