Isle Of Wight Airways

[Frogga]

Just read that this company has had an Islander registered to them. Does anyone have any information about them? Is it the same company that failed using the Navajo from Sandown to London City?

Andrew

[Jinkster]

I remember reading this a few years ago in Flight International Airline Directory - do a search. I tried to find out some info a year or so ago with not much luck!

Understand it was something to do with taking sailing crews to Island during Cowes week.

[niknak]

or the same company that was going to fly from Cambridge to Oxford, using a PA31 then a Jetstream JS31 then the other routes mentioned....... Lot's of yukspeak, lots of bulls*it, no idea of the real aviation world..Walter Mittey comes to mind...

[Fried_Chicken]

the BN2 is G-IOWA which is reg'd to IOW Aviation at Sandown

Any plans to introduce a 'hard' runway at Sandown?

FC

[we_never_change]

I see IOWA are looking at a Sandown - Southampton or Bournemouth route using the Islander. Doubt they'd compete with the Ferry though. I understand Shoreham may also feature in their plans.

Presumably they won't pick LCY again when they restart to London

WNC

[Jamesair]

According to the Sunday Times, Wight Airlines hope to start flying to LCY this spring. There is a website apparently.

The routes are Sandown to LCY and Sandown to Guernsey. The flights operate three days a week at varying frequencies.

[Guern]

LCY in an Islander!!!!

No thanks

[GBALU53]

Why not an Islander, as you must know the third islander off the production line is being rebuilt the good old G-AVCN, who operated this aircraft for some time? yes you got it in one Aurigny.

A company has to start somewhere.

The single engine climb speed 60knots which is the London speed limit and you would get cars keeping pace with it if the aircraft lost an engine just after take off but there are no close motor ways for cars to be doing that speed.

Westward airways operated an Islander between Gatwick and Heatrow so we must give them a least a fighting chance to make it work.

[Guern]

Sanddown to LCY in an Islander wouldn't be my idea of fun!

Islanders & Trislanders are great for short inter channel Island flights (15mins) or across to France from Channel Islands but Sandown to LCY has to be about 1.25hrs!

Also I don't belive that the Islander is authorised for LCY see here

http://www.lcacc.org/aircraft/index.html#Approval

[GBALU53]

Well Guern

Where do you get the idea that it will take so long to the City I do not know In a direct line it is less than a Trislander operating the Alderney to Southampton or even the Alderney to Shoreham in a Trislander or an Islander.

You must give the company a chance the Isle of White after all is an Island a little bigger the Alderney.

The residence of I.O.W i would think are similar to the Alderney people it is quicker by air if you can go by air other wise it can be long by car, boat and then train.

This would be the only Londo airport that would let piston commercial flying on a regular basis.

You showed the London City approved aircraft are these the one that operate on a schedule basis as i do knwo the Piper Navajo has been operating in and out of there on a regualr basis.:ok:

[Guern]

I got the idea that it would take that long from the website advertising the Navajo and how long they said it would take 1hr and compared cruising speeds.

I was just adding to the discussion not trying to start an argument!

[GBALU53]

Argument not taken

The flight times might be chock to chock with some airlines which this is not one yet you could take off at least twenty minutes so that would bring the isle of white to london city to one hour and five minutes.

Well you would have to allow for vectoring by thames radar for the inbound so that could be something like ten minutes.

So to sum it up ten minute taxi time at both ends and a ten minute thames radar vectoring with a flight time of thirty to thirty five minutes it would give a time of one hour five.

Does this look more like it.

[Guern]

Fair enough I was just etimating based on the estimated flight time they gave for the other aircraft.

Have Islanders operated into LCY before?

[StbdD]

"The fledgling airline service between the Island and London City Airport will be airborne again this spring, the Isle of Wight Country Press reports.

The grass runway at Isle of Wight Airport, Sandown, has been extended so the Piper Chieftain aircraft can resume its twice-daily flights to London and Wight Airlines now has a second aircraft, a Britten-Norman Islander, as a back-up. Difficulties were caused in the past because the airline did not have its own air operator's certificate but it is hoped this will be in place before the regular flights resume in April or May too.

The flights to London are expected to cost £75 for standby and £94.36 for a pre-booked single flight. The service will run until October 31, when the Isle of Wight Airport will close for four months for a hard surface runway to be built. 'As soon as that is ready, we will resume service 52 weeks a year,' a spokesman for Wight Airlines said.

Additional routes are also being planned, including a 13-minute hop to Bournemouth and a 9-minute hop to Southampton - with the promise that these flights will cost little more than a ferry and taxi."

From a London City Airport website 14/01/07.

[Wellington Bomber]

By the way London City have doubled landing fees to smaller aircraft to encourage larger aircraft in the region of 100 seats, the seat costs on an islander would be humongous to make it wothwhile

[Dysonsphere]

Isle of Wight Airport will close for four months for a hard surface runway to be built. 'As soon as that is ready, we will resume service 52 weeks a year,' a spokesman for Wight Airlines said.


Er when did Sandown get planning permission for a hard runway was there in the summer and was no mention

[PPRuNe Pop]

See here:

http://www.solent.tv/pageviewer.aspx?page=S632921163672395000

Read what the story says. There are, apparently, skeletons in the cupboard and the defunct lot at Blackpool who own the licence has had it pulled.

[Frogga]

This is the Old airline that was established last summer with the Navajo. There is a new set-up now that are hoping to operate an Islander on the same routes. Is this going to be another failure?

[captainyonder]

It's the same airline and even the same aircraft, they've just got themselves an AOC for the restart this time. The Islander is owned by Sandown Airport and is being made available as a backup. It will be interesting to see how this one pans out. There is potential on the IOW but whether this lot will realise any of it with the extremely high fares they offered last time is yet to be seen.

With LCY putting up their fees for smaller aircraft the timing doesn't seem great.

[Fried_Chicken]

If LCY does get a bit "pricey" for them, where else would they go? Stapleford, Elstree or maybe Biggin, all with decent transport links (or a taxi ride) to the Capital.

If SE-IFR ever gets sorted, a Cessna 208 maybe a useful purchase, especially on routes to Southampton & Bournemouth. maybe Lydd/Manston & Shoreham (the latter having a rail link [to London & Gatwick])

FC

[Yak97]

Biggin is a no-no for scheduled services, as Blue Islands found out (NIMBY rules).

Don't think Staplefor or Elstree would really be acceptable for scheduled services?

Gatwick or a quick hop across the water to SOU? Whats the ferry trip like? Don't they have a hovercraft operating to the IOW?

[virginblue]

Even with a full load of 9 pax in and out of LCY, the fixed costs just in landing fees at LCY at peak times will be 39 GBP for each passenger (flat fee of 700 GBP at LCY - be it an islander or an RJ100). Add to that the passenger charges quoted by LCY and you will find out that almost 60 GBP per pax need to be paid before the engine of a full plane has made a single turn. :=

[bunnywabbit]

City wont let them in befor 10am and they have to be out at 4pm rumour has it they are not going to bother this year.

[Fried_Chicken]

With LCY out of the equation & obviously BQH,LGW & LHR a no-no. Does anybody know if they've looked at other options (LTN & STN are also probably too expensive/lack of slots). Presumably they may have to operate these flights as private flights if they want access to London & operate into one of the GA fields (Farnborough, Elstree, Stapleford or Biggin, the latter OK as it's a private flight.)

Any updtaes as to the potential SOU & BOH routes?

Fried Chicken

[ifonly]

If they operate as private flights how can they ofer the seats for sale ?
I would have thought Southend may be a better option than Elstree or Stapleford - Navaids, terminal, reasonalbe weather record,relatively close train into the city.

[GBALU53]

Well how about Stapleford and the Lambourne VOR is there not a connection here?
Just round the corner after landing down a little road and what do you find the road to no where yes the M25 ring road.
So an airfield with a let down aid with the M25 near by is this a good thing for the business person or not?:ok:

[Gulf Julliet Papa]

there is no official instrument approach into Stapleford so would have to be VMC operations only.

The M25 may be close...but its actaully down the road and under the m25 around some more roads before getting there...usually about 20mins from Stapleford - M25