Exeter to norwich

[flybeboy]

BBC radio devon say loganair to operate norwich to exeter route from march 1xdailey, ops by d328 suckling which loganair now own, also on exeter airport website

[GROUNDHOG]

Good luck Loganair, great to see a new route cross country.

[Cyrano]

The middle-of-the-day timings would suggest that the aircraft might be going to do something else from Norwich in the mornings and evenings. Replacing a Q400 on MAN or EDI, or launching something new?

[ALLMCC]

The news item I read also stated that Manchester would be going 3X daily from March 2012. Wonder if Flybe would ever consider reintroducing BHD to Norwich - it operated until a couple of years ago but loads were thin. It was operated with a Q400 but Loganairs' smaller aircraft might make it more sustainable - just wishful thinking but here's hoping!

[Barling Magna]

Well done Norwich. It is indeed great to see cross-England flights introduced by serious regional airlines.

Why don't flyBE run an Exeter to Southend service? Essex's population is more than twice that of Norfolk, with three quarters of a million within SEN's immediate catchment - and a certain world city is within fifty minutes train journey too.

I know that flyBE have said that they won't fly from Exeter to London because of the rail link, but SEN isn't London and it does have a viable catchment of its own. Its new terminal, extended runway and improved landing aids should make it an attractive destination for flyBE on routes too thin for EZY.......

[Devonair]

I also note Loganair will commence twice weekly NQY to NWI Weds and Sat for summer 2012

[Cyrano]

ATI has just confirmed that Loganair will be taking over the NWI-MAN route on behalf of flyBE, with the D328 3/day.

[looseheadprop]

Devonair - slight confusion. NWI-NQY will be flown by Flybe - it's not going to be operated by franchise partner Loganair.

[DB6]

Press Office :: Flying start at Norwich in 2012 - Loganair (http://www.loganair.co.uk/loganair/press-office/133/flying-start-at-norwich-in-2012)

[jabird]

This new route is surprising, and it bucks two trends - a declining domestic market, and a long suffering NWI.

My ancient geography rule says that given an otherwise level playing field, the volume of travel between two points is proportional to the combined population divided by the distance between them squared.

Neither Norwich nor Exeter have particularly large populations. The rail journey Exeter to London is fast, but add in a slow pre-xrail tube to Liverpool Street and a relatively slow service to Norwich, and the plane can offer an advantage in terms of convenience.

This route is operated using the D38, not the larger but less thirsty Q400, so I presume starter fares are not going to be bargain basement.

What are the business links between these two cities to generate the high yields I presume this route needs to survive?

[Devonair]

As this is an old Flybe route I imagine they have done their homework and believe it will be viable with a smaller plane. I believe it was economically viable with the Q400 prior to the APD rises. And as you said the land journey times between these two regions is dreadful as you have to go via the congested road/rail terminals around London.

Perhaps if you just take the population of Exeter and Norwich as stand alone cities it would not seem to make any sense re-introducing this route. Replace the city populations in your equation with Devon (pop. 1.1m) and Norfolk (pop. 900k) and it may make your figures look a bit better. :)

[yates]

What are the business links between these two cities to generate the high yields I presume this route needs to survive?

Aviva (formerly Norwich Union) used this route (which operated two or three times a week, usually with an E190) intensively when it used to be run by Flybe. The flight only ran because the aircraft was being positioned in to operate a "bums to the sun flight".
After they dropped it, NU continued to charter 15 - 20 seat aircraft several times a week to commute staff between the two locations.
Of course, there's no guarantee that Aviva would still provide the same number of passengers but there are several other strong business links between the two as well as the two being popular tourist destinations. Under Flybe's pricing policy, the return air fare will almost certainly be cheaper than the train.
The aircraft would otherwise be positioning to and from NWI/EXE to provide the NWI/MAN service, so it makes sense to put passengers on it.

[SWBKCB]

The aircraft would otherwise be positioning to and from NWI/EXE to provide the NWI/MAN service, so it makes sense to put passengers on it.

Is that right - thought it was going to be Norwich based?

[Flightrider]

Yates - NWI/EXT was never flown with the E190 - it was operated by Q400s initially from the Norwich base for as long as that lasted, and then by Exeter-based Q400s when the Norwich base closed. As soon as the Norwich base closed, there was no reason to operate it for positioning of aircraft or anything of the sort - it was run as a proper commercial service. The new operation is using a Norwich-based Dornier 328 so again there's no reason for it to "position" from Exeter to operate the Norwich-Manchester services. Not sure where you're getting your info from, but it ain't accurate!