what's the latest on FREE SPIRIT ?
 

think they've launched MEB/MIM

check the AFAP jobs web sight today!

Heard a rumour all the staff walked out. Thus the latest 'recruitment' drive.

According to flightaware, their plane hasn't left Essendon since the 24th May.

If the plane ain't full the flight gets cancelled. RPT=Random Public Transport

At least he's having a crack

The last Advertising in the local Advocate Newspaper was on
Thursday 21st May.

"Buy 2 get one free sale! Burnie to Melbourne 3 fly for the price of 2"

I still hope FSA do well. Sometimes I feel they should have started operations in Summer, more passengers in the warmer weather.

I was disappointed with the Mods locking my Thread,
after 120 posts & up to 37862 Views:rolleyes:

Regards R W

could flight aware be wrong in this case ?

1) A little birdy tells me a second 1900 is about to ferry out to YMEN to start Merimbula

2) Interesting to see that this months flying has been cancelled (can still book next month)

Can only wish to best of luck, some loads have been getting 12 pax. Where is all the marketing?

From ABC

An airline planning to begin flights to the New South Wales far south coast has hit a setback.

The founder of Free Spirit Airlines, Roman Badov, said he'd delayed the beginning of flights servicing Merimbula because a competitor poached his operating crew.

Mr Badov didn't name the other airline that he said caused the setback.

But said he believed the other company lured his staff away out of fear of competition.

"Unfortunately, unscrupulous acts are commonplace in the aviation industry," Mr Badov said in a statement.

"In recent days our operating crew has been poached by another operator, we suspect in retaliation of their reduced passenger numbers as a result of Free Spirit Airlines commencing operations."

Mr Badov said the company now planned to begin offering three flights a week from Melbourne's Essendon Airport to the far south coast from next month.

"We are implementing disruption management in order to minimise impact and inconvenience to our customers," he said.

Free Spirit Airlines already operates a service between Melbourne and Tasmania.

"Our most recent passenger loads support that our business model works and there is much demand for an alternative service such as offered by our airline," Mr Badov said.

Does he actually expect people to believe that ****? I'll have some of whatever he's smoking, thanks.:rolleyes:

What a load of rubbish. A case of the pot calling the kettle black. The whole reason Roman and his disgruntled ex-Rex cohorts started their venture was out of spite (not spirit).
And as far as the loads of 12, the last I heard the highest was 11 out (but 0 in) with the previous best 9 (again with 0 the other way). Funnily enough these occurred on days when Rex's loads were near capacity over all flights for the day (i.e. 30 plus pax).

the silly thing is, if Roman gave away every empty seat to Rex regulars (unbeknown to media) everyone would be saying, how well he's doing.


Are both aircraft 1900 C's or is one D model with extra headroom ?

Burnie Grounded

Burnie airline grounded | The Advocate

I remember REX using a similar argument a few years ago when VB were expanding.

I think the Rex comments were in relation to a general crew shortage, which they blamed on the majors' recruiting - not direct competitors.
Roman continues to make this venture personal, making it sound as if Rex henchmen drugged, gagged and dragged his crew out their flight deck, brainwashed them A Clockwork Orange style, all just to undermine his operation. I imagine if they left it was probably to due to other reasons.

Free Spirit Airlines, Faping exsesively?
 

Quick question, why is this organisation on the AFAP job site so often ? Are they hiring lots or are they having trouble finding the right candidates?

The 1900 has seen a but of service in Australia, perhaps not as much since the impulse days but still quite a few running around Queensland with the police and westwing. Surely there's a few qualified guys and girls out there.

Is there something wrong with the terms and conditions ?

The Free Spirit website says flights are operated by West Wing Aviation. This would suggest the aircraft and pilots are supplied by West Wing. I suspect the original capital for the operation has been spent.

Is the B1900C at Essendon ?

Perhaps all the qualified guys and gals out there are in employment and happy where they are !

I think you'd either be brave or desperate to leave a job to work for Free Spirit. Best of luck to them, but if you're shutting up shop for a few weeks because all your crew left, there's something wrong.

I do not believe Free Spirit had any crew to leave !.

B772 your belief system is flawed, I found another thread on prune here that suggests they all left. ( conspiracies suggesting they were poached by another airline)

http://www.pprune.org/australia-new-...ee-spirit.html

The plot thickens....

I am given to understand that WW provide AOC Coverage and Check and training for FSA's pilots.

They do the same for Schlongair and a couple of others.

From ABC

Rex slams new competitor service to Merimbula - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

Regional Express has hit back at claims it poached crewmembers from a competitor planning to service the New South Wales far south coast.
Free Spirit Airlines says it delayed the beginning of flights between Merimbula and Melbourne until July because a competitor has poached its operating crew.
Founder, Roman Badov, called the move "unscrupulous" and said the other airline feared competition.
A spokeswoman for Regional Express said they hadn't poached anyone.
"One of our subsidiaries, Air Link, has offered employment to a pilot who originally applied to fly for FSA but who changed his mind before commencing with FSA," she said.
"(He) approached Air Link more than three weeks ago of his own accord."
She also said it was "absurd" to think Free Spirit could pose a competitive threat to Rex.
"FSA in May ... had 56 flights scheduled which carried about 126 passengers, making an average of 2.25 passengers per scheduled flight," she said.
"Of these 56 scheduled flights, it cancelled about 28 of them.
"We advise all FSA stakeholders to draw their own conclusions from these statistics."

So in May the average passenger load was 4.5 passengers. Goodnight Irene !

http://www.theadvocate.com.au/story/3124279/free-spirit-airline-hits-out-at-rex/?cs=87

Looks like Roman can't help himself.

Koizi's post

Free Spirit Airline hits out at Rex | The Advocate

A NEW Burnie-Melbourne airline has accused established carrier Regional Express of "fabricating" numbers in an attempt to maintain a monopoly.

Free Spirit Airlines is grounded, claiming its operating crew was "poached".
Regional Express (Rex) fired up on Tuesday over the poaching claims made by Free Spirit boss Roman Badov, who did not specifically name Rex.
Rex told The Advocate Free Spirit had cancelled about 28 of 56 scheduled flights in May, and had carried only about 126 passengers, at an average of 2.25 passengers per scheduled flight.
Mr Badov fired back yesterday.
He said the flight schedules, passenger numbers and cancellations claimed by Rex were "total fabrication in their attempt to maintain a monopolistic enterprise".He said Free Spirit looked forward to re-starting operations with fresh crew and "to once again offer North-Western Tasmanian residents a cost effective travel solution".
According to the ABC, Free Spirit had delayed starting services to Merimbula in New South Wales, citing the "poaching" of a crew.
Mr Badov told the ABC he believed an unnamed company had lured his staff for fear of competition.



Rex also flies into Merimbula.

Not looking good.

A great deal of advertising and numerous offers of cheaper fares down to 50% of the lead in published fares don't make up for a minus 30 day lead time.

Poor planning may be the devil here BUT Wynyard to Essendon with taxi availability uncertain on arrival or a trip back to Tulla to get the bus is about as inviting as pulling hair out of you nose.

If Roman disputes the figures in the media, post the "accurate" ones and a verifiable record of what flights operated and what flights were cancelled with what lead time.

If Rex is the devil here, what would you expect them to do? Throw bouquets? They are a commercial operation and must move to protect against potemtial threats.

Cancellations en masse caused the early demise of Bizjets MEL DPO services mostly caused by extended unserviceabilities on the Metro including engine fires. They were allegedly supplied the operating parameters for an engine option they weren't supplied with.

The multiple cancellations led to a withdrawal of passenger support and that is all she wrote.

We alleged Travel professionals would be shying away from any operation that is unreliable. I did state in the previous thread that the lead time was far too short. Unfortunately that appears to be the case. With the local media coverage of the suspension of services I can't see any future for them, more is the pity.

I still have had not one enquiry from the normally annoyingly vocal punters at the DPO RSL regarding FSA's half price offer. Another good indicator that their offers have fallen on deaf ears and unusual.

Secondary operator are not new on the Coast as Aus Air ran a very nice service from DPO to MBW which I have used myself on both the Bandit and the Navajo. Lovely service and arriving in the South East was excellent. It was well used but I believe other operations/factors brought that down.

Maybe Moorabbin would have been a better idea. That is basing out of a high disposable income area and would be more likely to draw traffic as that is the side of town most my Melbourne clients are heading for.

Good luck Roman, but I see the master caution flashing.

Best all

EWL

+ 1 have to agree with you Loco
Maybe Roman Should have called the Airline SFA & not FSA
Two words Sweet & All
Regards R W

It might have worked if he had run Essendon-Strahan, and tapped into the west coast for the wilderness tourist market(Abt rail and the Gordon river cruises).

Did anyone get sucked into the "cadet" program?

Piss Poor Planning leads to Piss Poor performance...

Dynabolt

Stationair

SRH is a decent destination but the problem is the cost to get the info to your market as in everything. Extremely hard to do at a very high cost. The green market is also flukey. Threaten to dam the Gordon again and you would need a widebody service to carry the chinless wonders in and out.

It would be a once a week destination in warmer months and SRH has rain about 300 days a year.

If it was viable Sharp or others would already be on it.

Best regards

EWL

Gees, this bloke must have a lot of coin?

He's making a small fortune in Aviation ;)

Judging by the amount of times they have advertised the 1900 rating seems mandatory!

No 1900 rating required, just a willingness to get shafted and $16K for the rating!

Anyone silly enough to pay 16k for a rating on a Fugly King Air on the promise of a job with an unproven start up deserves to be shafted. Charles Darwin says so.
Employers who can lease multi million dollar aircraft but snivel on a few hours training costs at DOC (or simulator) give me the Sh!ts.
Do CASA people check if there is an adequate training budget for start ups and when auditing for AOC renewals?
I am not saying that this mob is under funded, because none of us really know how it is being financed, or why. But plenty in the business can not or will not spend money on initial or recurrent training. The sooner those guys go to the wall the better for those that do it right.

If it is a pay-for-rating deal, contrast this with the recent Air Taxi Vanuatu advert on AFAP where the Chief Pilot says "Please do not offer to work for free, pay for a type rating or sweep the hangar floor...."

...ahhh but can they actually afford to lease the aeroplane when they embark on these amazing adventures? :confused:

Leafy that is the mystery. Surely leasing companies do due diligence before handing over the keys to an aeroplane worth several million.
Or times are desperate in the leasing business perhaps?

I expect the fat lady to start clearing her throat any second now.