Is it true that Monarch are not scheduling any flights after November.

If so I would suggest that to avoid a complete termination of the service that any users of the Luton or Manchester to Gibraltar service, E Mail the company, and tell the cabin crew to log their concern, and also to tell all ticket staff that there do not support the removal.

Bumz

Flights are not bookable via their website after 31st October but perhaps they're still to be released. There has been no official announcement to say that GIB flights are being stopped. If they are, I cannot understand the reasoning behind it. I don't know about LTN but the MAN - GIB flights do very well indeed, all year round.

I flew Monarch to Gib last summer (July) - B757 and it was full!

I hope they dont cancel - love the place!!

A lot odf the scheduled airlines tend to release their Winter (or Sumer routes) at the same time. Normally Winter routes are released in June or July, so I would not worry too much about the route not yet showing.

Thing is though, ZB already have much of their winter schedule on sale already. All existing routes from MAN and LTN seem to be on sale up to March 2007 except for GIB. Thinking about this, they also seem to be expanding rather rapidly of late with many new routes being launced (BHX - MJV, LEI, PMI, MAH, ACE; MAN - MAH, ACE; LGW - ACE) without the addition of many extra aircraft. One additional A321 so far and so surely some routes have to give in order to make room, unless they bring in more capacity. MAN has already lost NAP and MAD in the last 6 months. I just hope ZB don't turn into another bmibaby, dropping routes to make way for newer 1s.

Dont forget Monarch can always reduce their charter work if they need extra capacity

As some of you have mentioned Monarch Scheduled have released their Winter 2006/7 schedules, but the website also mentions that there are more routes to be released soon, for the winter 2006/7 season, so we will have to wait and see.

Cheers.

Yeh, just noticed that. Hopefully GIB will be announced shortly then. Wonder what else will be announced for the winter? ZB seem to be going from strength to strength right now. I reckon in a few years there won't be much of their charter operation left. Just a handful of routes from LGW and MAN. Quite amazing how such a well established charter operator can transform itself into a low cost airline in such a short period of time. Good on them! I love the ZB product and long may it continue!

Low cost -- not really when I was comapring fare for MAN-ALC and having to sit it out on a charter aircraft configuration aint worth paying top dollar for......

Nice middle of the night flight times too......

Oh dear Jet A1, the old chestnut of charter seat config again. I suggest next time you are parked next to a Monarch aircraft downroute, you leap out of your shiny GB jet with a tape measure and actually measure the seat pitch!

And where exactly are these "middle of the night" flights? The latest I can find for the middle of August is a 15.55 departure compared with GB's offering of flying via LGW departing MAN at 16.15 and arriving into ALC at 23.55. That's nearly 8 hours! The return flight leaves ALC at 00.40 and you eventually arrive back into MAN at 07.40 (Check yourself, going out on 14th August and returning on 25th August),

Now prices, Monarch not cheap admittedly at £193.85 but GB takes the biscuit at £269.00.

I know which airline I would fly with!

Nice to see JetA1 keeping up with the latest developments. On most Monarch aircraft they have removed at least one row of seats to allow 6/7 rows of extra legroom seats at £15 a pop. 35 inches...better legroom than GB Club service and at a fraction of the cost. Good choice of flight times from MAN....I know who I choose to fly with. Keep flying GB, JetA1

Well I know that GIB has been rumeored to start from BHX, but this might happen next summer 2007.
Monarch Ailrines have expanded their BHX operation, due to MytravelLite ceasing operations. I have flew with ZB from BHX a few times, since they started operations, and their pax loads were always healthy and they also provide an excellent service.
So hopefully Monarch will expand further from BHX.
Three A321's will be based at BHX this Summer 2006.

Cheers.

The extra leg room seats up front are a very nice idea, however until pax actually use them the rear section is often very overcrowded.
Last ZB LTN-GIB the front was empty, and there was two or three empty seats in the aft.

What was the ramifications for weight and balance. ??????????????

Any ZB ops/ flight deck please comment.

I was fortunate to spend a day stuck down route with a ZB crew, and they had no information regarding dropping LTN-GIB.

Until I get my ZB Gold card status back (and thus free seat selection), I will continue to sit in the last but one row at the tail end.

Bumz

Care to expand on that? 2 on a seat?

"What was the ramifications for weight and balance. ??????????????"

It's hardly rocket science. We put more bags in the forward hold and less in the rear.

3 is....

Thanks re the freight in the forward hold.....

Bumz

Not looking good....
http://www.chronicle.gi/readarticle....ar%20Chronicle

Interesting that the Minister forgets that the Governments own greed in levying a £10 service charge for each departing passenger also has a role to play in this. The charged was increased by over 42% from 01Apr....it used to be £7. This plus the 8% followed by a proposed 25% increase by the MOD is just ridiculous. The equivalent charge from AGP is just over £4.
I wonder what sort of deal the government is prepared to offer Stelios if any?
They seem to want to screw the airlines and by extension the passengers for everything they can get but I bet the Minister will bend over backwards to try and get EasyJet/Cruise in.

The increase in landing fees are appropriate. For quite a considerable period of time (years) the MoD thus the UK Taxpayer - have been subsidising the Commercial operation at this MoD airfield. Due to the operations of Monarch and GibAirways, it is a requirement for MoD staff to be available to keep the airfield open - and this manpower can be expensive. Further the landing fees are within guidelines as published for civilian use of MoD airfields.

Nivsy, the simple economic reality mayby that these published guidelines will guide Monarch to stop operating into the rock...it makes no sense for a commercial operation to endanger its bottom line on the basis of a levy dictated to them and deemed "appropriate" by those who have a vested interest in saying so. Government/MOD etc...have a far from umblemished record of cost efficiency, perhaps it is "appropriate" for Monarch to take its business elsewhere?