Oban/Glenforsa News
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It seems Highland Airways will be reducing capacity on the Oban-Coll/Colonsay service in the winter timetable. The latest AIP update, valid from 23 October, changes the Coll and Colonsay opening hours so that both are open only on Tuesdays and Thursdays, with Colonsay open earlier and later than Coll. This suggests that they plan to do Oban-Colonsay(-Tiree?)-Coll-Oban in the morning, then Oban-Coll(-Tiree?)-Colonsay-Oban in the afternoon. If that's the case then they clearly think they're never going to have more than 8 pax for all three islands in total, including any inter-island pax.
Also interesting that Colonsay's promulgated as not opening till 1600 in winter, but Oban will close at "1630 or sunset whichever is earlier". So assuming the Islander arrives at Colonsay from Coll at 1605, departs at 1620, it gets to Oban at 1645 - airport closed, unless special arrangements have been made. But given that the sole purpose of licensing any of these airfields was for the scheduled service, why promulgate opening hours which can't accommodate that schedule and require special arrangements to be made?
Also strange that they plan to close at sunset rather than official night. Even stranger that they seem to be planning a winter schedule which will be impossible to fly for much of the winter because of daylight considerations.
NS
Also interesting that Colonsay's promulgated as not opening till 1600 in winter, but Oban will close at "1630 or sunset whichever is earlier". So assuming the Islander arrives at Colonsay from Coll at 1605, departs at 1620, it gets to Oban at 1645 - airport closed, unless special arrangements have been made. But given that the sole purpose of licensing any of these airfields was for the scheduled service, why promulgate opening hours which can't accommodate that schedule and require special arrangements to be made?
Also strange that they plan to close at sunset rather than official night. Even stranger that they seem to be planning a winter schedule which will be impossible to fly for much of the winter because of daylight considerations.
NS
Better red than ...
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I was on Colonsay for two weeks during August and the airfield was 'very quiet' all round.
Here are some pictures of the HA service departing, which I captured from the front seat of my trusty bike early one morning. I don't think anybody got on board (bar the crew). More fire crew available for the Islander than for Citation or King Air departures from Gamston.
**Nice pics but they are way to big. If you put them on Photobucket first it will resize them for you to a more pleasing size..**
In contrast Islay was positively heaving and the airport manager & team should be congratulated on the pristine nature of the airfield (although watch out for the 'snakes in the terminal' (
)
On the one occasion I landed on the airfield at Colonsay, there was a chap walking his dogs on the runway. The dogs, at least, were unphased even if the pilot was not ....
Here are some pictures of the HA service departing, which I captured from the front seat of my trusty bike early one morning. I don't think anybody got on board (bar the crew). More fire crew available for the Islander than for Citation or King Air departures from Gamston.
**Nice pics but they are way to big. If you put them on Photobucket first it will resize them for you to a more pleasing size..**
In contrast Islay was positively heaving and the airport manager & team should be congratulated on the pristine nature of the airfield (although watch out for the 'snakes in the terminal' (
)On the one occasion I landed on the airfield at Colonsay, there was a chap walking his dogs on the runway. The dogs, at least, were unphased even if the pilot was not ....
Last edited by BRL; 9th Sep 2008 at 11:44.
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I was at Islay last week and I would echo your thoughts about the airport. Excellent little facility, and a friendly place to boot. I'd forgotten to PPR (scatter brain) but a quick apology on the radio dealt with this. Friendly island altogether come to that. No snakes around the terminal though, boo hoo.
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IL sits forlornly on the apron
If that's the case then they clearly think they're never going to have more than 8 pax for all three islands in total, including any inter-island pax.
GS
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Originally Posted by Quilmes
rtz,
Looks the boss-guy from the UK-wide Federation of Small Businesses is starting to prod Argyll & Bute Council a bit about North Connel;
Challenge over Oban Airport upgrade costs - Press & Journal
Looks the boss-guy from the UK-wide Federation of Small Businesses is starting to prod Argyll & Bute Council a bit about North Connel;
Challenge over Oban Airport upgrade costs - Press & Journal
They might not have to come any further north.
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Oban Loony Toons
Maybe they should stop on their way up to Scotland, maybe a good starting point would be somewhere near Coventry.
Anyhoo, life continues as normal in Argyll.
WW
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Oban airfield squatter
I hear the airfield SQUATTER has been moved on from his free lodgings at the airfield.!!!!
Well done the campainers. Thanks A.B.C!!!!
Seems he never had all the clout he thought he had.!!!
I would say just another nail in the box .
CF
Well done the campainers. Thanks A.B.C!!!!
Seems he never had all the clout he thought he had.!!!
I would say just another nail in the box .
CF
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Oban Loony Toons
Apparently, one of the few at Oban who threw their lot in with Peter Jackson, took advantage of their temporary favored status to (alledgedly) install a mobile passion wagon on the airport.
They have now been evicted.
Much glee ensued.
WW
They have now been evicted.
Much glee ensued.
WW
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A while ago I said:
Well, very peculiar, the Highland Airways timetable continues to show Coll services being operated on Mondays and Wednesdays and the Colonsay service on Tues and Thurs. So as we have it at the moment, services to Coll will be illegal from 23 October because they will be operating from an airfield which isn't licensed at the time the aircraft lands. All a bit silly really, it surely can't be that hard to co-ordinate licensing hours with scheduled service hours.
NS
It seems Highland Airways will be reducing capacity on the Oban-Coll/Colonsay service in the winter timetable. The latest AIP update, valid from 23 October, changes the Coll and Colonsay opening hours so that both are open only on Tuesdays and Thursdays, with Colonsay open earlier and later than Coll.
NS
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On looking closer at the relevant page http://www.nats-uk.ead-it.com/aip/cu...nd28/6A000.pdf you'll see that the hours mentioned in para AD 2.3 for operating hours are inconsistant with those for comms AD 2.18
It looks rather like NATS have got summer and winter mixed up because comms shows open at 15:00 and closed 16:30!
Still, we await the winter timetable and concurrent announcment of the schedule reduction. I wonder if anyone noticed that they were on strike yesterday (up the workers
).
GS
BTW isn't it rather bizarre that Colonsay and Coventry are juxtaposed in the notice?
It looks rather like NATS have got summer and winter mixed up because comms shows open at 15:00 and closed 16:30!
Still, we await the winter timetable and concurrent announcment of the schedule reduction. I wonder if anyone noticed that they were on strike yesterday (up the workers
).GS
BTW isn't it rather bizarre that Colonsay and Coventry are juxtaposed in the notice?
Last edited by Gelande Strasse; 25th Sep 2008 at 18:09. Reason: added more to the message
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Dear Captain WW
This thread has got to be re-
worked as a script for a TV show, there is more drama in the Western Isles Aviation than in all the crappy soaps on TV.
Priceless!
worked as a script for a TV show, there is more drama in the Western Isles Aviation than in all the crappy soaps on TV.Priceless!
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Colonsay Update
From the Colonsay Corncrake.
THE AERODROME IS NOW OPEN!
Yes, yes, we know you know that our new aerodrome opened for business a few weeks back. But it hadn't been opened officially! And that just won't do, will it?
And so, on Friday last, more officials than you could shake a stick at appeared at the aerodrome to pat one another on the back and to declare that the aerodrome was now OFFICIALLY open!
Formalities over, the mass of officialdom then retired to The Colonsay to nail the lie that there is no such thing as a free lunch. A good time, we believe, was had by all, despite some heckling from the Colonsay public, unhappy that the much-trumpeted promise of our schoolkids getting home each weekend has already been broken. But that's a story for another Corncrake, and we believe that our new Editor-in-waiting will report on this travesty in an early Issue.
WW
THE AERODROME IS NOW OPEN!
Yes, yes, we know you know that our new aerodrome opened for business a few weeks back. But it hadn't been opened officially! And that just won't do, will it?
And so, on Friday last, more officials than you could shake a stick at appeared at the aerodrome to pat one another on the back and to declare that the aerodrome was now OFFICIALLY open!
Formalities over, the mass of officialdom then retired to The Colonsay to nail the lie that there is no such thing as a free lunch. A good time, we believe, was had by all, despite some heckling from the Colonsay public, unhappy that the much-trumpeted promise of our schoolkids getting home each weekend has already been broken. But that's a story for another Corncrake, and we believe that our new Editor-in-waiting will report on this travesty in an early Issue.
WW
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I told you so
Having recently made a trip using runways at Oban, Coll and Tiree, I have to tell all those doubters and pessimists how good it all is there. Facilities are excellenta and the new runways are a joy to fly from.
Definately a job well done by the council and thank goodness that they took little or no notice from those that use this forum.
Definately a job well done by the council and thank goodness that they took little or no notice from those that use this forum.
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Oban Loony Toons
Definately a job well done by the council and thank goodness that they took little or no notice from those that use this forum.
or for that matter, the people who pay their wages!
I take it from your address, that you are not one of the rate payers of Argyll who have to live with the consequences of this ego driven clusterf**k.
WW
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Ah, wonderful, on the third attempt to get the opening hours for Coll and Colonsay right they've now (November edition of AIP) decided that having Coll licensed on the same day that the schedules operate is a good idea after all.
Meanwhile on the traffic front, 50 pax were carried between Oban and Tiree in Sept compared to 56 in August.
NS
Meanwhile on the traffic front, 50 pax were carried between Oban and Tiree in Sept compared to 56 in August.
NS
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From the Press & Journal
Plane’s wasted trip because pupils not told of arrival
unscheduled flight to Colonsay returned empty because no one knew it was coming
Published: 05/11/2008
A council sent a subsidised plane on a wasted journey to the Hebrides after failing to tell its intended passengers when it was to arrive.
The flight went to Colonsay, before returning to Oban Airport empty.
It was sent by Argyll and Bute Council with the intention of collecting island pupils who attend Oban High School, who had been home for the October holidays. But the council did not tell parents, or pupils, about the unscheduled flight.
The cancellation of a scholar flight to pick up children from Coll, because there were no takers, saw untimetabled arrangements made to run the one-off extra flight to Colonsay.
But Colonsay parent Seumas McNeill, whose daughter Caitlin, 15, and son Liam, 12, attend Oban High School, said: “We got a phone call about 3pm on the Sunday from the guy who works at the airport asking if we knew about a plane that had been organised to pick up our kids, and we said we didn’t.
“He said the plane was on its way, but I have a print-out of when to be expecting our children to go backwards and forwards on the plane and it isn't due until this Saturday morning.
“It only takes 20 minutes to get to the island, so there was no way we could get the children organised. My son was expecting to go back to Oban on the ferry the next day.”
He said the parents of the other three high school children who were home on the island at the time had been in the same position and the plane was sent back to Oban empty.
Mr McNeill said Colonsay was not getting a fair deal as the 20 high school children living on Coll get three return school flights a month, whereas Colonsay's seven pupils get only one.
Councillor Robin Currie, who represents Colonsay, said: “I think it's stupidity to send a plane out empty. If there is nobody actually booked on a plane it shouldn't go.”
A spokeswoman for Argyll and Bute Council said: “There was a misunderstanding and measures will be put in place to ensure that this does not happen again.
“The scholar flights have been very successful since they started three months ago.
“And the council remains committed to ensuring that children from Coll and Colonsay who attend Oban High School can continue to use this service and travel home more frequently during term time.”
Plane’s wasted trip because pupils not told of arrival
unscheduled flight to Colonsay returned empty because no one knew it was coming
Published: 05/11/2008
A council sent a subsidised plane on a wasted journey to the Hebrides after failing to tell its intended passengers when it was to arrive.
The flight went to Colonsay, before returning to Oban Airport empty.
It was sent by Argyll and Bute Council with the intention of collecting island pupils who attend Oban High School, who had been home for the October holidays. But the council did not tell parents, or pupils, about the unscheduled flight.
The cancellation of a scholar flight to pick up children from Coll, because there were no takers, saw untimetabled arrangements made to run the one-off extra flight to Colonsay.
But Colonsay parent Seumas McNeill, whose daughter Caitlin, 15, and son Liam, 12, attend Oban High School, said: “We got a phone call about 3pm on the Sunday from the guy who works at the airport asking if we knew about a plane that had been organised to pick up our kids, and we said we didn’t.
“He said the plane was on its way, but I have a print-out of when to be expecting our children to go backwards and forwards on the plane and it isn't due until this Saturday morning.
“It only takes 20 minutes to get to the island, so there was no way we could get the children organised. My son was expecting to go back to Oban on the ferry the next day.”
He said the parents of the other three high school children who were home on the island at the time had been in the same position and the plane was sent back to Oban empty.
Mr McNeill said Colonsay was not getting a fair deal as the 20 high school children living on Coll get three return school flights a month, whereas Colonsay's seven pupils get only one.
Councillor Robin Currie, who represents Colonsay, said: “I think it's stupidity to send a plane out empty. If there is nobody actually booked on a plane it shouldn't go.”
A spokeswoman for Argyll and Bute Council said: “There was a misunderstanding and measures will be put in place to ensure that this does not happen again.
“The scholar flights have been very successful since they started three months ago.
“And the council remains committed to ensuring that children from Coll and Colonsay who attend Oban High School can continue to use this service and travel home more frequently during term time.”
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I'm surprised no one mentioned this report from The Scotsman;
Empty flights cost taxpayers £300 per seat
Published Date: 12 October 2008
By David Leask
TAXPAYERS are being forced to pay out more than £300 a seat for air routes with almost no passengers and "zilch" economic benefits, Scotland on Sunday can reveal.
So few people have booked on Argyll Air Services that 27 flights were cancelled in July and August because there were no passengers. Yet the local authority behind the airport scheme still has to pay over £30,000 a month to the airline running the services, whether the flights take off or not.
The payments come on top of an £8.9m upgrade of Oban Airport and its satellite airfields on the islands of Coll and Colonsay.
Argyll business leaders are angry about the cost of the scheme, especially when ferry, road and rail links are also in desperate need of investment.
Stewart Farmer, of the Federation of Small Businesses, yesterday attacked the spending and said: "The economic benefits from this project appears to be zilch."
Figures obtained by Scotland on Sunday show uptake from islanders and people wishing to visit the islands has been very slow. An average of 135 passengers were carried to or from Coll and Tiree a month in July and August. The figure for Colonsay was even lower, at 65. That indicates only around one in four possible tickets were sold and compares with 1,000 passengers flying between Tiree and Glasgow in July.
Basil O'Fee, the managing director of Highland Airways, which operates the flights, admitted demand had been inconsistent. "The numbers have been clumpy," he said. "One day you will get a whole group going and the next day there won't be anybody."
But O'Fee believes that, with better advertising, next summer's results will be improved. "The pre-marketing wasn't very strong," he said.
Argyll and Bute Council declined to say how much they were paying Highland Airways, citing commercial confidentiality. Sources, however, insisted the figure was more than £30,000 a month.
Senior figures in the council, including its former leader Allan Macaskill, believed Oban Airport could turn into the Newquay of the north, providing direct services to Glasgow, Edinburgh and even the continent.
Critics argue that Oban Airport now has less business than it did before its upgrade. Iain MacDonald, chairman of the community council in Ardchattan, the area north of Oban which includes the airport, said: "What was once a small-scale low-cost sustainable operation has become a dwindling asset and financial liability to the public purse.
"Nothing is being done to address the decline. After spending millions of pounds the council have left us much worse off than we were before they started."
A spokesman for the council insisted: "Oban Airport is a wonderful new facility which is a major benefit to the people of Argyll and Bute.
"We are confident the air services will support economic development in the area as well as attracting more visitors."
Empty flights cost taxpayers £300 per seat
Published Date: 12 October 2008
By David Leask
TAXPAYERS are being forced to pay out more than £300 a seat for air routes with almost no passengers and "zilch" economic benefits, Scotland on Sunday can reveal.
So few people have booked on Argyll Air Services that 27 flights were cancelled in July and August because there were no passengers. Yet the local authority behind the airport scheme still has to pay over £30,000 a month to the airline running the services, whether the flights take off or not.
The payments come on top of an £8.9m upgrade of Oban Airport and its satellite airfields on the islands of Coll and Colonsay.
Argyll business leaders are angry about the cost of the scheme, especially when ferry, road and rail links are also in desperate need of investment.
Stewart Farmer, of the Federation of Small Businesses, yesterday attacked the spending and said: "The economic benefits from this project appears to be zilch."
Figures obtained by Scotland on Sunday show uptake from islanders and people wishing to visit the islands has been very slow. An average of 135 passengers were carried to or from Coll and Tiree a month in July and August. The figure for Colonsay was even lower, at 65. That indicates only around one in four possible tickets were sold and compares with 1,000 passengers flying between Tiree and Glasgow in July.
Basil O'Fee, the managing director of Highland Airways, which operates the flights, admitted demand had been inconsistent. "The numbers have been clumpy," he said. "One day you will get a whole group going and the next day there won't be anybody."
But O'Fee believes that, with better advertising, next summer's results will be improved. "The pre-marketing wasn't very strong," he said.
Argyll and Bute Council declined to say how much they were paying Highland Airways, citing commercial confidentiality. Sources, however, insisted the figure was more than £30,000 a month.
Senior figures in the council, including its former leader Allan Macaskill, believed Oban Airport could turn into the Newquay of the north, providing direct services to Glasgow, Edinburgh and even the continent.
Critics argue that Oban Airport now has less business than it did before its upgrade. Iain MacDonald, chairman of the community council in Ardchattan, the area north of Oban which includes the airport, said: "What was once a small-scale low-cost sustainable operation has become a dwindling asset and financial liability to the public purse.
"Nothing is being done to address the decline. After spending millions of pounds the council have left us much worse off than we were before they started."
A spokesman for the council insisted: "Oban Airport is a wonderful new facility which is a major benefit to the people of Argyll and Bute.
"We are confident the air services will support economic development in the area as well as attracting more visitors."
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Oban (and possibly Coventry) Loony Toons
http://www.leamingtoncourier.co.uk/news ... 5145555.jp
Isn't this where Peter Jackson went after he was asked to leave Oban?
WW
Isn't this where Peter Jackson went after he was asked to leave Oban?
WW