CitiExpress Cuts
 

Bloomberg says that CitiExpress is dropping 12 routes and cutting over 500 jobs to save costs.

See here

From the Ba press office :


- Withdraw 12 loss making routes
- Launch two new routes and increase frequency on nine key business routes
- Overall regional capacity reduction of eight per cent
- Reduced future staffing requirement equivalent to 500 full time positions
- £20 million cost savings each year by 2004

London, Wednesday April 24, 2002: British Airways CitiExpress, a wholly owned subsidiary of British Airways, today unveiled the outcome of a Future Size and Shape review to ensure the profitability of its services at airports throughout the UK.

The strategy is designed to strengthen the airline’s position in the domestic and European short-haul market by developing an improved flying programme, and delivering a better service and more flights for air travellers across the network.

This will be achieved by:-
- Increasing capacity and services on key business routes
- Simplifying the fleet and reducing the number of different aircraft types based at regional airports
- More efficient use of assets - better matching aircraft size to local markets
- The withdrawal of loss making services

The regional changes are in line with British Airways’ overall Future Size and Shape project announced in February 2002. Since then the airline has launched a range of new lower fares on UK domestic to London flights giving air travellers more choice and greater flexibility.

The measures announced today build on the integration process which resulted in the creation of BA CitiExpress on March 31st 2002. They are designed to reduce further the cost base of the regional operation and deliver annual savings of £20 million by 2004.

The net result of simplifying the business and removing complexity from the operation will mean employing the equivalent of 500 fewer people during the next
two years.

The changes to employee numbers in BA CitiExpress as a result of Future Size and Shape will be the subject of consultation with the company’s trade unions and representatives.

David Evans, British Airways General Manager UK Business said: “We now have the framework to develop our business and deliver the required cost savings. We are laying the platform for growth by getting our business in shape.

“This will provide us with a clear business direction for our staff and our customers. We will have the right aircraft at the right time on the right routes, and, where the business demands, we will have new services and extra frequency.”

As a result of some aircraft types being consolidated at specific regional airports, the number of crew reporting bases (where cabin and flight crew originate for flights) will reduce to 12 from15.

This will affect Aberdeen, Belfast and Jersey crew reporting bases.

The manpower equivalent savings will be achieved by 2004 in Flight Operations (48), Cabin Services (233), Engineering (52), Ground Services (8) and other head office and support staff (170).

This represents a 20 per cent reduction in manpower since the start of the integration process which began in 2001.

The fleet and network changes will result in an overall capacity reduction, measured in ASKs (Available Seat Kilometres), of eight per cent.

BA CitiExpress axes 12 routes, will cut 500 staff
David Kaminski-Morrow, London (24Apr02, 11:28 GMT, 357 words)


British Airways’ (BA) regional CitiExpress division is to cut 12 loss-making routes and the equivalent of more than 500 jobs over the next two years as part of the flag-carrier’s continuing Future Size and Shape review.

BA CitiExpress says the move will save £20 million ($29 million) by 2004 and adds that the route changes, combined with a planned reduction of its regional fleet to 82 aircraft from the present 92, will amount to an 8% capacity cut.

Four routes from Cardiff International Airport – to Dublin, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Newcastle – will be dropped. Two routes will go at both Bristol (Brussels and Cork) and Plymouth (Dublin and Cork) while four other services will be axed at other UK regional airports: Southampton-Frankfurt, Jersey-Paris, Newcastle-Cork and Belfast-Sheffield.

But CitiExpress is also to launch two new routes – Manchester-Venice and Bristol-Leeds Bradford – and will increase frequencies on key business routes out of Manchester, Newcastle, Bristol and Southampton.

It says that the fleet and route amendments will mean cutting three of its 15 crew reporting bases, at Aberdeen, Belfast and Jersey. CitiExpress says that a total of more than 500 positions will be affected: over 230 in cabin services, some 50 in each of flight operations and engineering, plus 170 support staff and a handful of ground services personnel.

“We now have the framework to develop our business and deliver the required cost savings,” says BA UK business general manager David Evans. “We are laying the platform for growth by getting our business in shape.

“We will have the right aircraft at the right time on the right routes and, where the business demands, we will have new services and extra frequencies.”

BA CitiExpress, formally launched at the end of March, was created last year from the integration of British Regional Airlines and Brymon Airways, and will this year see BA Regional and Manx Airlines brought under the same brand. The carrier says that the cuts announced today will bring the total reduction of staff since the beginning of integration to 20%.

By March 2004, the carrier adds, it will operate six aircraft types on 113 routes from 28 UK regional airports.


Source: Air Transport Intelligence news
:(

when is this effective from?

Some of it will take affect from the end of May.

First J41 leaves Cardiff at end of May and other two in August. All destined for Newcastle where there will eventually be 6 J41's.

Apparently all the dash 8's are going back asap and the J41's will cover some of the old Dash routes.

I just feel sorry for everyone (including myself) that is about to have their lives turned upside down again.

A sad day for all concerned

:( :(

FlyboyUK,
All the DASH's go back. What about the PLYMOUTH
dash 8.s.

Why opt for the J41 over the larger, and certainly more passenger-friendly DHC8???

only 5 dhc 8s to be returned ten will stay if you can believe David Evans presentation that is!!!!

Sorry I was given duff info, but certainly most of the Dash's are going back before the leases have to be renewed. They are stuck with the J41 leases for some years to come.

four other services will be axed at other UK regional airports: Southampton-Frankfurt, Jersey-Paris, Newcastle-Cork and Belfast-Sheffield

And so ends the final regular commercial service out of Sheffield.

Sheffield used to be the largest city without an airport; it's now a city with an expensive car test track :(

the j41 leases run for another seven years so no chance of getting rid of the jetscreams in near future

500 BA Jobs To Go
 

British Airways is to axe another 500 jobs and withdraw 12 loss-making routes from its regional business.

It said the move aimed to make annual savings of £20m by 2004.

The job losses will be made over the next two years.

Source Airline News

Six J41's at Newcastle? Where are they going to park them all?:D

On top of each other?

Bristol-Leeds. Give it 4 months?
If you are stuck with some surplus turboprops why not try a few routes into London City? Such as from Newcastle, Manchester. High yield business market?

Hmmmm.....Newcastle, High yield market! :D :D :confused:

Are there *any* of the old Brymon routes left? ORK now only has GLA left [I think] of the BA routes when at one point pre 9/11 there were four routes [GLA, LGW, NCL, BRS/PLY]. Really hope GLA stays, better than routing through DUB any day.

Mark D
GLA-ORK has been given to Loganair:)

This is such terribly bad news for Cork. Cork will reel from this for a long time to come even if Aer Arann Express takes up some of the soon the be vacated routes and all of this on top of the Gatwick loss last year! What kind of return do these manager wan@ers at BA want from a route? It is not as if any of these services to Cork were in the cheap fare category. I just can't believe the way Cork is being shafted like this.:confused: