Ryanair

[TheLocalYokel]

Riga was one of the original routes when the Ryanair base was set up at BRS at the beginning of winter 2007-2008. It operated year-round until part way through winter 2011-2012 when it was axed. No-one has tried it since.

 

[Wardair166]

LBA Riga is operating 3 x weekly W20/21.

 

[alphagolf]

Currently the schedule shows both flights to Riga operated by BRS based aircraft…..

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Ryanair announces new base in Riga for winter 21

Two based aircraft, $200m investment, 16 new routes

www.bristolairport.co.uk

Slightly odd press release on the BRS website concerning Ryanair's new Riga base. It seems to be a copy of a Ryanair press release about the base but the BRS route is not mentioned at all, and the press release lacks the usual BRS management endorsement of a new route. In fact, there is nothing whatever from the BRS management.

Whilst those of us who take an interest in such things will be aware that BRS is one of the new routes, the average punter visiting the BRS website might reasonably wonder what the announcement has to do with BRS.

 

[alphagolf]

Malta

I see that Malta is not highlighted as a route anymore from BRS in the web browser, so the nearest airports for anyone in the South West and South Wales in Bournemouth or Birmingham, which I find a really strange situation to be in.

All airports in the timetable that are operating have dates and times available to book.

So options of other airlines picking the BRS - MLA route up would be Air Malta (unlikely), easyJet, Jet2 or Tui, I would of thought the airport would be actively looking at resident airlines for this route.

 

[Jerry]

TUI are launching it from Gatwick and Manchester so Bristol could be next?

 

[alphagolf]

Malta

I see that Malta is not highlighted as a route anymore from BRS in the web browser, so the nearest airports for anyone in the South West and South Wales in Bournemouth or Birmingham, which I find a really strange situation to be in.

All airports in the timetable that are operating have dates and times available to book.

So options of other airlines picking the BRS - MLA route up would be Air Malta (unlikely), easyJet, Jet2 or Tui, I would of thought the airport would be actively looking at resident airlines for this route.

Malta

I see that Malta is not highlighted as a route anymore from BRS in the web browser, so the nearest airports for anyone in the South West and South Wales in Bournemouth or Birmingham, which I find a really strange situation to be in.

All airports in the timetable that are operating have dates and times available to book.

So options of other airlines picking the BRS - MLA route up would be Air Malta (unlikely), easyJet, Jet2 or Tui, I would of thought the airport would be actively looking at resident airlines for this route.

Chania

Looks like Chania is back on sale again in the web browser, from 3rd July, twice weekly Wed and Sat.

How anyone can book with any sense of confidence with Ryanair is beyond me with the constant on sale/off sale changes with routes...........

 

[Marko1]

That omission is a recent one as it was there this morning alongside Reus which on one site was mentioned to be planned at several times a week this summer. I’ve discussed before the unpredictability of Ryanair’s approach particularly given that Malta is likely to be on the green list for the summer. My bets are still that Ryanair will fly to Malta and release at short notice or failing that is it too good an opportunity for easyJet to pass up on.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

The news media seems to have Malta nailed on as one of the first Green route destinations in the expected government announcement later this week.

This makes it even more inexplicable that there is no BRS-MLA this summer, nor a MLA service from CWL or EXT either.

Perhaps the airport is still trying to encourage a carrier. They certainly didn't have the time to answer my question about Malta that I sent to them a month ago.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Holidaymakers arrive at Bristol Airport for first flight to Portugal

Ryanair passengers are headed for the warmth of the Algarve

www.bristolpost.co.uk

Inevitable the local rag made something of today's Ryanair flight to Faro. What caught my eye though was that one couple travelled from Newcastle to catch the flight because they say there is no flight from Newcastle at the moment. I'd have thought there would be closer airports with flights to Faro.

 

[vickersviscount]

Just read an article on Ryanair, in todays Financial Mail On Sunday Day.Michael O'Leary told the paper that he predicts a ' very,very dramatic recovery ' in air travel starting next month.As usual with O'Leary some of the things he says in the paper are provocative.He states that ' Most passengers are now ignoring the Government's mixed messages and just booking their flights.Everybody realises the restrictions are going to be gone by the time you get to the end of June, July,August'.What interested me in the article was his order from Boeing for 210 Max -8200 jets.The first 60 will be delivered by next April and once the planes start arriving Ryanair will expand its bases across the UK including Stansted ,Bristol ,Liverpool,Glasgow and Edinburgh.As always with O'Leary,there's what he says and what he does,

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Just read an article on Ryanair, in todays Financial Mail On Sunday Day.Michael O'Leary told the paper that he predicts a ' very,very dramatic recovery ' in air travel starting next month.As usual with O'Leary some of the things he says in the paper are provocative.He states that ' Most passengers are now ignoring the Government's mixed messages and just booking their flights.Everybody realises the restrictions are going to be gone by the time you get to the end of June, July,August'.What interested me in the article was his order from Boeing for 210 Max -8200 jets.The first 60 will be delivered by next April and once the planes start arriving Ryanair will expand its bases across the UK including Stansted ,Bristol ,Liverpool,Glasgow and Edinburgh.As always with O'Leary,there's what he says and what he does,

I agree that with MOL it's often a case of "Listen to what I say rather than watch what I do". It wasn't so long ago that he was telling everyone that Ryanair would concentrate more of its assets away from the UK following Brexit.

Expanded BRS base or not, it could actually mean no additional flights because in normal times the four-aircraft BRS base is effectively a seven-aircraft airport because many flights are operated by aircraft at 'the other end' of routes. So if BRS became a five or six-aircraft base but most of the non-BRS based aircraft operating into BRS were removed it might mean no more flights in total, perhaps even fewer.

The fact that Malta is still missing from this summer's programme sends mixed messages.

 

[Marko1]

Yes I feel the same to be honest. I sense a lot of slack in this summers schedule and given Ryanair’s habit of launching routes at short notice there could yet be some launches for this summer. I’ve long believed there is potential for Ryanair at Bristol notably to the likes of Greece and Italy that are yet to be attempted plus building on their strong Eastern Europe programme . The very fact that he’s mentioned Bristol is however unusual - don’t normally get that sort of attention does Bristol ?

 

[Marko1]

Cologne now released for the winter and Sofia finally on sale

 

[Marko1]

Extra weekly Kaunas, Warsaw and Bucharest starting august

 

[TheLocalYokel]

I've noticed that Ryanair's flights to central and eastern Europe have been seeing decent load factors according to the seat selector.

Tomorrow for example on the outbounds Bucharest is at 94%, Poznan at 86%, Warsaw Modlin at 82% and Budapest 80%. Fares for the outstanding seats are not all giveaways either. This evening Bucharest is £341.99 for the cheapest option (the value fare) for tomorrow's flight.

In normal times the load factors on these flights would be in the high 90s% but the ones tomorrow are still better than many of the sun destinations over the past few weeks.

 

[Marko1]

Few increases coming up - bezier goes three weekly in august whilst lanzarote , Venice and Budapest all see increases from November

 

[Marko1]

Given a lot of new routes have been announced recently any sign of any expansion from Bristol ?

 

[Jerry]

Doesn't look like it at the moment.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Given a lot of new routes have been announced recently any sign of any expansion from Bristol ?

No whispers or hints that I'm aware of. Ryanair does seem to suddenly come out with the unexpected though, both positive and negative.

We've previously mentioned the current uncertainty re the airport's passenger cap in connection with airlines expanding/commencing at BRS. How much, if anything, that has an influence probably wouldn't be known to the public at large.

Nevertheless, I think the quicker the situation is decided the better, whichever way it goes, as at least then the airport and airlines would know the future pathway. It doesn't look as if the planing appeal will be decided until late this year, or more likely early next year. Even then if the airport is successful there might well be attempts at legal challenges by opponents that would delay things further.

Addendum: 1415 hours 9 August 2021

Nothing yet has come about re #1,071 to #1,073 above.