Away from flight for a moment and looking at rail but continuing the Cardiff Bristol comparisons. New rail usage figures are out. Central handled nearly a million more passengers than Temple Meads!

Immediate sth Wales stations saw Newport handle over 2 million, Queen St 1.7 million and Bridgend just over a million.

It indicates to me evidence of a sufficient population/business to support the airport.
 
Whichever way you look at it you have to consider if the money will enable the airport to become a success? If you say 1.96 million passengers using BRS were from Wales, would those passengers have enabled CWL to be a profitable business, or at least a sustainable one. To use Liverpool airport as an example, the owners of Liverpool airport only reported a profit after the airport surpassed 4mppa. That would be a huge task for CWL is that is the sort of passenger traffic growth to enable it to be successful.

Away from flight for a moment and looking at rail but continuing the Cardiff Bristol comparisons. New rail usage figures are out. Central handled nearly a million more passengers than Temple Meads!

Immediate sth Wales stations saw Newport handle over 2 million, Queen St 1.7 million and Bridgend just over a million.

It indicates to me evidence of a sufficient population/business to support the airport.
The population of Liverpool is similar to that of Cardiff which is why it's a good example to compare with. Liverpool does have a greater ability to draw in passengers from the wider region though as there's no rivers to cross. It indicates there is a the potential of achieving 4mppa at CWL without delving too deep into the ins and outs but there would need to be significant changes to the business plan to enable it to become a profit sustaining business. Another problem the airport faces is there are fewer airlines in the industry making it harder to source new airlines to consider serving CWL.
 
Whichever way you look at it you have to consider if the money will enable the airport to become a success? If you say 1.96 million passengers using BRS were from Wales, would those passengers have enabled CWL to be a profitable business, or at least a sustainable one. To use Liverpool airport as an example, the owners of Liverpool airport only reported a profit after the airport surpassed 4mppa. That would be a huge task for CWL is that is the sort of passenger traffic growth to enable it to be successful.
That's why i think its important for the airport to diversify and grow its non passenger side of the business. Cargo being part of that, MRO another part but also how it can utilize the airport site itself for the basing of other businesses.

Away from flight for a moment and looking at rail but continuing the Cardiff Bristol comparisons. New rail usage figures are out. Central handled nearly a million more passengers than Temple Meads!

Immediate sth Wales stations saw Newport handle over 2 million, Queen St 1.7 million and Bridgend just over a million.

I do think we need to be careful using train passenger numbers. Especially as many will be local journeys with people commuting to and from Cardiff. With Bristol it could be a case of people using buses more for those sorts of journey.
It indicates to me evidence of a sufficient population/business to support the airport.
If you look at the passenger numbers for Bristol 1.96 million, Cardiff 838,000 and i'd expect Birmingham to be at least 250,000 with Heathrow probably 800,000-1,000,000 then we are probably looking at least 4 million people flying to and from southern Wales in a year probably more. The demand is no doubt there. I think one thing that also doesn't get taken into account is that extra services at Cardiff also could create extra demand as well. During 2013-2019 as the airport grew its competitors grew as well Cardiff didn't hold them back. There's also the factor that certain routes may well create inbound passengers who wouldn't necessarily travel to Wales.
 
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Hays Travel will be operating a charter to Barbados from Cardiff Airport for a P&O cruise on 21/11/26. This is only bookable via Hays Travel and not P&O.

Good news
 
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Good news
On the subject of the new campus. I wonder if they’ll (council or WG) improve public transport links to the airport. Whether the train is increased to 2tph with a shuttle bus or reintroduce the express bus.

Personally I’ve always felt Barry Docks would make a better official airport station as it’s 3tph, has a sort of bus station and could have a frequent bus shuttle to the airport.
 
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On the subject of the new campus. I wonder if they’ll (council or WG) improve public transport links to the airport. Whether the train is increased to 2ph with a shuttle bus or reintroduce the express bus.

Personally I’ve always felt Barry Docks would make a better official airport station as it’s 3 per hour, has a sort of bus station and could have a frequent bus shuttle to the airport.
Barry was suggested before as part of the new metro. Hopefully it might encourage better public transport options to the airport.
 
Spencer Birns remark about the public ownership of airports worldwide was certainly a good dig at the airports critics in the Senedd, although he said he does not get involved in politics.
 
Bristol airport announced today a £400 million pound investment to enhance facilities at their airport. It makes CWL's investment of £200 million over 10 years look paltry. I wonder if CWL will object to the BRS plan?
 
Bristol airport announced today a £400 million pound investment to enhance facilities at their airport. It makes CWL's investment of £200 million over 10 years look paltry. I wonder if CWL will object to the BRS plan?
I don't see CWL challenging it. The airport nor the government have the financial clout for such a prolonged legal battle.
But it does show the kind of financial firepower Bristol has to essentially crush its much smaller competitors.
 
Bristol airport announced today a £400 million pound investment to enhance facilities at their airport. It makes CWL's investment of £200 million over 10 years look paltry. I wonder if CWL will object to the BRS plan?
That’s what you can do when your money comes/goes offshore and your parent company is worth C$247,000,000,000.00
 
A very sorry sight of just 5 commercial departures at CWL today - and that's before the PFO drops off later in the year...

As the song goes; things can only get better! (y)
 
A very sorry sight of just 5 commercial departures at CWL today - and that's before the PFO drops off later in the year...

As the song goes; things can only get better! (y)
That is sorry state of affairs 😔
 
Cardiff Airport will start runway resurfacing work on 11/11/2024.
In the press release i found this snippet interesting
"The Airport is also constructing additional pavement surfaces adjacent to the runway/taxiway."
Creating more hardstand space?

 
I think they’ve updated the Press Release, it now states the additional paved areas will be on the inside turns at either end of the runway (on the taxiways) - Presumably additional/more beneficial turning radii for accessing/exiting the runway.
 
With the current 2026 forecast remaining as 1.6 mppa, what do we collectively think the plan is to get to that value?

No doubt the WG funding package will assist seemingly, but the current forecast is still that which is effectively double the current value.
 

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