Bristol Airport - General Thread

[TheLocalYokel]

Shuttle Flights

I've noticed that recently both the BRS departures/arrivals web pages and the Flight Information Displays at the airport now show the Airbus corporate shuttle flights (operated by bmi regional E 145s) to/from Toulouse and Hawarden as well as the BAE company flights (operated by Beechcraft King Air B200 aircraft) to/from Barrow, Walney Island.

I was at the airport this afternoon and noticed the departures boards showing both the Toulouse and Hawarden flights checking in at desks 24 and 25 which are those used by the bmir public flights to Germany etc.

Do the Airbus and BAE company flights no longer operate from the southern apron where the Bristol Flight Centre lounges were used for processing the passengers?

 

[kraktoa]

The toulouse BMI flights still operate from the flying centre.

Its only recently when the airport moved on to a new manageair system that theses flights have started showing on the web page and the flight screens at the airport.

Silly really.

Similar to the ridiculous arr/dep boards for most airports that show about 10 different flights from Mumbai all landing at the same time. They are the same flight just code shared by diff airlines. Makes a mockery of the flight screens.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

The toulouse BMI flights still operate from the flying centre.

Its only recently when the airport moved on to a new manageair system that theses flights have started showing on the web page and the flight screens at the airport.

Silly really.

Similar to the ridiculous arr/dep boards for most airports that show about 10 different flights from Mumbai all landing at the same time. They are the same flight just code shared by diff airlines. Makes a mockery of the flight screens.

Many thanks. I suppose that the terminal flight information displays showed Toulouse and Hawarden as checking in at desks 24-25 was because the flights are operated by bmir and these desks are automatically shown whenever a bmir flight features.

As for the multi flight codes for one flight CWL used to do this when BBC Ceefax showed airport arrival lists. One day someone commented to an aviation message board that Amsterdam must be doing well at CWL because five flights were due that morning. He/she hadn't realised they were all at the same time and were different flight codes for the same flight.

 

[kraktoa]

Cardiff arrivals page could fit on half a page with no scrolling required. But with about 9 lines taken for each AMS flight anyone would think the place is flourishing.

Same for all LHR terminals.

 

[kraktoa]

Sadly there was a biker fatality last saturday morning on the A38 near the airport after an accident. Not far from where the footbridge was recently demolished. Flowers at the scene.

Cant remember any other time there was a fatality so close to the airport.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Sadly there was a biker fatality last saturday morning on the A38 near the airport after an accident. Not far from where the footbridge was recently demolished. Flowers at the scene.

Cant remember any other time there was a fatality so close to the airport.

I went past the scene yesterday and it seems the deceased was a Bristol City FC follower. Several BCFC flags also left at scene with several apparently unopened cider cans and beer bottles.

There was a another fatal accident yesterday involving a motor cycle on the Keynsham Bypass which caused delays for the A4 Air Decker service to and from Bath. Some were over half an hour late and finished up effectively running the schedule of the bus behind.

The current installation of ATS at the Downside Road/A 38 junction is probably long overdue. Although I understand the junction played no part in Saturday's fatality it's always been a potential problem. I witnessed a near accident yesterday as a vehicle pulled out of Downside Road to turn right onto the A 38 and almost collided with a vehicle driving south on the A 38: squealing of brakes and prolonged sounding of horn.

 

[kraktoa]

New look and colourful arrivals and departures web page. Bit OTT with the contrasting colours i feel, but its just a matter of getting used to i suppose.

EZY Rome rotation cancelled today. Whoops! Wonder why

 

[jfy1999]

Terminal fire at FCO. :sad:

 

[TheLocalYokel]

New look and colourful arrivals and departures web page. Bit OTT with the contrasting colours i feel, but its just a matter of getting used to i suppose.

It's a completely revamped airport website. Having had a quick look around it doesn't seem to be much different from the previous one in content; it's just shown in a different form.

As with the old one it's not that easy to negotiate if you're looking for non-mainstream items. For example, finding the airport consultative committee page (with its minutes, agendas and future dates) is not an obvious path, but it wasn't with the previous one.

Given that the airport has probably spent many thousands of pounds on this revamp I wonder whether it's money well spent because in form, although not presentation, little has changed. They can't even get the details of the Bath Air Decker correct on the appropriate page of the 'new' website saying it operates hourly instead of the half hourly it was increased to in March.

 

[superking]

i dont like the revamped home page.rather long winded getting where you want to go.
also on the arrivals and departure page i can get no flight numbers up.
bring back the old one,least its got all the information you want on there.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

i dont like the revamped home page.rather long winded getting where you want to go.
also on the arrivals and departure page i can get no flight numbers up.
bring back the old one,least its got all the information you want on there.

I agree. I think the previous home page was easier on the eye and somehow gave out its message in a more user-friendly way. I know this might be a case of something familiar against something new but I can't really see any improvement in the new offering.

I have no problem getting the flight numbers on the arrivals/departures pages if that's what you're not getting.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

It seems the new airport website has been designed to enable easier access and interaction from mobile devices.

Below is the airport press release on the matter.
http://www.bristolairport.co.uk/about-u ... nsive-site

[textarea]e3 launches new responsive site for Bristol Airport

Created: 7th May 2015

e3 launches a new responsive website for Bristol Airport today offering an updated look that integrates new features and a consistent, seamless experience to customers on desktop, mobile or tablet.

The new site is part of e3’s overall remit to help shape and support Bristol Airport’s online strategy and provide strategic leadership to support the organisation’s digital ambitions, showcasing its new facilities and growing network of 100+ destinations.

One of the core outputs of the digital strategy was the need to redevelop the main site and mobile sites into one responsive solution. There were a number of specific challenges for this new solution, including making essential flight information easily accessible across all platforms, making it easier to book car parking and other ancillary products from mobile devices, and creating awareness of enhanced airport facilities and the wide range of destinations available.

Providing quick, seamless navigation across all platforms and devices was a key consideration in showcasing Bristol Airport’s commitment to consistently enhance the travelling experience for airport passengers.

Isabelle Whiteman, Head of Digital and Commercial Marketing at Bristol Airport said:
“We are thrilled to launch our new customer focussed, responsive website today. Digital technology is central to our ambition to be a world-class regional airport and will play an important role in delivering great customer experience to our growing passenger base. Working closely with e3, we can now deliver a consistent experience to customers however they access our website, ensuring a great start to the airport journey before even setting foot in the terminal.”

The new website is powered by Sitecore XP 8 and Bristol Airport will be one of the first sites built specifically with the platform’s new capabilities in mind. This will allow a range of features including personalisation of content based on location and user behaviour, provide a highly scalable solution for storing customer interactions on the site, and integration with MS Dynamics with CRM integral to the marketing strategy.

Full inline editing using ‘experience editor’ will also allow users to simply streamline content management.

Managing Director at e3, Neil Collard, said:
“We are extremely proud of the work we have delivered for Bristol Airport since 2012 and of the launch of its brand new responsive website today, which will boost customer communication, significantly improve the overall customer experience and increase operator revenues. We look forward to seeing the results later this year and to our continued partnership with Bristol Airport”.
e3 has worked closely with Bristol Airport since 2012 in order to develop and continually build upon a 5 year strategic plan to build awareness, drive growth, provide first class customer service and build a customer focussed digital platform suitable to meet the demands of 2020.[/textarea]

 

[tpm]

The new airport website certainly has a fresh look, and it looks nice and works well on my mobile devices, but on the desktop it looks very confusing, all those squares, floating menu bars horizontal dividers, I actually thought my browser messed up at first. Weird.

It also appears there's a bug with the display of journey times for connecting flights, e.g. if you type 'Stuttgart' into the destination finder, the total journey times just don't seem to add up (unless they're based on different times than the ones listed). Not sure if this is related to the new design or a longer-standing issue. Never noticed it before.

For example:
6.15 BRS - AMS - STR 10.35 ("4 hours")
17.30 BRS - AMS - STR 22.20 ("5hr 5m")
13.50 BRS - AMS - STR 18.55 ("5hr 30m")

 

[kraktoa]

The bug is definitely there. For the past few weeks few flights landing after midnight are being shown as landed or diverted when checked at midday.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

On the desktop the site looks as though it was designed about ten years ago but I appreciate that mobile accessibility and interaction have been something of a driver to ensure better universal access.

The arrivals page no longer shows actual time of arrival only scheduled time, expected time and then merely 'landed' in the far right Notes column. The previous website departures page stopped showing actual departure times two or three years ago and this is perpetuated on the new site.

On the plus side it's possible to go back and retrieve all the day's arrivals and departures, but still no actual arrival/departure time of course.

Mayfly is also having problems with a number of flights duplicated.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Latest Financial Position

A report in the local paper yesterday stated that BRS's annual turnover rose 7.5% to £70 million with pre-tax profits rising by 14% to £29.4 million.

BRS seems to turn in an impressive pre-tax profit every year these days.

It's a far cry from the days of the 60s and 70s when the city council-owned airport was loss-making and had to be supported by rate payers.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

[textarea]New look for airport teams

Summer starts with a “brand” new uniform

Passengers using Bristol Airport this summer will notice new look uniforms for the Customer Operations teams working in the terminal and car parks, with over 100 staff wearing the specially designed clothing.

The uniform is designed around the Airport’s brand colours and logo, while staff can add a touch of individuality by choosing from navy trousers or skirt, waistcoat, or jacket and smart branded scarf or tie.

The introduction of the new uniform is the culmination of a nine month project involving representatives from the various customer-facing teams. A working group was formed to come up with ideas for the uniform, researching the various options available. The teams wanted a professional, practical look, in a similar style to airline uniforms – but it was important that this complied with airport security standards by avoiding any metallic elements, for example. A local company was sourced to design and supply the uniforms.
Alison Roberts, Head of Customer Operations at Bristol Airport, said:
“Our teams love the new uniform, and enjoyed being involved in the selection process. The project has taken over nine months of work looking at different styles and designs.We are confident the end result will help to give a positive first impression to our passengers, demonstrating our commitment to customer service during what will be a busy summer.”

It has been a busy year in more ways than one with the construction of the £8.6m eastern terminal extension set for completion in July, the building of an on-site 200 bed Hampton by Hilton hotel set to open in spring 2016 and the £1.3m road improvement works to the A38.

More than 230 additional staff have also been recruited across a variety of departments and business partners, with roles ranging from customer service, catering, retail, car parks, security and handling agent positions.

During the busy summer season passengers are reminded to allow sufficient time for their journey to the Airport, and should arrive at least two hours ahead of their scheduled time of departure to ensure all essential processes can be completed.[/textarea]

This an airport press release with picture at http://www.bristolairport.co.uk/about-u ... 5/uniforms

 

[jfy1999]

Those are very smart uniforms...

 

[forest1979]

I was reading a piece in the Bristol post today re the cost of easy jet flights out of Bristol in comparison to those on offer at the London airports. Marginal on some routes but to be expected as has always been the case.. I can't helping thinking though that this isn't helped by the lack of competition on routes.. Easy will say it's based on supply and demand and there is no doubt that some key routes are sold out very quickly.. In BHX they have now some very competitive routes with easy, Ryanair, vueling, Norwegian and monarch.. I think it's time to see some of that at BRS. Easy have done wonders there but it is about time the flood of orange was splashed with a little colour of other carriers.. There was a lot of chat on here about CDG being sold out and no competition, this could be said of a few other routes...

 

[TheLocalYokel]

I was reading a piece in the Bristol post today re the cost of easy jet flights out of Bristol in comparison to those on offer at the London airports. Marginal on some routes but to be expected as has always been the case.. I can't helping thinking though that this isn't helped by the lack of competition on routes.. Easy will say it's based on supply and demand and there is no doubt that some key routes are sold out very quickly.. In BHX they have now some very competitive routes with easy, Ryanair, vueling, Norwegian and monarch.. I think it's time to see some of that at BRS. Easy have done wonders there but it is about time the flood of orange was splashed with a little colour of other carriers.. There was a lot of chat on here about CDG being sold out and no competition, this could be said of a few other routes...

Thanks forest1979 - here is the link to the newspaper article.

http://www.bristolpost.co.uk/Bristol-ai ... story.html

The article quotes some dates at random. I picked the following dates and routes at random and compared easyJet at BRS with LGW. Where there is more than one flight on a day I've shown the range of fare prices.

Copenhagen

outbound Friday 29 May: BRS £60.24; LGW £56.24 to £45.24

inbound Wednesday 3 June: BRS £41.86; LGW £22.86 to £18.86

Alicante

outbound Tuesday 30 June: BRS £69.24 to £54.24; LGW £88.24 to £66.24

inbound Wednesday 15 July: BRS £62.24 to £46.24; LGW £65.24 to £41.24

Glasgow

outbound Monday 3 August: BRS £44.24 to £34.24; LGW £36.24 to £26.24

inbound Friday 7 August: BRS £33.24 to £24.24; LGW £44.24 to £26.24

Isle of Man

outbound Friday 22 May (tomorrow): BRS £45.24; LGW £224.24 to £72.24

inbound Monday 25 MAY: BRS £31.24; LGW £55.24 to £48.24

These dates are completely unscientific as are those in the newspaper but if I wanted to write a contrary article I could use this information to suggest that BRS can be cheaper than LGW. Clearly it's down to the demand on a particular route on a particular day.

Having said all that it would be clearly desirable for punters to have more competition although there are probably routes that would not stand competition.

easyJet currently has 54 routes out of BRS, some seasonal. Of the 54 routes there is competition on 21 of them:

Alicante - Ryanair and charter

Amsterdam - KLM

Bodrum - charter

Corfu - charter

Crete (Heraklion) - charter in summer only (with Ryanair flying to Chania in summer)

Paphos - charter

Dalaman - charter

Faro - Ryanair

Geneva - charter in winter only with easyJet year-round

Grenoble - charter in winter only with easyJet winter only too

Ibiza - Ryanair and charter in summer only with easyJet summer only too

Innsbruck - charter in winter and summer with easyJet only a winter route

Lanzarote - Ryanair and charter

Palma - Ryanair and charter

Malaga - Ryanair and charter

Menorca - charter in summer only with easyJet summer only too

Naples - charter

Paris Cdg - bmi regional

Salzburg - charter in winter only with easyJet winter only too

Tenerife South - Ryanair and charter

Zante - charter