Bristol Airport - Route News

[Aviador]

It makes a change to see some inbound charters for once. We don't often see that in this country.

 

[alphagolf]

Next week's Mayfly has been published and it shows the first Alitalia flight:

Wednesday 4th July

AZE8396 FCO to BRS Arr 13.20 - A320

AZE8661 BRS to FCO Dep 14.10 - A320

Great to see another airline into Bristol

alphagolf

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Good news about this route although I'm still not sure who it's aimed at. There have been suggestions that it's for inbound tourists to the UK or even to bring in students studying here.

You'd have thought though that easyJet's daily rotation to Rome Fiumicino would have catered adequately for students.

Incidentally, has Mayfly got the correct ICAO code for the flights? I thought Alitalia was AZA. AZE seems to belong to a German business taxi/executive airline called Arcus-Air Logistic.

 

[Seasider]

Yes, Local Yokel, AZA is the three letter code for Alitalia.

 

[alphagolf]

Yes, Local Yokel, AZA is the three letter code for Alitalia.

I think its a typo on the Mayfly to be honest!

alphagolf

 

[alphagolf]

Had a look at the Helvetic Airways website today and noticed that the booking engine now includes flights up to January 2013.

Unfortunately there is no sign of Bristol or Cardiff in the flight schedule after October 2012, it maybe a case that they want to see how the summer pans out but not looking good at this stage! :sad:

alphagolf

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Had a look at the Helvetic Airways website today and noticed that the booking engine now includes flights up to January 2013.

Unfortunately there is no sign of Bristol or Cardiff in the flight schedule after October 2012, it maybe a case that they want to see how the summer pans out but not looking good at this stage!

The route was put into the system after all the others for this summer so there might be hope, though the passenger numbers are still disappointing - will be interesting to see June's figures.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Routes Europe 2012

I recently found the BRS presentation for the Routes Europe gathering earlier this year.

The presentation contains the below list of destinations the airport believes could become scheduled routes. I have commented on the history of some of the routes:

Abu Dhabi

Almeria Was flown as a charter route in the past

Athens

Bilbao easyJet operated this route in 2003 and 2004

Bremen Was operated by OLT until October 2011 mainly for the aviation industry

Bucharest

Chambery Has been a ski charter route for many years

Cologne

Doha

Dubai

Dusseldorf Was operated by BAConnect until 2007

Frankfurt Was operated by BA franchisee for many years and last by Lufthansa in 2009

Gibraltar

Gothenburg

Hamburg Was operated by easyJet in 2005 and 2006 and by OLT until 2009

Hanover One of Bristol's twin cities

Helsinki

Istanbul

Ljublijana

Lyon Is already a 2 x weekly winter route with easyJet.

Manchester Was operated by BACitiexpress then Air Southwest until 2011

Marrakesh Was operated by Ryanair until 2011

Milan Malpensa was operated by BACitiexpress until 2007 and by easyJet until 2010. Ryanair currently operates to Bergamo

Munich Was operated for nearly a decade by BA franchisees until 2007

Nantes Was operated by Aer Arann for a limited season in 2007

New York Newark was operated by Continental 2005-2010

Newquay Was operated by BA franchisees then Air Southwest until 2011

Norwich Was operated by Air Southwest in 2006

Oporto One of Bristol's twin cities. Was operated by Ryanair 2008-2010

Oslo Was operated by SAS for a limited season in 2008

Perpignan Was operated by Ryanair in 2009

Riga Was operated by Ryanair from 2007 until early 2012

Seville Was operated in summer by Ryanair from 2009 until 2011

Sofia Is a winter ski charter route

Stockholm Was operated for limited seasons in 2007 and 2008

Tallinn

Thessalonika Was a summer charter route for many years until 2010

Vienna

 

[Aviador]

Quite a few routes to go at there I see. I'm surprised to see destinations like Chambery, Marrakesh & Frankfurt still in the wanted list.

Places like Abu Dhabi and New York will be harder to get especially nowadays. All in all a reasonable and achievable line-up there. Routes like Abu Dhabi might even be airline specific as is Dubai.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Quite a few routes to go at there I see. I'm surprised to see destinations like Chambery, Marrakesh & Frankfurt still in the wanted list.

Places like Abu Dhabi and New York will be harder to get especially nowadays. All in all a reasonable and achievable line-up there. Routes like Abu Dhabi might even be airline specific as is Dubai.

I suspect that the two at the top of the realistic wish list are Frankfurt and Istanbul.

Both would provide excellent connectivity with the right airlines.

FRA was a regular from BRS for many years with BA franchise and latterly Lufthansa. I believe it was close to returning in 2012.

Istanbul has never operated.

 

[Jordan-34092]

Would routes like Dubai and Abi Dhabi work? What with London not far. New York is needed either BRS or CW, think this is cardiffs, need to get it

 

[tpm]

I wonder if Toronto would still be viable?

 

[Aviador]

Both Dubai and Abi Dhabi would work as interlining routes to onward destinations in the same way as KLM works through Amsterdam.

Many UK airports used to offer summer charters to Toronto back in the 80's. For whatever reason Toronto doesn't seem to attract the sort of interest it once did so I'm not sure it would work these day.

It would be great to see Toronto back on the departure screens at more regional airports once again that's for sure.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Would routes like Dubai and Abi Dhabi work? What with London not far. New York is needed either BRS or CW, think this is cardiffs, need to get it

I wonder if Toronto would still be viable?

Dubai or Abu Dhabi ought to find a ready reservoir of passengers, though BHX has a good Emirates connection with the former, and of course LHR has much more connectivity than this to the Middle East.

BRS's problem would be more likely to be operational as the B 777, A 330 (which in any case seems to be being phased out by ME airlines) and definitely the A 380 would be too big.

Smaller aircraft with or without an en route stop might not be as popular.

CWL could handle a 777 or 330 but it is less commercially feasible than BRS as its catchment is smaller (business and leisure) and generally less prosperous.

The same applies for a New York service from South Wales.

The daily BRS-Newark service from Continental operated for five and a half years from 2005 and though passenger numbers were generally satisfactory (and better than this at times), premium passengers were not as numerous and the recession and proximity to LHR meant the route was always on borrowed time once CO gained access to LHR (which it didn't have at the time it started the BRS-EWR route).

A CWL-NYC route would almost certainly only be viable with a considerable amount of support from the public purse which would raise all sorts of problems both politically and regulatory.

Toronto has operated from BRS at various times over the past 25 years but oddly carriers seem to go out of business within a year or two of commencing the route. There is no evidence that the BRS route was the cause but it is a strange coincidence.

CWL had a Toronto programme with Zoom until that too ceased to exist as an airline and was about to commence a 'Toronto' Hamilton route with FlyGlobespan a few years ago when that too went chest up (having tried a BRS-Hamilton without much success the previous summer).

Hamilton really was a Ryanairesque version of Toronto and I was not surprised that the BRS public didn't take to it. The route could easily have been called London(Bristol) to Toronto (Hamilton) given the distance of Hamilton from Toronto.

 

[Ray Finkle]

BMI Regional will start twice daily Aberdeen-Bristol from 29th October using Embraers.

http://bmiregional.com/#new-routes

 

[TheLocalYokel]

BMI Regional will start twice daily Aberdeen-Bristol from 29th October using Embraers.

I'm very surprised at this news. By that I mean the route, not the fact that the new bmiRegional is to fly from BRS.

Eastern currently flies BRS-ABZ via LBA up to 3 x daily. It takes a huge leap of faith to believe that there is enough traffic for up to 5 x daily on the route. I hope my thoughts are wrong and that the professionals involved prove me so.

If the Eastern and bmi fares are roughly the same then the non-stop bmi route will surely be more appealing to most passengers.

Looking at the CAA stats the number of passengers who fly between BRS and lBA is not high. If there really is not enough traffic for two competing airlines and it's Eastern that pulls out, would bmi then route their service via LBA? Lots of imponderables.

bmiRegional currently has a based ERJ 145 at BRS for the 3 x daily Brussels route on behalf of Brussels Airlines. That will be taken over this winter by Flybe on behalf of Brussels Airlines.

The ABZ route might be an indication that the airline intends to expand the BRS base next year. The Airbus shuttle from Filton to Toulouse is also operated by bmiRegional and that service will move to BRS at the end of this year when the Filton runway closes.

However, I've not yet heard who has won the new contract for this shuttle. If it's the new bmiRegional then that in itself will expand the BRS base even before next summer.

 

[conns757]

LOOKS LIKE PART OF A CUNNING PLAN TO ME.....

 

[TheLocalYokel]

LOOKS LIKE PART OF A CUNNING PLAN TO ME.....

Good to see you on here again, conns757.

An intriguing comment! I shall be watching this space in the months to come.

Best wishes.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

There is now a press release on the BRS website. Initial fares look cheaper than Eastern's.

[textarea]bmi regional announces direct service to Aberdeen

Leading UK airline and recently acquired bmi regional is to introduce direct flights from Bristol to Aberdeen.

From Monday 29th October, the airline will fly twice daily between Aberdeen and Bristol offering the only direct flights between the two cities.

bmi regional chairman Ian Woodley said: “We believe there is sufficient demand for the service and the additional flights will offer customers greater choice and flexibility when travelling directly as well as providing additional onward connectivity.

“We strongly believe it is vital that that the airlinks between Scotland and England are maintained and as an organisation we are absolutely committed to building on the core values of this iconic brand, of great customer service, innovation and value for money, that are held so dearly by every one of us in the company.”

One way fares for the new services will start at £49.99 and are on sale at http://www.bmiregional.com.

Robert Sinclair, chief executive officer at Bristol Airport, said: “We are delighted that bmi regional will be operating scheduled services from Bristol Airport. Direct jet flights to Aberdeen further strengthen links between Scotland and the South West, serving business and leisure passengers in the region as well as Scottish visitors to Bristol, Bath and beyond.

“Having operated regular services for other carriers at Bristol Airport, bmi regional is already a long-standing partner. We are working closely with the airline team to explore the potential for additional routes in future.”

A second new route announced by bmi regional sees flights commence between Manchester and Antwerp.

bmi regional operates over 600 flights a week throughout the UK and Europe and has received the accolade of being the UK’s most punctual airline for the seventh year in a row.

The company is committed to retaining the airline’s iconic brand values and high levels of service which include check-in up to 30 minutes prior to departure, 20kg hold baggage allowance and complimentary catering onboard.
Timetable:

Bristol to Aberdeen:
Day Dep Bristol Arr Aberdeen
Mon-Sat 07:00 08:25
Mon-Fri, Sun 16:40 18:05

Aberdeen to Bristol:
Day Dep Aberdeen Arr Bristol
Mon-Sat 08:55 10:20
Mon-Fri, Sun 18:35 20:00[/textarea]

Link: http://www.bristolairport.co.uk/media-c ... aunch.aspx

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Geneva

As in 2009, 2010 and 2011 (and perhaps in years before that - I've not checked) BRS carried more passengers to Geneva in 2012 than any UK airport outside the London area - quite remarkable for an airport of BRS's catchment size.

The passenger numbers for the top 15 airports to Geneva in 2012 were:

Heathrow 955,000
Gatwick 736,000
Luton 272,000
London City 195,000
Bristol 175,000
Manchester 149,000
Edinburgh 143,000
Liverpool 135,000
Stansted 70,000
Birmingham 65,000
Leeds-Bradford 49,000
Newcastle 35,000
Belfast Int 30,000
Bournemouth 30,000
Glasgow 23,000

ack CAA stats