Route Development & Rumours

[LBA4EVER]

on a clear run in the middle of the night it takes 1hr30mins from Yeadon to Manchester airport and probably about the same from most parts of Leeds. From east leeds(garforth to LBA) around 40mins, south leeds (beeston to LBA) around 30mins. all other parts of Leeds are nearer to LBA so 25mins or less. Travelling from most parts of Bradford would be 25-40mins travel time, so to conclude flying from LBA is so easy and stress free! We just need our terminal and other improvements completed now.

 

[Aviador]

But we all know choice, availability and price is the overwhelming factor when making that choice between which airport to fly from. I doubt many people sit and ponder over the journey times. Also it's funny how the majority of drivers have no problem with driving on A roads for the rest of the year but on the days they drive to an airport its has to be on a motorway.

 

[Bigman]

It's a shame that growth at LBA doesn't mirror growth on the railways. Leeds has over the last few years picked up lots of new (many which were long since canned routes finally reinstated) places such as Gainsborough, Lincoln, Worksop, Wigan, Southport, Chester and Warrington Bank Quay. It is ironic though that this year we lost our one and only direct train to Southampton, and yest Eastern still manage to do it!! Leeds City serves around 260 stations now....if only LBA could get close to that!!

 

[airforced]

It takes 20 minutes from Ilkley to LBA and yes you really can reach Greater Manchester from LBA in 40-45 minute. Oldham, Rochdale and Middleton subject to no snarl ups on the M62.

Oldham, Rochdale and Middleton aren't Manchesyer Airport however are they!

 

[airforced]

Transport infrastructure and journey times will only go so far. An airport can have the best connections in the world but if it doesn't have the airlines and routes then people will go elsewhere. My sister lives 5 minutes away from LBA and for work mostly uses MAN and LHR because they have the flights routes and airlines she needs. If you look down here Bristol isn't exactly easy to get to but has the airlines and routes, people moan about the transport links but still find a way to get to the airport!

I think you have hit the nail on the head Jerry.

Although many people moan like hell about the roads around LBA with that being the reason why we haven't got the routes we should have I truly think that reason is one of the biggest red herrings around and is used as an excuse. Unless things have improved in recent years Bristol airport is in a pig of a place and prone to fog and icy roads and the roads on the approaches - well the less said about them the better.

So the answer to our lack of routes and airlines lies elsewhere. I don't know where but the airport management should and if they don't they probably ought to make way for people who do. In the meantime stop blaming the roads folks. Just looking at the traffic bulletins and see how ofter the M62 gets a mention.

 

[dmrodgers]

I think you have hit the nail on the head Jerry.

Although many people moan like hell about the roads around LBA with that being the reason why we haven't got the routes we should have I truly think that reason is one of the biggest red herrings around and is used as an excuse. Unless things have improved in recent years Bristol airport is in a pig of a place and prone to fog and icy roads and the roads on the approaches - well the less said about them the better.

So the answer to our lack of routes and airlines lies elsewhere. I don't know where but the airport management should and if they don't they probably ought to make way for people who do. In the meantime stop blaming the roads folks. Just looking at the traffic bulletins and see how ofter the M62 gets a mention.

Precisely airforced it has nothing to do with the roads or terminal but to do with the routes on offer. Though I would prefer to use LBA I have to use Manchester many times a year as Leeds do not offer the destinations I have to fly to. These are not long haul, though I do visit family in Dubai using Emirates, but European cities. For these short haul routes one does not want to messing around changing in Schiphol or Heathrow with the inevitable transfer wait of around 1 and 4 hours when Manchester offers direct flights and one can get to the airport from Leeds in around 50 minutes providing there are no hold ups on the M62. Over the years we have had a number of owners who just don't seem to have the clout with airlines, look at all the new routes Manchester has attracted together with the likes of NCL and DSA to a lesser extent with Wizz Air and Flybe. We need someone proactive who can get these routes, if it works for Bristol then it should work here in Leeds.

 

[White Heather]

It takes 20 minutes from Ilkley to LBA and yes you really can reach Greater Manchester from LBA in 40-45 minute. Oldham, Rochdale and Middleton subject to no snarl ups on the M62.

But from Oldham and Rochdale to MAN is another 30 minutes at any time of day and in the rush hour, considerably longer given the queuing on the M60, especially around Stockport (which is the shorter route). And your assumption is that the M62 is actually not blocked, which is frequently the case.

Some may say that the train link is reliable - yet last time I was in Manchester PIccadilly, all trains to MAN were cancelled.

As has been mentioned, Bristol has the same access issues as LBA, although with a much better bus service, and its on a hill, prone to fog and has a short runway. It also has a smaller catchment area yet attracts twice the passengers that LBA does. It proves that airlines will operate happily from 'compromised' airports. The difference is that the nearest major airports to Bristol are Heathrow and Birmingham. If Cardiff had ever been a major player, then the situation might have been different.

It is unfortunate for us that MAN sucks in the vast majority of traffic and leaves us, the customers, having to trek over there to catch flights. Airlines see that we do that and think 'well why should we take the risk setting up at LBA when the passengers fly with us anyway from MAN'? It makes good business sense for them. What is needed is for some airline to take that risk. Jet2 did exactly that in 2003 and look at them now. They are living proof that if you take that risk at LBA, it can pay off. Capital Airlines did the same in the 80s and they too took off in spectacular style, only to be brought down by their parent company, the Brown Group. Had that not happened, you have to wonder what Capital would be like now.

The reality is, that at the time when other airports were growing in importance and subject to considerable investment, LBA was not supported by the Local Authorities who owned it. Investment was sporadic, limited and the delays in obtaining a runway extension and then re-gaining its 24 hour ops licence did huge damage. LBA was left behind big style. Airports that previously were no bigger than LBA, such as NCL and LPL grew (the latter despite the presence of MAN just up the road) and we stood absolutely still for years. Recovery from that situation will take time. At least there is now a will to build a road, and build a parkway station and although neither are exactly what we would all like, and both are taking longer than they should, these are not matters that LBA can directly control. Once again, we are in the hands of the local authorities, who on this side of the Pennines seem to take 4 times a long to do anything as they do 'over there'.

Hopefully, the combination of the terminal, new owners who know how to run an airport, new executive team at LBA, the parkway station, and ultimately the road link, will bring about future growth and end many of the excuses that are used for not flying from LBA - excuses by both airlines and passengers. The sad thing is - at this rate it will have taken most of my lifetime for LBA to get out of the doldrums and heading in the direction it should.

 

[LBA8098]

Aer Lingus are to increase to 3 X daily on Mon/Fri/Sun WEF 28 Oct 2019 on LBA DUB.

 

[Aviador]

Oldham, Rochdale and Middleton aren't Manchesyer Airport however are they!

The point I was making is LBA is within 40 minutes of those areas so it's a flimsy excuse about the drive time to LBA.

 

[White Heather]

The point I was making is LBA is within 40 minutes of those areas so it's a flimsy excuse about the drive time to LBA.

Got you now Aviador. On that basis then, the good folk of Oldham can reach LBA in not much longer than it takes them to go to MAN!

 

[Bigman]

Here we go again!!! Not 1, but 2 threads on the go about LBA/MAN/M62 issues!!! Have we really not got anything else to talk about???

 

[michael]

Just done a little exercise to compare the distance and travel time from LBA to Manchester and LBA to Newcastle airport. Using the AA autoroute it says the difference in distance is 40 miles yet the difference in time is only 30 minutes. I know a number of people that live in the Harrogate and York areas that always consider NCL as their 'local' airport much more than they do either LBA or MAN. Infact I have a relation who lives in York who travels to Australia regularly usually using Emirates who always goes from NCL because of the fact that the B777 is his favoured mode of transport rather than the A380. Personally I live near Grassington and can be at LBA in 40 minutes no matter what time of day I go whereas to get to MAN is 75 minutes in the middle of the night and potentially way over 2 hours if it's rush hour. Therefore for me LBA will always be my local airport however MAN gives me more choice. Would I consider NCL?? No, not from here, just as I wouldn't Donny.

 

[airforced]

The point I was making is LBA is within 40 minutes of those areas so it's a flimsy excuse about the drive time to LBA.

Got you now Aviador. I thought that you were, unusually, advocating the use of MAN over LBA. It does however prove the point that if an airport has the routes and airlines that folk will use it over their local airport. Which, in turn, means that LBA ought to get their fingers out and do what is necessary to attract those airlines and routes as it is unlikely that we see many from Oldham, Rochdale and Middleton flying from Leeds.

 

[Tarn Spotter]

The majority of flights from LBA are outside rush hour times so I disagree with comments about the length of time it takes to get to LBA. I frequently travel to Manchester from close to LBA and I can get to within the Greater Manchester area within 40 minutes for the majority of the time.

You must be very lucky. I travel on the M62 stretch towards Manchester from yeadon at least once a day in each direction, always before 7am or later then 7pm.
Even on sunday night at 8pm coming on at J21 it took me over an hour to yeadon and I dont remember doing one mile without being right on the speed limit. Certainly between J22 and J24 police stood as normal on the embankment with their hand held cameras, so you cant even relie on the gantry cameras only to catch you. You can sit for 20 minutes even if you just hit half the lights from the M62 to yeadon.
My OH lives in Halifax and if either of us does it under 40 minutes we would hang out the flags and we have both being doing this trip for over 16 years. Often we set of together in seperate cars and one of us takes 30 minutes longer due to volume of traffic on that route.
It should be remembered M62 traffic will rise as the trans pennine line is closed in sections and buses put on, adding an hour to journey times by rail, pushing people to the road.

 

[Finger66]

Misconception is a key word here. Too many people aren't aware what LBA has to offer but are actually Stuck in the past of what they believe to be LBA issues such as poor access and poor weather, both things that have been proved to be untrue, but agree they are not perfect. Yes I am sure current facilities, especially at peak times does not encourage airlines. But what is needed is a mind set change for the doubting pax and airlines. KLM, Jet2, Flybe, Ryanair and 4m p.a should be proof enough in my eyes

 

[rmac]

I agree with Finger66 and I believe that the local paper (YEP) has done a dreadful job in pulling down the airport with negative and sometimes completely untrue articles etc in recent years.

 

[White Heather]

I agree with Finger66 and I believe that the local paper (YEP) has done a dreadful job in pulling down the airport with negative and sometimes completely untrue articles etc in recent years.

I agree and disagree with that rmac. The YEP has actually done a superb job of pulling down the airport with negative and sometimes completely untrue articles - because it is clear what they intended to do. So has its sister paper the Yorkshire Post which clearly favours DSA at every opportunity. But I know what you mean and it is dreadful that a l supposedly ocal paper that many years ago fought FOR the airport (regarding a runway extension), now takes every opportunity to print negative articles or silly negative letters about it. This is something that the new CEO is already aware of and for once, he seems keen to tackle.

 

[Jerry]

I agree and disagree with that rmac. The YEP has actually done a superb job of pulling down the airport with negative and sometimes completely untrue articles - because it is clear what they intended to do. So has its sister paper the Yorkshire Post which clearly favours DSA at every opportunity. But I know what you mean and it is dreadful that a l supposedly ocal paper that many years ago fought FOR the airport (regarding a runway extension), now takes every opportunity to print negative articles or silly negative letters about it. This is something that the new CEO is already aware of and for once, he seems keen to tackle.

It's probable that the negative articles basically make them more money with more click throughs online.

 

[Finger66]

Bad news and bad press is what sells unfortunately. As humans we are all too quick to focus on the negatives and once in that mindset it's very difficult to sometimes see the positives, of which LBA has many. Yes there is clearly work that needs to be done to take it to the next level and of course we all want it "yesterday" but just perhaps this is now a case of "all good things come to they who wait". LBA is performing well in difficult times for aviation. I am as disappointed as anyone that not much route development seems to be happening just now but I am going to put my faith in the new management team and give them some time to prove themselves. Some announcements next week then please lol

 

[a300boy]

The problem for me is every time someone new arrives in management the spiel is almost identical to the previous declared objectives.
We can only hope that the news of increased flights to Dublin is the start of a new dawn.
The Evening Post is pretty poor in every way !
I gave an interview to them about my football team some time ago and the article bore no resemblance to what I said which led to a fall out between myself and my manager.
Lesson learnt !