Birmingham: General Airport Discussion & Updates

[User0001]

Also was a nice change to hear (Computer operated) announcememnts for flights which are read in English and the country of the destination (Ryanair to Las Palmas was in spanish too) sounded very "international" rather than the rather "dull" accent of somebody talking, LOL

Ive heard this at Heathrow an Manchester, and I agree, its a great asset and gives an international feel.

 

[Brum X]

ANYBODY ELSE HAVING PROBLEMS WITH FORUMS4AIRPORTS

Is anybody else having problems with the site at the moment, for the past 2 days when i log in it has older posings going back a few weeks and i posted a picture last night on the picture thread and it is not there ??????


Whats going on ????


;-(

 

[Brum X]

Re: ANYBODY ELSE HAVING PROBLEMS WITH FORUMS4AIRPORTS

Is anybody else having problems with the site at the moment, for the past 2 days when i log in it has older posings going back a few weeks and i posted a picture last night on the picture thread and it is not there ??????


Whats going on ????


;-(

When ive logged in just now, it is saying that the last post Re: Germanwings was by Ray_Finkle on the 30th June 2014 ?????????

 

[TheLocalYokel]

When ive logged in just now, it is saying that the last post Re: Germanwings was by Ray_Finkle on the 30th June 2014 ?????????

There was a major systems failure on the site on Friday leading to much of the recent content being deleted. Aviador has been working on the problem since then and has managed to restore most of the lost content. See his post (quoted below) in the Feedback forum.

Hi guys and gals.

Our forum is restored to a point just a few days ago. Thankfully we've not lost too much. Feel free to start posting again. If anyone notices one of their posts missing from the last day or so please post again.
Aviador

I've been posting to aviation forums for over 15 years and I remember one major US forum that I posted to in those days losing its entire forum contents about ten years ago. They were never recovered although that site is now prospering having had to start life all over again so to speak.

We've been fortunate compared to that and Aviador deserves thanks for his efforts in salvaging most of the content of Forums4Airports.

 

[Ray Finkle]

We've been fortunate compared to that and Aviador deserves thanks for his efforts in salvaging most of the content of Forums4Airports.

Totally agree, it could have been so much worse. Well done mate :good:

 

[Brum X]

BUDAPEST AIRPORT RUNWAY FUN RUN

Good to see BHX taking part in this to raise funds for lots of charities.

Teams and individuals from 35 airlines and 48 airports have so far signed up for “bud:runway run” – the running race which will take place on Runway 13R-31L at Budapest Airport on Saturday 6 September in aid of child cancer charities and other good causes. There are two races (6km = two runway lengths and 12km = four runway lengths) which has been organised by an expert coalition of race host Budapest Airport, Nike, Wizz Air

Airline teams and individuals taking part
• Adria Airways
• Aegean Airlines
• Aer Lingus
• Air Baltic
• Air Berlin
• Air France
• Air Nostrum
• American Airlines
• Blue Panorama Airlines
• bmi regional
• British Airways
• Czech Airlines
• easyJet • Edelweiss Air AG
• Etihad Regional
• Flughafen Zweibrücken
• Flybe
• Germania Fluggesellschaft mbH
• Germanwings
• Iberia Express
• Jet2.com
• LOT Polish Airlines
• Montenegro Airlines
• Norwegian Air Shuttle
• Onur Air
• Pakistan International Airlines
• Qatar Airways
• Saudia Cargo
• Swiss International Airlines
• TAP Portugal
• TEN Airways
• transavia.com
• transavia.com France
• United Airlines
• Uzbekistan Airways
• Vueling
Airports and other organisations taking part
• A T Kearney
• AAL
• ACI EUROPE
• Aerodrom Ljubljana
• Aeroparker
• Aeromatic Repülőtér Kft
• Aeroportos de Portugal
• Airport Kosice
• Airport of Montenegro
• Airport Weeze
• AIRPORTS OF REGIONS, CJSC
• Allgäu Airport GmbH & Co. KG
• anna.aero
• AviAlliance GmbH
• Aviation Media
• BARIG
• Birmingham Airport
• BKK
• Bruel & Kjaer
• Budapest Airport
• Cape Town International Airport
• Cologne Bonn Airport
• DHL
• EUROCONTROL
• Flightglobal
• Flowell
• Flughafen Munchen
• Future Travel Experience
• GESAC
• Hamburg Airport
• Helsinki Airport
• Ink
• JAS Cargoways Inc/Kft.
• Jiun Ho Inc.
• Krakow Airport
• London City Airport
• Oslo Airport
• Phase 5 Technology
• RDC Aviation
• Routes
• ServiceTec
• The Moodie Report
• ThyssenKrupp
• TLD
• TRIESTE AIRPORT
• Trieste International Airport
• University of Applied Sciences Amsterdam - Aviation Academy
• Vancouver Airport
• XSight Systems

:good:

 

[Ray Finkle]

Well done to those who are running, definitely a worthy cause. I wonder how you donate?

 

[Ray Finkle]

Looking at an article about the two new All Bar One outlets and noticed this.

The first bar, opened in April, is located in the South departure lounge, and an additional unit was then opened in June in the North landside area of the terminal.

Back in the day BHX dropped the Main Terminal and Eurohub in favour of a more simplified T1 & T2 stating the move was to ease confusion. It now seems we have a North Landside Area, North Departure Lounge, South Landside Area and South Departure Lounge which is surely more confusing?

I can imagine someone using the airport for the very first time, possibly unfamiliar with the orientation of BHX, being told "yes sir, for Flybe check in make your way to the South Landside Area" or "yes madam, when through security for All Bar One make your way to the South Departure Lounge". Compare that to "yes sir, Flybe check in is located in Terminal 2 and All Bar One is in the T2 departure lounge"?

Although they now have a common security area and the arrivals spit out into the same place surely they can still be considered T1 & T2? It's how I still see them and it has to be less confusing than what is now being used?

 

[Ray Finkle]

An interview with Mr Kehoe. It's mostly just waffle but I thought I'd post it anyway, although the bit about London Birmingham Airport did catch my eye :shok:

TTG Interview: Paul Kehoe, Birmingham airport chief executive



For someone who runs the UK’s seventh largest airport, Paul Kehoe is notably concerned about other modes of transport.



Within a couple of minutes of my entering his office - complete with a view of Birmingham airport’s busy runway and an endless stream of jets taking off and landing - he is excitedly showing me the location of the proposed High Speed rail station that is set to be built close by.

“Already by dint of the existing geography, we’re one of the best connected airports by rail in the country and that’s going to get better with HS2,” Kehoe says, adding that despite opposition to the proposed rail scheme, he is still hopeful the project will go ahead. “We will be the first airport to get an HS2 station in 10 years’ time. That process will start - I’m convinced of it.”

The new train line is understandably a big deal for the airport and the Midlands region, in effect moving Birmingham airport 70 miles nearer to London in travelling time, according to Kehoe.

“That’s closer than Gatwick, closer than Stansted, closer than London Luton and only 10 minutes further than Heathrow Terminal 5.”

This poses an interesting question: like a number of other airports near the capital, could we one day see a London Birmingham airport?

“There are no plans today to do that, but I couldn’t hold my successor to say… if a travel agent was looking at London airports on some future screen, there wouldn’t be a London Birmingham. That may happen - [but it’s] not our plan today to call it London Birmingham,” he quickly adds.

National asset
This sentiment highlights the split personality of the airport: on the one hand it’s proudly regional, but on the other its proximity to London means it keeps a watchful eye on the likes of Heathrow and Gatwick.

“That’s not to say we want to be a London airport,” Kehoe insists. “What we’re saying is there is a role we can play if there are capacity constraints in the London market… but it’s very clear: we are a national asset for the Midlands region.”

The airport is 49% owned by seven boroughs in the West Midlands, with an employee trust holding just under 3%. The rest is controlled by a Canadian pension plan and an Australian investment fund.

Kehoe, who has spent time in charge of a number of regional airports, says this structure reinforces a strong sense of local identity, but he also concedes that it is still a battle to convince people to fly from Birmingham, given the huge amount of competition among other UK airports.

“Eighty per cent of passengers originate from a one-hour catchment area around the airport,” he says.

“A lot of passengers over the years have taken a different behaviour path in that they’ve gone to a ring of airports around us.”

Data from the CAA for the 55 UK airports paints a pretty skewed picture. Heathrow sucks in just under a third of all passengers, with the biggest eight airports accounting for 80% of the market.

“Are there too many airports? Probably yes in the southern half of the UK,” Kehoe admits.

Heathrow’s dominance could be further enshrined if Sir Howard Davies decides to recommend the building of a new runway when he publishes his full report in summer 2015.

The commission has already shortlisted two options at the west-London hub, which will be judged alongside an additional runway at Gatwick.

Birmingham’s proposal was chiefly concerned with utilisingits spare capacity to take some of the strain.

“We lose about three million passengers a year to other airports in the south-east, so if we can get a percentage of those back - even 10% - that’s 300,000 passengers. And that’s a big impact to us,” he says.

Gatwick support
Kehoe later concedes that if he had to choose a preferred option, it would be Heathrow’s rival: “Davies must think long and hard before he makes a recommendation for runway three at Heathrow. It perhaps should be runway two at Gatwick.”

Birmingham’s own capacity issues were aided earlier this year following the completion of works to extend its runway at a cost of £40 million, enabling the airport to handle a fully laden Airbus A380. Kehoe, however, is keen to stress that airlines are not automatically going to flock to the airport just because it can now accommodate all aircraft.

“Having the capability is one thing - market opportunity is what will decide it,” he admits. “We can’t force any airline to fly here. The opportunity is here now. For some markets, we will never get a service because we’re just not going to get the critical mass.”

As if to illustrate his point, Kehoe gesticulates towards the window, where an Emirates jet is taxiing on the runway. This, he says, is proof of the powerful pull of regional airports.

“Fourteen years ago, that aeroplane didn’t operate - it’s twice a day now. Emirates has created a market and effectively repatriated passengers up to Birmingham, rather than clogging the roads [by driving to London] and filling their planes at Heathrow - which means they’ve got more capacity at Heathrow for the London market,” he adds.

For Kehoe, other strategically important airlines include China Southern, which this week put on the first of three return flights between Birmingham and Beijing.

The airport is also serviced by a Boeing 787 Dreamliner courtesy of Air India and this month got another through Thomson Airways.

Kehoe says that Birmingham helps airlines to achieve decent load factors and bristles at critics who cite the fact that it is operating at half its capacity compared with the likes of Heathrow, which is almost full - in part, he says, because airlines can guarantee their business class will be filled.

“I think it’s unfair because actually every aeroplane we’ve got flying out of here is 70-80% full - so people do want to fly here,” he says.

“The airlines want to fly to Heathrow and they condition their passengers to do the same. Why? Because the front of the cabin is definitely filled at Heathrow because of London.”

Kehoe’s belief that regional airports can help to solve some of the short to medium-term capacity issues will take another step forward with Birmingham’s new submission to the Airports Commission due this week.

The draw of London and the power of Heathrow have, if anything, become more evident after the worst recession in living memory, as the rest of the country outside of the south-east bubble continues to try to strike a balance between courting the capital and forging their own regional identity.

“All the pieces are in place - we just need the market to know about it and we need the economy to drive the opportunity. But it’s going to be mainly inbound because we’re not advertising for London passengers,” says Kehoe.

“What we want are passengers from our communities to fly from the local airport - not to travel to other airports, not to travel down to London.”

Come next summer, Kehoe will find out the scale of the challenge he will face.

http://www.ttgdigital.com/news/ttg-inte ... 06.article

 

[Hassaan]

London Birmingham airport - is this not just Boris Johnson's mind running away with him again? 😀

 

[BHXsupporter]

Operations flexibility for arrival time?

I was interested by Ray Finkel's comment under a recent picture of the United flight arriving 30 minutes early

United 757 N48127 arriving 30mins early meaning a long wait to get onto stand

.'

I'm dismayed too frequently in so many aspects of 'UK PLC's' approach to service. Perhaps the comment implies another lurking beneath the surface or perhaps this truly must be so in airport operations. I look to others with the technical insights, but if I were a manager at BHX wishing to run 'a good ship' I would wish to engender flexibility in all operating company approaches to deviations from the expected - it is not a cost to go the extra mile; it can attract followers. Thus I would be disappointed if truly an aeroplane arriving early, having been blown by winds outwith its control, couldn't be dealt with in some way to avoid passengers having to wait, in this case perhaps 30 minutes (wretched at the end of a long trip).

There may be a torrent of ' Yes, but ' responses for airport operational reasons but I would be interested to know how disruptive a working target of flexibility would be - another parking stand, perhaps a remote stand and a bus driver willing and able to transport them, a new security line suddenly staffed by those allowed to bring their drinks from a break to their desks with a smile, ... ? Other offerings? Or is it that salaries are low - driven by vulture (sorry venture) owners like Swissport - and there is an overall reflex gloom of ' Why should we? ' that prevents UK PLC to triumph over mediocrity?

:whiteflag:

 

[Brum X]

A good point made there mate, i thought that was a bit strange too, especially in the middle of the busy summer season, and 30 mins is nothing.

BHX is supposed to be a 24/7 operation. Aircraft are gonna arrive early all the time, weather and stuff like that can determine aircraft arriving early, it cant be helped some times.

 

[Brummiegem]

The unfortunate thing is that the United flight arrived so early.At that time of day many stands are occupied by night stopping aircraft,and occasionally one may get delayed for whatever reason.These things happen at airports every day.
As far as parking on a remote stand,correct me if I'm wrong but I believe UAL pay for an air-bridge so unless the company requests a remote stand the flight will usually wait for an air-bridge to become available.
It is one of those unfortunate instances where arriving early is not quite advantageous for anyone.
Annoying maybe but nothing to get too worked up about.

 

[Ray Finkle]

There's some rather exotic approach paths today, I'm assuming weather avoidance.

The first one I chopped the bottom of the picture off but it left the English Channel around the Bournemouth area then turned right performing a large dog leg over London.

 

[Ray Finkle]

The rumour of BHX being sold is being discussed again. Although there is nothing official the suspicions are that the recent cull of senior management is in preparation for a potential sale. The council have always denied this but if the NEC can go then I'd say nothing is safe and if they need the money that badly then who knows.

He didn’t talk about Birmingham Airport, although the same principles might be thought to apply in times of financial austerity for councils. The question remains unanswered: is it sensible for the seven West Midlands councils to retain a 49 per cent ownership of the airport, or should they cash in and move on?

The airport’s masterplan for development up to 2030 envisages further expansion and raises the possibility of a second runway. It’s estimated that Birmingham Airport could handle 70 million passengers a year compared to about nine million now.

Clearly, the investment required to deliver such an ambitious plan could only come from the private sector. As things stand, two foreign pension funds own 48.25 per cent of the airport. It is debatable whether the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan and Victoria Funds Management Corporation would have the heart for the scale of investment required and, crucially, be prepared to face the risks attached to massively expanding an airport.

Rumours persist that Birmingham Airport is being lined up for disposal. Some senior members of staff have left recently, most notably John Morris, the public affairs director, and the suspicion is that costs are being reduced in preparation for a sale.

This is denied by Birmingham city council. A spokeswoman for Sir Albert Bore said the leader was “mystified” by a claim that the airport was up for sale…..which is almost a denial.

Full article: http://www.thechamberlainfiles.com/summ ... wn-jewels/

 

[andrew.clarkson]

Hi there ray, if the rumours are correct and i hope they are about the airport being put up for sale, lets hope that who ever does purchase it either, any private equity company on behalf of a multi national conglomorate consortium who can then come in clear the present management board out of the way, bring in a new board with fresh new ideas, and to take Birmingham Airport to new heights where it can have the proper needed investment injected into to it to move forward and to hopefully play a major part in the Uk aviation industry and not just struggling along where its at present just handling over 9,120,259 for last years figures.....lets hope ray......andyc

 

[Ray Finkle]

An interesting article with Mr Kehoe about the difficulties of getting passengers from Shropshire to use BHX as their departure point. I'm quite surprised that as little as 200,000 of BHX's passengers last year originated from the county but he's right about the M54 joining the M6 at the 'wrong side' of the toll road, anyone who uses it knows the section from J10 down to the M42 link is horrendous at the best of times. You can't help but feel that at certain times of the day it's easier for those living north of Wolverhampton to travel to MAN than face the M6/M42 to BHX.

Airport sets its sights on Shropshire

You don’t have to tell me about the qualities of Shropshire,” says Paul Kehoe, the chief executive of Birmingham Airport, as he gazes over the runway from the giant panoramic window in his top-floor office, writes Carl Jones.

“The Iron Bridge, Shrewsbury and the River Severn, Much Wenlock and its Olympic connections, the aerospace museum at Cosford – I consider it all an important part of the product we are offering from here.”

That no doubt comes as music to the ears of tourism marketing bosses, but looking the other way, just how strongly are the people of Shropshire connecting with the second city’s fast-growing airport?

The answer is, not nearly as much as officials feel that they should. Of the nine million passengers who passed through the terminals in the past year, fewer than 200,000 of those came from the county.

“That’s not enough,” Paul says bluntly. “We need to reach out to the Shropshire area more, and improve that.” But he knows this could be easier said than done.

The 55-year-old, who has been at the helm in Birmingham since 2008, acknowledges that travellers in many parts of Shropshire view Manchester as their first-choice hub.

Paul Kehoe
“If you can avoid the M6 and go up the A49 or A41 through Whitchurch, it is as quick going that way as coming down to here.

“So Shropshire is tough for us. There’s the ease of the M54, but when you get to junction 10 you often find yourself stopped, or stop-start. It doesn’t help that it’s just south of the toll road. If it was the other side, we might have more of a fighting chance.

“It helps us that the railway network points in our direction. The new Shropshire-to-London service can certainly work for us, if it stops at Birmingham International. It’s certainly easier than getting a train up to Manchester.”

He continues: “What we’re selling from here are attractions and facilities which are probably within an hour’s travel. It’s fair game for us to say that anything within a 60-mile radius can be claimed as a Birmingham product. So our leisure offering would include the likes of Ironbridge, The Wrekin, Shrewsbury, and Cosford aero museum.

“But equally so would the i54, Telford new town, and Donnington army base from a business point of view. We’re selling that economic engine that is one hour’s radius around Birmingham.”

Trial flights from China are being introduced to Birmingham over the coming months, and Paul believes it could potentially open up a huge new business market for the region.

“The likes of the Chinese think England and London are one and the same, so somehow, we have got to get a point on the map up here that they can relate to.

“Much Wenlock might be famous as the birthplace of the Olympic games, but on a map which hardly even shows Birmingham, how are we going to brand ourselves? And so, even though some of the outlying districts don’t always like it, in the end we just call it all Birmingham.

“When I came here, I did think it would be easier to sell to the 4×4 driving, Shakespeare-loving, chocolate-eating person because of the way the web could help to connect those local brands together. But that has been the biggest challenge, connecting with the world using the great brands that we’ve got.

“We’ll keep trying on that one, but I haven’t cracked it yet.”
Paul Kehoe has, however, ‘cracked’ quite a lot in the six years since he took over Birmingham’s top job, when the UK aviation industry was in the doldrums.

He was no stranger to the aviation sector, having started his career as an air traffic controller, and recalls his early training introducing him to Shropshire, through stints at RAF Shawbury.

He then worked for a variety of companies in the industry, including British Aerospace, Serco, and TBI plc, before becoming managing director of both Luton and Bristol airports.
It’s difficult to ‘lose’ an airport the size of Gatwick, but that’s essentially what had happened within months of his move to Birmingham.

“Yes, in the year 2009–10, about 35 million passengers stopped flying in the UK system as the recession began to bite,” he reflects. “That’s the number of passengers who go through Gatwick.”

“We’re currently in a growth phase, but three or four years later we are still down from that point by an airport the side of Stansted, which has 18 million passengers.”

Against that backdrop, it’s little wonder he considers his six-year tenure at the head of the West Midlands’ leading airport as a challenging period of his career.

Mother nature hasn’t helped either. He casts his mind back to April 2010 when the eruption of the Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajökull closed airspace for nine days. “We lost the best part of two million quid in revenue through that,” he reveals.

“We’re now at the back end of the low-cost airline revolution phase. When it really got going in the early 2000s, it was something Birmingham really didn’t really take a part in.

“So, when we had our best year, in 2008–09, with 9.6 million passengers, it was when Ryanair turned up and put lots of traffic through. That was just before we had lots of airline failures like Bmi Baby and others that came and went.

“Ryanair, Flybe and Monarch have all done reasonably well, and there is a boom at the moment, with Birmingham growing at about four per cent, but I still think the market is incredibly challenging.

“Although we’ve bounced back and just had five months of growth, with both April and May this year being record months for us, I’m still a tad nervous of the market as a whole.

“The airport had a relationship with British Airways going back 60-odd years which was very fruitful, and we as a company kept other players out of the market because we loved British Airways so much, so when they left us in 2007 and pulled out of UK regional markets, I think it was a bit of a shock to us.

“The loss of BA was a psychological blow to the community and the airport, and a financial blow to the airport company. It was horrendous. We never went into loss making, but we have been working our way back to serious profitability since then on the back of low-cost traffic as we rebuild our business.”

Birmingham Airport faces challenges winning over Shropshire business travellers

So much of what happens at Birmingham is out of the control of the airport company itself. Paul is responsible for a workforce of around 600, but that’s barely 10 per cent of the total number of people employed on site.

So, when French air traffic controllers decide to strike, there are grumbles about passport control, issues surrounding retail services or delays over late arrival of baggage, he’s not the man in charge.

And yet, it is Paul, the boss, whose head is highest above the parapet when it comes to fielding the complaints.

On my visit, there were a staggering 370,000 minutes of delays in the European airline system – many having knock-on effects for Birmingham which Paul and his team were powerless to address.

Paul is broadly welcoming of chancellor George Osborne’s latest pledge to create a northern counterweight to the London-obsessed transport system, with the help of both HS2 and HS3 rail links.

“We are supporters of HS2, but the thought of having a crossroads between HS2 and HS3 at Manchester Airport is a real competitive threat to us.”

Even without getting into the argument about whether Birmingham should build a second runway – another political hot potato – the site has the capacity to more than double its current passenger base of around nine million people a year.

“The runway itself is now what’s called a balanced runway of 3,000 metres and its theoretical capacity is around 30 million passengers a year.
“It depends on many factors such as size and frequency of aeroplane, but there is no doubt that the capability is more than double the levels we are operating at today. And that would represent doubling the jobs at this airport too.”

But for more big-name airlines to choose Birmingham, they need to see a potential business customer base to fill the lucrative seats at the front end of the plane.

Paul says: “The most successful example of what can be achieved here is Emirates, which has gone from zero to being, possibly, this time next year, our most voluminous service, possibly overtaking Dublin.”
So what’s on Paul Kehoe’s ‘to do’ list over the coming months? Have his priorities changed?

“Well, it isn’t the job I thought it was, when I agreed to first come. When I came here, I thought the job was going to be a silver bullet to be honest. I thought I’d just get in here and sort it out. I was asked to transform the business and that’s what we’ve done.

“We’ve built a new pier, built a car park, put the two terminals together, built a hangar, built a control tower, lengthened the runway, downsized our staff, and we insource rather than outsource activities, changing the culture.

“The one thing that has eluded me to some extent, I think, is the market presence. We still struggle, but we have been doing all this in the worst aviation recession in 60 years, so should I beat myself up too much?
“I don’t know, because if you look at the graph showing loss of airport passengers in that time, we’ve actually been the least affected of UK airports. So, we haven’t done such a bad job.

“Most things that happen here are out of our control, whether it’s a power outage in customs and excise, a fuel-tank failure which means we can’t get fuel here, a French air traffic control strike, or a volcano . . . it just goes on.”

“But consumers are becoming more and more intolerant. They want it now, they want it perfect, and they deserve it.”
Elsewhere . . . County has hub reservations

Should Shropshire businesses be supporting the planned expansion of Heathrow Airport, and its controversial third runway?

That was the question posed at a breakfast briefing, ‘Heathrow Airport – One Hub or None?’, at the Buckatree Hall Hotel in Telford.

Chamber president Keith Winter with Andrew Macmillan
Andrew Macmillan, the airport’s director of strategy, travelled to the county to address the gathering, hosted by Shropshire Chamber of Commerce.

And the consensus in the room? A broad, but slightly reserved vote of confidence for the airport’s expansion plans.

With Heathrow – the UK’s only ‘hub’ airport linking us with the rest of the world – now operating at 98 per cent capacity, Mr Macmillan said expansion at the west London site was vital to prevent it losing touch with the rest of the world.

“We have the busiest two runways in the world, with planes landing or taking off every 45 seconds, and airlines unable to expand due to insufficient slots.

“Our model is different to other UK airports. As a hub, we are not competing with other UK airports, but with other hub airports such as Dubai, which is about to overtake us as the busiest in the world, for the first time.

“I am aware that some in Shropshire cannot understand why expansion should not take place instead at the likes of Birmingham where there is spare capacity. But this is not a choice between Birmingham or Heathrow. It is a case of saying do we want to have one of these hub airports in the UK or not, because we can only have one of them, and Heathrow is clearly where the demand lies.”

Nic Laurens, managing director of Severn Diamond Limited in Shrewsbury, once took 143 flights in a 12-month period, and while he said he backed Heathrow’s expansion plans, he added: “I still don’t believe it is good enough for the people of Shropshire.

“We are going to have a rail link to London, but it still requires a change, so most people are going to have to drive – and there is a suggestion of a congestion charge once you arrive, which immediately puts me off.”
Mandy Thorn, head of Marches Care in Shrewsbury, agreed that the new-look Heathrow would be “dead in the water from Shropshire’s point of view” if it imposed a congestion charge.

Simon Macvicker, Shropshire Chamber’s chairman of policy and managing director of Bridgnorth Aluminium Limited, said there was clearly more work to be done on the connectivity side. But he said it was “tremendously heartening” that airport officials were prepared to venture to the county to seek the views of the business community.

Chamber chief executive Richard Sheehan said: “We want to see Birmingham Airport flourish, but we can also see there is clearly wider value in the Heathrow expansion.”

http://www.shropshirebusinesstoday.co.u ... -approach/

 

[Ray Finkle]

Birmingham Airport reports 2013/14 profits up by 4.9% - invests £28.4 million in improved facilities

Birmingham Airport have released their financial results for the year ended 31 March 2014

Turnover for the year increased by 5.8% with profits after tax up 4.9% driven by a 3.7%
increase in passenger numbers to 9,250,997 - long haul traffic in the year was up 13.3%

The financial year saw Birmingham Airport achieve a number of significant milestones -

+ The new Air Traffic Control Tower went into service in April 2013
+ A new fleet of state of the art Oshkosh Fire fighting vehicles was acquired in June 2013
+ Air India returned to the airport with a "dreamliner" service in August 2013
+ August 2013 was the second busiest month in the airport's history
+ Monarch Aircraft Engineering opened their new hangar in November 2013
+ The airport hosted the last ever DC 10 passenger flight in February 2014
+ Work continued throughout the year on the 400 metre runway extension

The airport invested £28.4 million on capital projects during the financial year - up from £19.3 million
in the previous year - including the 400 metre runway extension, the resurfacing of the existing runway,
improved airfield drainage and infrastructure work for the new hangar for Monarch Aircraft Engineering

Looking forward to 2014/15 the extended runway went into service in May 2014 and driven by the
expansion of new routes and services, many operated by flybe, the passenger numbers are now at
record levels for the first time since before the recession started in 2008 with the airport on target
to handle over 10 million passengers for the first time in 2015/16

Birmingham Airport Holding Limited
Financial highlights year ended 31 March 2014
£'000

Turnover 2013/14 - 113,754 up 5.8%
Turnover 2012/13 - 107,504

Profit after tax 2013/14 - 12,462 up 4.9%
Profit after tax - 2012/13 - 10,849

Passenger numbers 2013/14 - 9,250,997 up 3.7%
Passenger numbers 2012/13 - 8,919,218

Passenger numbers growth in 2013/14 by market sector -
- Long haul + 13.3%
- Full service scheduled + 3.3%
- Low cost + 3.5%
- Charter/Inclusive tour + 1.1%

Dublin remained the most popular destination marginally ahead of Dubai and Amsterdam

Birmingham Airport is a public/private partnership. The current shareholders include the
seven West Midlands District Councils 49%, Airport Group Investments Ltd. (AGIL), a
limited company owned by the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan (Teachers') and Australia's
Victorian Funds Management Corp (VFMC) 48.25% and the Employee Share Trust 2.75%

http://bhxflightguide.blogspot.co.uk/20 ... hxafr.html

Here is the full report if anyone fancies reading all 37 pages.

PDF Document https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j ... 1344,d.ZGU

 

[Ray Finkle]

the passenger numbers are now at
record levels for the first time since before the recession started in 2008 with the airport on target
to handle over 10 million passengers for the first time in 2015/16

This comment stood out to me, although I don't think it's from an official airport source. We're on for a good year this year but that is mostly down to the big expansion from Flybe, next will be different and whilst there may be more increases I'd imagine any new routes/frequencies will be merely a shift in capacity from elsewhere, with the number of seats available being roughly the same.

Monarch at the moment are an aircraft and 22 flights down for 2015, they have stated there may be more to come but we don't know yet to what extent, if at all, BHX will be included. If we do see something added I can't see it being much more capacity than we have seen this year.

Thomas Cook will have an extra based A320 although if the Monarch timetable stays as it is it'll be pretty much cancelled out.

Thomson have added a couple of routes and the extra rotation to Cancun is definitely welcome.

Ryanair haven't expanded for a while and I don't think there is anything on the cards.

Emirates seem stuck on 2x daily for now, likewise Turkish on 10x weekly. I think to pass 10 mppa we'd need at least one to budge.

Air India to go daily from November, an extra 1500 seats or so available each week.

Air Transat have an A330 for an extra 4 weeks next year but that's only another 400 seats for the whole season.

PIA seem all over the place at the moment with several aircraft not flying, the Saturday flight is currently unavailable and last weekend Sunday didn't operate either.

I'm not aware whether Aegean have confirmed if they'll be back with Athens next summer, hopefully they will and not to forget Icelandair starting in Feb.

So, even taking into account a best case scenario from Monarch, is there enough there to break the 10mppa barrier next year without a significant development? I'm not so sure.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Ray - it does say 2015/2016 so perhaps 2016 will be the year if 2015 is a stretch too far.