Archive Route Development & Rumours

[ebtbroken]

Current talk is KU not until 2019 now to coincide with the opening of the new airport in Kuwait

 

[jfy1999]

VLM

Been reported on the other forum that they have applied for slots to serve Antwerp and Ostend.

 

[ebtbroken]

VLM

Been reported on the other forum that they have applied for slots to serve Antwerp and Ostend.

Got to hand it to them they won't admit defeat on Antwerp.

 

[Scottie Dog]

Well I don't think that we expected this one......

Ryanair to start Belfast International to Manchester. Effective 25th March as FR5881/FR5882. Provisional times arrive 1530 and depart 1600. All times are Zulu time.

 

[Jerry]

That is a surprise! Going up against Easyjet and Flybe to BHD. Just 1 daily flight though?

 

[Scottie Dog]

And another. This time Air France from CDG twice per week effective 26th March.

AF2000/AF2001 - Monday arrive 1150, depart 1235
AF2000/AF2001 - Friday arrive 0900, depart 0945

All times are Zulu.

Flight numbers are out of sequence with our current services for the route and therefore are likely to change.

 

[Scottie Dog]

That is a surprise! Going up against Easyjet and Flybe to BHD. Just 1 daily flight though?

Yes, at present it is just the once daily. Hopefully there will not to too much of an adverse effect on our present incumbents.

 

[David_itl]

Part of the opinion piece in the Evening News by the CEO of MAN:

"And yesterday, members of my team have jetted off to China to progress discussions with a number of airlines interested in launching further new routes into Manchester.

We have worked hard to influence a new UK-China deal that enables an increase in the number of weekly flights between the two nations, with a condition that the extra capacity is used at non-London airports."

 

[jfy1999]

India

IndiGo have applied to serve London, Birmingham and Manchester from October 2018 and Jet Airways are looking at BHX and MAN for expansion outside London.

Full reports here and here

 

[Silvercity]

VLM

Been reported on the other forum that they have applied for slots to serve Antwerp and Ostend.

Ostend is a funny airport....I went there years ago on a Sabena Beechcraft from Heathrow. The terminal was large and empty as this was I think the only service. I also flew there from Lydd once too.

 

[David_itl]

"Partnership chairman Andrew Cowan, chief executive of Manchester Airport, said in a statement on Tuesday that securing a direct service was one of his number one priorities.

He wrote: “The business case is almost proven and it is fair to say we have had lots of encouraging dialogue already with a range of Indian airlines. We hope the formation of this partnership will contribute to these discussions becoming even more meaningful in the weeks and months ahead."


http://indiagbnews.com/enterprise/m...ng-dialogue-direct-manchester-india-air-link/

 

[Aceshigh]

I've often said that the stewardship of Manchester Airport is fluid , the current board members will be gone in 5 maybe 10 years.

Just following up on a number of points raised by other posters, I do wonder if Charlie Cornish time as CEO may be coming to an end ?

He has presided over significant growth of which he will claim credit and has put in place the building blocks for significant growth.

Joint partnerships,

The purchase of Stansted Airport.

Offloading Bournemouth.

AND of course "clearing the scrubland " for Airport City.

And let's not forget those all important dividends for greater Manchester !

Only Airport City might be considered a hiccup on the CV although even here he can point to a collection of warehouses on the Southside and some bold "in conjuction with" posters relying to Chinese interests but sadly not much else.

There is of course much more to do but might he sit back this summer and think of rewards elsewhere ?

Just a thought!

 

[Land23R]

Interesting point Aces. He can also refer to the TP at MAN and significant infrastructure development at STN, although he may want to wait until they are a little further advanced.
Another aspect of his role is his relationship and influence with Government (and yes, Grayling), the Business community, and regional organisations such as TfN etc. as well as within aviation itself. From our outside perspective, it's probably difficult to assess his contribution on that score.

When it comes to route development, isn't progress (or lack of) more down to the local CEO at MAN & STN rather than CC? Too early to judge Andrew Cowan on that asect but Ken O'Toole certainly notched up some achievements.

As EGCC_MAN has pointed out, Cowan's recent comments are what you'd expect him to say of what his Business Development Team should be doing anyway. His reference to "weeks and months" re direct flights to India didn't to me suggest an announcement was imminent or even certain at some stage, but then I freely admit to my glass half empty mantle. It's always a nice surprise then if something does materialise!

 

[jfy1999]

Biman Bangladesh?

They are getting 787-8 aircraft and have indicated Manchester is on their radar according to this article from Ch-aviation.

 

[David_itl]

Here's may be one for future (i.e. after 2020)... Virgin to Miami. Although the cruisers are adult only, throw in Virgin Holidays selling capacity and scope for a 2 or 3 weekly A330 service.

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/business/fl-bz-viring-voyages-hq-new-jobs-20180214-story.html

 

[Borneobob]

When the TP is completed how much more space will we have? What new airlines on new and existing routes might we expect to see at MAN.
Will we ever see Wizz or Blue start services to the underserved Eastern European destinations.
What about WOW, KU, Biman, flights to India, Thailand, Malaysia, and maybe somewhere in sub Saharan Africa?

 

[EGCC_MAN]

I would expect most future growth to come from established based carriers such as EasyJet, Ryanair, Jet2 and Thomas Cook. That is the usual pattern. But new names are always welcome.

Airlines which have already expressed an interest in MAN services - demonstrated by applying for slots but not immediately taking them up - are a good start point for speculation. Recently, these have included LOT, El Al, Air Baltic, Air Ukraine, Spicejet, Croatia Airlines, Tunisair, Kuwait Airways, Pegasus (scheduled service to SAW) and others. Their historic slot applications suggest that MAN may be a long-term objective for their respective businesses. As you know, a number of names from India and China are frequently discussed on here, though their applications must clear a number of political and administrative hurdles. Bangladesh Biman has also expressed interest in a return to MAN, as has Air Blue of Pakistan.

WOW Air is trickier. Their hub is Keflavik, a route solidly served from MAN by Icelandair, EasyJet and TUI Airways UK. Is there really room for more? Wizz and Blue Air have established relationships with nearby airports including LPL, DSA and BHX. They have so far resisted agreeing any deal with MAN. However, Eastern Europe is arguably the weakest area of MAN's route portfolio and the business is there if mutually acceptable terms could be negotiated. Wizz would seem the better prospect to me: in their early days they were like embryonic Ryanair focusing on tiny airports where they could wield alot of clout. Now they are seen at many major airports around Europe, so their philosophy has evolved. MAN could be in with a shout eventually.

 

[Silvercity]

When the TP is completed how much more space will we have? What new airlines on new and existing routes might we expect to see at MAN.
Will we ever see Wizz or Blue start services to the underserved Eastern European destinations.
What about WOW, KU, Biman, flights to India, Thailand, Malaysia, and maybe somewhere in sub Saharan Africa?

Wizz and Blue are already serving Liverpool, surely there is enough for MAN to go for rather than try and poach established airlines already serving the NW.

 

[David_itl]

So i take those people who dont like MAN getting 'their' airline will do their utmost to get their airport to not strike deals with any MAN airline. Or does it not work like that?

 

[EGCC_MAN]

Wizz and Blue are already serving Liverpool, surely there is enough for MAN to go for rather than try and poach established airlines already serving the NW.

This is idealistic thinking. I understand the sentiment, but the reality is that these airports compete in a free market environment. If we are to be well-informed we must discuss the market as is, not how it would be under a protectionist economic model. Right now, if BHX/EMA/LPL/MAN/LBA/DSA can win business at the expense of each other, they will. That's the way it works. Of course, many hold objections to the competition is healthy mantra, but right now the free market holds sway. Whether or not that should change is a matter for future politicians to consider.

Addressing the issue of services to Eastern Europe in particular, MAN is substantially under-represented in this market segment. Warsaw (via Modlin) is served just three times weekly. Latent demand is way higher than that. And that is one of several comparable examples in Eastern Europe and the Baltic States. Also, some of these markets are so large that there is no suggestion that a MAN service would result in other nearby airports losing their own links. As we see with popular destinations such as Dublin, Palma, Tenerife and Malaga, demand is sufficient on high-volume routes to support multiple points of departure within a relatively compact geographical region.