Air Malta

[News Guru]

[textarea]Air Malta announces additional flights from Cardiff Airport

Air Malta has announced an extra four services from Cardiff Airport.

The additional flights will start on Tuesday April 8, four weeks earlier than originally planned, to satisfy expected public demand over the Spring/ Easter period.

The direct flights from Cardiff Airport to Malta are programmed to depart every Tuesday through to October 21.

Read more: http://www.walesonline.co.uk/business/b ... ts-6471411[/textarea]

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Obviously any additional flights are welcome but Air Malta seems to have commenced its 2014 season a month earlier at many if not all its UK airports. Bristol and Exeter airports begin a month earlier, as at Cardiff for example.

My hobby horse about airline and airport spin surfaces again.

The CWL chief executive says “It’s great that Air Malta is expanding its operation from Cardiff, helping to continue the strong historic links that exist between the island and Wales."

What he doesn't say is that last summer Air Malta flew twice weekly to CWL but in summer 2014 the second flight (on Fridays) will not operate.

So despite the Tuesday flight beginning a month earlier the overall result in summer 2014 will be contraction not expansion.

 

[CraigW92]

It appears that Air Malta have axed the Summer 17 flight schedule from Cardiff.

Apparently Under a new proposed business plan and direction that the airline is being taken in with Alitalia, European destinations are to be cut by a 1/3, and instead focus and frequency will be on North Africa and the Middle East.

Article below on the future of Air Malta:-

http://www.timesofmalta.com/article...ew-direction-south-under-proposed-plan.622585


Very dissaponting in losing an airline and also the fact that Holiday packages and a destination have been lost with this, Thomas cook and TUI both took a percentage onboard.

BRS, BHX, MAN and LGW remain in the Thomson booking engine

 

[TheLocalYokel]

That means that only BRS would have Malta flights from south west Britain because EXT appears to have gone as well (based on the TOM booking engine).

I can't think that such a popular holiday destination would be left unserved. I'd expect TOM or TCX to operate it from CWL either themselves or by a third party airline on their behalf.

In addition to Air Malta in summer, Ryanair also operates to Malta from Bristol year-round - 3 x weekly in summer and 2 x weekly in winter, so there is a lot of traffic to fight for.

 

[CraigW92]

That means that only BRS would have Malta flights from south west Britain because EXT appears to have gone as well (based on the TOM booking engine).

I can't think that such a popular holiday destination would be left unserved. I'd expect TOM or TCX to operate it from CWL either themselves or by a third party airline on their behalf.

In addition to Air Malta in summer, Ryanair also operates to Malta from Bristol year-round - 3 x weekly in summer and 2 x weekly in winter, so there is a lot of traffic to fight for.

Add in the fact Thomas Cook have a new weekly Malta flight from BRS operating on Thursdays from April, MLA is very well catered from BRS.

Very interesting times in terms of the future for Air Malta and the change in direction, it'll be interesting as you say if any airline picks this up, wether this be a W pattern aircraft from MLA or a gap is made in the current schedule ( Thursday's DLM changed to a third party carrier for example).

 

[Jerry]

Sad news. Hopefully another airline will pick the route up but i do struggle to think who would do it unless it's a charter working on behalf of another airline. Hopefully something will happen!

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Add in the fact Thomas Cook have a new weekly Malta flight from BRS operating on Thursdays from April, MLA is very well catered from BRS.

Very interesting times in terms of the future for Air Malta and the change in direction, it'll be interesting as you say if any airline picks this up, wether this be a W pattern aircraft from MLA or a gap is made in the current schedule ( Thursday's DLM changed to a third party carrier for example).

I'd forgotten about Thomas Cook. I wonder if it's in anticipation of Air Malta pulling out from BRS.

 

[marsh.ger]

The problem here is that getting another operator who maybe willing to take the risk along with being prepared for airlines to take allocations on their aircraft.

Thomas Cook / Thomson between them took about 80-90 seats on the air malta flights every week.

Thinking out of the box has the E195 got the range for Malta? Could flybe operate a weekly Malta knowing that TCX/TOM would take a large seat allocation on the route?

Now this maybe up for contention if we had an additional based aircraft other than that Thomson will just put the flight on from BRS knowing that their current customers at CWL & EXT will travel to BRS.

 

[CraigW92]

I'd forgotten about Thomas Cook. I wonder if it's in anticipation of Air Malta pulling out from BRS.

Could well be Local, although if the yield is strong on the BRS route this could be why it remains for S17, although with Thomas Cook now having there own service, I imagine TOM have taken more or less the majority of the aicraft for there bookings hence this could be a reason why we might not see anything from CWL, compensated so to speak.

The problem here is that getting another operator who maybe willing to take the risk along with being prepared for airlines to take allocations on their aircraft.

Thomas Cook / Thomson between them took about 80-90 seats on the air malta flights every week.

Thinking out of the box has the E195 got the range for Malta? Could flybe operate a weekly Malta knowing that TCX/TOM would take a large seat allocation on the route?

Now this maybe up for contention if we had an additional based aircraft other than that Thomson will just put the flight on from BRS knowing that their current customers at CWL & EXT will travel to BRS.

I think the range of the Embraer 195 is around the 1,500 NM mark however I'm not 100% unsure. As to Flybe I'd be surprised if that happened, especially when you look at the structure of the airline, Having that aircraft essentially do a 7 hour around trip doesn't seem likely in my opinion. It's worth noting however that Aboth charter companies did take seats on BEs Faro service this summer and also Thomson appear to have taken seats on Vueling to PMI towards to end of this summer.

I'd say if there was to be a continuation on Malta then this would have to come from a W pattern aircraft from MLA or a gap will be made in the current schedule. Vueling don't seem to have a big presence there with only one or two routes, which is a shame, would have said they would be ideal to take it over, at a 1 X weekly frequency I think would do very well especially now passengers are more aware about the VY product which has been built up very well.

I agree with your last Paragrapgh, A bigger TOM presence not in the sense of endless new destinations, but a mixture of new and frequency increases in current ones would open the door to many more opportunities and further growth, however sadly both TOM and TCX don't seem to be Interested.

Would be a shame to lose MLA entiley, always seems to be very popular during the summer, hopefully something can be sorted with regards to this route changing hands for Summer 17.

 

[Jerry]

I think the range of the Embraer 195 is around the 1,500 NM mark however I'm not 100% unsure

The range of Flybe's E195 is 2000 nmi because they are the longe range version. So it would definitely have the range as Malta is about 1400 miles away. I think it would have to be a 3 aircraft base for Flybe to do MLA but it is achievable. I would guess a once a week flight on a Sunday.