Norwegian Air Shuttle

[Bhx_fifteen]

VERY exciting news re LPA and TFS; a true vote of confidence.

Re BCN and MAD not being bookable - they were originally on sale until 22 October. However I have just searched, and MAD is now available until 31st October (reducing from 3 x per week to 2 x per week, flying Wed and Sat instead of Tues Thurs & Sun) and BCN is available until 29 October. There is an additional flight on Sunday 25th October in addition to the usual Mon & Fri and a flight the week after on Thur 29th. It is unclear whether the Sunday flight is a one-off due to half term, but there is definitely a flight on Thur.

I would assume that this extra week of flights is the start of Winter 15/16 schedule and the rest of the flights will be bookable soon - but to sum up, MAD will operate 2 x weekly and BCN most likely 1 x weekly, but possibly remain 2 x weekly - operating days have changed too.

Great news - 5 Norwegian routes from BHX to Spain this coming Winter; who'd have thought? I'm very excited to see how this continues to develop.

P.S. don't forget to spread to word - I'm SURE you all have family and friends who holiday in BCN, MAD, AGP, TFS and/or LPA!!

Regards

 

[Ray Finkle]

BHX_fifteen was spot on, MAD now bookable Wed and Sat, BCN bookable also Thur and Sun

 

[Brummiegem]

This is the news we all wanted to hear.I hope this means NAX is here to stay.
With MON already announcing extra flights for the winter,choice and hopefully good fares will become a regular feature even in the low season.Great stuff :good:

 

[Bhx_fifteen]

Yep just checked and I can see it's bookable too - Winter 15/16 will see 9 weekly Norwegian flights!
leasantry:

Monday - TFS & AGP
Tuesday - N/A
Wedneday - MAD
Thursday - BCN
Friday - TFS, MAD, LPA
Saturday - MAD
Sunday - BCN

:good:

 

[Ray Finkle]

Conformation that the new routes will be year round

Norwegian continues UK expansion with three new routes

Norwegian today announced further expansion in the UK with three new routes set to launch from Edinburgh and Birmingham airports to the Canary Islands this winter. In total, Norwegian is adding almost 100,000 seats between the destinations.

The three new flights went on sale this morning at www.norwegian.co.uk and will operate year round using brand new, 186-seater Boeing 737-800 aircraft with free WiFi for all passengers.

Details of the new flights:

Edinburgh to Tenerife launches on 29 October and will operate twice per week on Thursdays and Saturdays with fares from £59.90, one way
Birmingham to Tenerife launch on 2 November and will operate on Mondays and Fridays, with fares from £49.90, one way
Birmingham to Las Palmas (Gran Canaria) launch on 6 November and will operate on Fridays, with fares from £49.90, one way
The announcement follows on from the introduction of the UK’s first low-cost flight to San Juan in Puerto Rico last month. Norwegian is offering flights to the Caribbean destination from as little as £181 from London Gatwick. The airline also offers low-fare flights between London Gatwick and US destinations including New York, Los Angeles, Orlando, and Fort Lauderdale.

"We are pleased to announce further growth in the UK with the addition of new, winter sun destinations from Edinburgh and Birmingham. Norwegian is committed to offering quality flights at affordable fares whether you are travelling to Scandinavia, Europe or further afield. Our network from the UK now extends to 58 destinations worldwide,” said Thomas Ramdahl, Norwegian’s Chief Commercial Officer.

“We are looking forward to welcoming new and returning customers on our routes to the Canary Islands and San Juan in Puerto Rico from winter 2015,” he continued.

http://media.norwegian.com/en/#/pressre ... es-1159552

 

[jfy1999]

Again NAX will have plenty of competition. It seems this year we'll be adding to existing destinations more than adding new ones.

 

[Ray Finkle]

A bit of variety would be nice but we have to remember that not only are Norwegian a new brand to the region they're also a Scandinavian airline selling flights from Britain to Spain. Entering the market with the 'tried and tested' routes will hopefully build brand awareness and gain them a decent following who will then start to spread the word.

By all accounts the Norwegian on board product is far superior to many of their competitors, hopefully after the travelling public have used them once Norwegian will then be their first port of call for future trips.

Maybe then they can get a little more adventurous

A poster on an alternative forum to this who suggested we would see TFS and LPA for winter has also hinted there are still rumours of a base for S16. Lets hope so :s_yes

 

[Brum X]

This is great news and last week we were all on a downer as another capital city (MAD) would again not be served directly from BHX.
I wish Norweigan all the luck, they are sticking with BHX after the summer and this has to be positive.And some very useful extra capacity to the canary islands which is great.

:good: :good: :good:

 

[Ray Finkle]

There's still S16 flights for Thomson's aircraft number 7 to be confirmed, a potential opportunity?

 

[Bhx_fifteen]

Great if true Ray! Out of interest, do you know how that poster is getting this information? Interesting to see that they were right about TFS and LPA!

I agree Brum X - it's great that (whether Norwegian are doing well or just average) they seem to have faith in Birmingham and they're sticking with us.

I'm also happy that they're adding routes quite gradually - just 3 for summer 15 season and 2 for winter season. Hopefully this means they will gradually build their brand recognition and image in the region, and have longevity. Unlike Flybe who clearly didn't do their homework and added over 10 routes in one season, only to have them all withdrawn the next!

 

[Ray Finkle]

Great if true Ray! Out of interest, do you know how that poster is getting this information? Interesting to see that they were right about TFS and LPA!

Going purely from their posts it appears as if they are an employee of Norwegian although in what capacity I don't know. After the success they have had at LGW they seem to think BHX will grow in a similar way, although on a much smaller scale I imagine. I'm not sure if there is a little insider info there or if it's purely an educated guess but it's all been correct so far.

There has been a conversation on Twitter with someone seemingly disgruntled that MAN hasn't seen any new routes with Norwegian replying that MAN is already well covered so they are going where the demand is. Hopefully that means they have seen the huge gap that BHX has in the Euro network and are ready to exploit it.

The one reservation I have, and it's a long term one, is that Norwegian have most likely been given a good deal by BHX and hopefully that will help them grow. My concern is what happens when that deal runs out, will they revert to the so called 'rack rate' meaning services are cut back to a bare minimum, or worse, or will BHX continue to work with them to grow into the carrier BHX desperately needs? Over the years many BHX airlines/routes seem to have reached the two year point before reduced/ending, I hope this time it's different.

That's a worry for the future though, for now we just need to support them all we can. I'm working on Mrs Finkle for a short break in Tenerife over the winter

 

[thunderchild]

Regarding a potential new UK base - Jet2 have announced a trunk of new routes from EDI, the other UK airport that Norwegian have recently been dabbling in. The list of new routes includes your typical bucket and spade destinations that would be the usual suspects for a new based operator. To me this is Jet2 warning Norwegian to keep well away from EDI.

Personally with RYR, MON, EZY and Jet 2 all at MAN I agree that it is very well covered - even TOM and TCX seem to have reached a peak on Europe for the moment. BHX on the other hand could definitely do with more capacity and I'd say it's far enough away that it wouldn't hinder their LGW base.

Interesting that the poster on another forum who is quite reliable when it comes to Norwegian ops has even hinted at 787 flights from BHX before 2016 is out.

I'd be the first one to say let's no run before we can walk but at the moment everything seems to be in BHX's favour.

 

[Brummiegem]

Having seen the Jet2 reaction at EDI,12 new routes to be precise,makes me wonder if anyone will do something similar here @ BHX.
We know there has been a modest increase from MON and RYR,but there is still plenty of potential from here.
The next few months are going to be very interesting!

 

[Ray Finkle]

Very interesting indeed, I'm particularly interested in what Ryanair may or may not do in S16.

 

[Ray Finkle]

It's good to see Norwegian have been 'delighted with the response from holidaymakers across the Midlands'

Norwegian Expands at Birmingham With New Flights to the Canary Islands

Norwegian has announced further expansion at Birmingham Airport with new routes to Las Palmas and Tenerife launching in November.

The new flights are on sale at www.norwegian.co.uk and will operate year round using brand new, 186-seater Boeing 737-800 aircraft. The low-cost airline, which offers free WiFi on all flights, is adding almost 30,000 seats to its’ Birmingham network with the new services.

Details of new flights:
• Flights to Tenerife launch on 2 November and will operate on Mondays and Fridays, with fares starting from £49.90 per person

• Flights to Las Palmas (Gran Canaria) launch on 6 November and will operate on Fridays, with fares starting from £49.90 per person

The addition of Las Palmas and Tenerife means that Norwegian now offer five destinations direct from Birmingham Airport. The low cost airline also serves Malaga, Madrid and Barcelona.

Thomas Ramdahl, Norwegian’s Chief Commercial Officer: said: "We are pleased to announce further growth at Birmingham Airport with the introduction of new year round flights to Tenerife and Las Palmas.

"These popular winter sun destinations follow on from the three new routes to Spain introduced earlier this year. We have been delighted by the response from holidaymakers across the Midlands keen to secure quality, low cost fares and look forward to welcoming them on board our new flights this November."

Jo Lloyd, Commercial Director for Birmingham Airport, added: “This is really great news and comes less than two months after Norwegian started flying from Birmingham Airport. The decision to add Tenerife and Las Palmas to its existing Barcelona, Madrid and Malaga services shows confidence in Birmingham by Norwegian and we‘re certain that this additional choice will be welcomed by Midlanders wanting to travel on business or leisure to Spain.”

https://www.birminghamairport.co.uk/med ... y-islands/

 

[Bhx_fifteen]

I really think the entrance from DY will give some airlines (particularly FR) the kick up the backside they need to realise how much potential BHX has; Ryanair growth at BHX has remained stagnant over the last few years. I just found an article from when Ryanair initially announced their BHX base in 2008 saying that by 5 years time (2013) they want to be flying 5 million passengers in and out of BHX... What happened to that I wonder....

Ryanair have already upped their capacity to BCN and AGP - the two mutual routes they share with DY (up until the latest announcement of TFS and LPA of course). I really do think that Ryanair will add a few routes from BHX, which would be very exciting too. My only concern here being that supply exceeds demand with multiple carriers on certain routes, which could lead to extreme cut backs and pulling of routes. Hopefully not - hopefully it will mean BHX has choice and competition, something it is lacking, and a big reason why many people still choose other airports (e.g. My friend is traveling to Stansted for her flight to Berlin next week instead of flying from BHX with Flybe, due to lower fares and better choice of times).

Went off on a bit of a tangent there, apologies!

 

[Ray Finkle]

Totally agree.

I think one way or the other by next year we'll know just how important BHX is to Ryanair. If they stay as they are with just the odd tweak then we'll know they aren't interested and are happy for Norwegian to take over. If Norwegian reach their full potential personally I wouldn't be too bothered. If we do see some expansion then it can only be good for BHX.

I'm not sure about Monarch and whether the are in a position to do much at the moment? I imagine they have a fairly loyal following so hopefully they should be okay.

Looking at the Norwegian Twitter and someone asked "Maybe a base for a European network & looking to the future, long haul? What either of these be in your plans?"

This we their reply,

the team up at @bhx_official are doing a grand job for us! Who knows what's to come

Keep up the good work BHX :s_thumbsup

 

[Ray Finkle]

A couple of Tweets from Norwegian have caught my eye.

If you're travelling to Birmingham from London check out @chilternrailway . Great value and free wifi. Sound familiar?

Does that mean they've been at BHX recently? If so lets hope it's something to do with this.

@NorwegianairUK hi, do you know when your flights will be released from Lgw to lax at end March begin April 2016?thanks

it's not going to be for another month, summer 16 is still in the planning stage

So summer 16 looks as though it will be released in a month or so. I really do hope they have something decent planned for BHX.

 

[jfy1999]

We need Scandinavian destinations. A few I can think of are Stockholm, Helsinki, Bergen and Stanvanger as well as the obvious one, Oslo. NAX do serve Helsinki from LGW and it would be a good service to have due to its position as a "scissor hub" between Europe and Asia. Stockholm seemed to do well before it was dropped (I'm still not sure why) and the others have good NAX links.

 

[Ray Finkle]

Oslo and Stockholm would be most welcome, as would one or two others.

If BHX really are serious about emulating LGW's success in becoming a major base for Norwegian then they need to take note of this snippet from an interview with the Norwegian gaffer

“Only Gatwick’s flexibility and lower landing charges have allowed us to break into a transatlantic market..."

http://centreforaviation.com/members/di ... and-227673

Over to you Mr K.......