Route Development & Rumours

[Ray Finkle]

For S17 Thomas Cook have new services to Malta, Naples and Comiso with another based A320.

Thomson now only have Alghero after Almeria came and went within a week but it still makes another four on top of that list.

We've still got 5 new routes to start this year with Rotterdam and Luxembourg starting on Saturday, Toulouse at the end of October and Innsbruck (MON) and Cluj-Napoca in December.

 

[Barry Beeth]

Perhaps we need to be careful with terminology - all the new Jet2 flights are "new services" but not actually "new routes"...

 

[nwoody2001]

For S17 Thomas Cook have new services to Malta, Naples and Comiso with another based A320.

Thomson now only have Alghero after Almeria came and went within a week but it still makes another four on top of that list.

We've still got 5 new routes to start this year with Rotterdam and Luxembourg starting on Saturday, Toulouse at the end of October and Innsbruck (MON) and Cluj-Napoca in December.

...and Vueling to Malaga which starts in November I believe?

 

[User001]

Don't forget Thomson to Dubai DWC too.

 

[Paulsstrange]

A very puzzling comment by PK which makes no sense how ever you look at it !
In the next 18 months you would hope for at least 3 to 5 new airlines minimum or am I being unrealistic !

 

[Ray Finkle]

I wonder if this is something specific.

We've had 33 or so new routes for 2016 with 25 already confirmed for 2017.

In the next year and a half we could see 4/5 new routes from Ryanair, a couple each from Norwegian, Vueling, Blue Air and Wizz. Jet2 could add ski routes and city destinations for next winter with more sun routes for the summer after. Monarch could add the 10th aircraft and the 4 rumoured new routes, then there is still Flybe. Add to that possible new airlines and suddenly 17 doesn't sound quite that much.

18 months takes us to the start of S18 an 2018 'could be interesting'.

 

[Butty]

Maybe he was talking new routes... Those currently not served. Now that would be something.

 

[thunderchild]

Well Air Canada Rouge have announced new long haul routes for next summer and BHX wasn't one of them.

 

[User001]

Rouge are getting at least 4 extra B767 next summer, the latest routes account for 2.2 frames, so, don't worry.

With so many new routes, airlines like to split the announcements up so that news doesn't get lost in the crowd.

 

[Paulsstrange]

Have those Rouge routes been announced today ??....

If we miss out on Rouge still hoe with West Jet

I was hoping Finnair may follow the same philosophy and we may still have a chance ( assuming they have free slots/aircraft or get more aircraft )...

 

[Ray Finkle]

Maybe he was talking new routes... Those currently not served. Now that would be something.

That's probably not as crazy as it sounds.

Off the top of my head

Riga
Vienna
Valencia
Pisa
Oslo
Helsinki
Zadar
Bergamo
Brindisi
Breman
Nuremberg
Iasi
Split
Thessaloniki
Bologna
Marseille
Tallin
Lublin

There are 18 routes currently unserved and that's before the more niche routes such as Bilbao, Seville, Florence, Kiev, Kosice, Gothenburg etc.

Also no long haul in there which could also bump up the total.

 

[Coathanger16]

New here so please bear with me!

I was interested to see that Orlando was the most under served destination from Birmingham. Given that Virgin Atlantic fly to Orlando from Gatwick, Manchester, Glasgow and Belfast, one wonders why they don't offer the same from Birmingham. Certainly as new B787 & A350 are delivered, this would free up some of the A330 aircraft - could they be used to provide this route.

With rumours circulating about Norwegian operating long haul flights with their 737Max and A321NEO-LR, I would imagine they would be best placed to fly BHX - Orlando.

As a local, I too would like to see Birmingham grow and attract more routes - however looking around Europe at other airports of a similar size to Birmingham many don't have a great deal of long haul flights. I suspect once Birmingham hits 15mppa the chances of more long haul flights springing up will increase.

 

[Ray Finkle]

Welcome to the forum.

Virgin would be ideal to Orlando but sadly they have no interest in Birmingham at this time for fear of diluting their other bases. This has been said in interviews with various people from BHX and also in email communication that various people have had.

Norwegian could be best placed for Orlando and the 787 certainly looks to be the right equipment. Paul Kehoe (I think it was) did reply to a question that they were in talks with Norwegian and Thomas Cook over Orlando, obviously TCX have released S17 and nothing for BHX.

Norwegian remain a bit of a mystery, one minute they are, the next they aren't. A few weeks ago things seemed dead in the water then all of a sudden BHX-NYC was mentioned. With the addition of long haul bases in Europe I'm not sure if there is 787 capacity available now for BHX-MCO? Maybe they are set for 2018?

Obviously there is still plenty of time for announcements but at the moment it's looking more likely that S17 will be 'as you were' with just a weekly SFB.

 

[Coathanger16]

Obviously there is still plenty of time for announcements but at the moment it's looking more likely that S17 will be 'as you were' with just a weekly SFB.

I suspect given recent and upcoming events (Brexit, terrorism across Europe, LHR 3rd runway decision) that many airlines are cautious about launching new routes - certainly those from the States anyway.

In the mean time Birmingham just needs to keep ticking over - Paul Kehoe I think said he's expecting 11mppa this year. By 2020 that'll probably be 15mppa - a 50% increase above current traffic levels will certainly attract more long haul routes.

 

[Ray Finkle]

Long haul will always be difficult. More than half of our catchment area has good access to one of the biggest airports in the world with a wealth of services and frequencies on offer. If that wasn't enough the other half have access to an ever growing long haul network at MAN. Persuading airlines to open another service between those two seems to be a task in itself.

One of the biggest challenges is getting locals to consider Birmingham first when arranging long haul journeys, too many people still have LHR as the default option. This forum has numerous examples of people totally unaware that Birmingham has flights to the likes of Dubai, Istanbul, New York etc (I better not mention travel agents for fear of upsetting Jenny ). Even if that does start to happen the BHX offer then needs to be competitive enough to secure their booking, at the moment anecdotal evidence suggests that it often isn't.

Somewhere between 11.2 and 11.4 million pax this year and over 12 million expected next year (assuming Monarch pull through), the more we grow the more people will notice

 

[Coathanger16]

Having recently traveled to the States with family we didn't even consider using Birmingham - although that was because we were fortunately travelling in a more premium cabin (something that AA/UA don't offer very well out of Birmingham).

I don't know if it plays into it at all but when you consider the infrastructure quality - T2 & T5 at LHR, MAN terminal redevelopment plans - one wonders whether Birmingham might be left behind. Maybe when the master plan is eventually released it may address that problem.

Completely agree that Birmingham's biggest problem when attracting new airlines is that Heathrow and Manchester are relatively close for many people that would otherwise use Birmingham. As you say, the bigger Birmingham gets, the more people will notice it.

 

[JENNYJET]

Thank you Sir Raymond...I spilt my wine when you refered to alleged Travel Agents but at least it confirms our Knight reads all posts!!

On a pertinent point, LHR and MAN appear to have carved up England between themselves for the popular long haul market but BHX has that something different and is apparently not being pushed sufficiently. This is the unseen long haul routes that those er...agents ...are either unaware of or are 'pushed' with 'incentives' to ignore. I am legally unable to say what I truly mean because of some Statute relating to libel and defamation however regular readers and members know exactly where I come from in the context of this thread....Thank Jupiter that is out of the way.

Turkmenistan, PIA, AIR INDIA, QATAR, EMIRATES, TURKISH and if Uzbekistan could be tempted to resume Tashkent, BHX can corner the market for South Asia and the routes to the Southern Hemisphere across the Dateline.
When I see Moscow announced, I can then begin to see BHX become the go to departure point that avoids the London Circus.

I also welcome the Coathanger to our little group of BHX bullies to the Management of the airport company...no, seriously, friendly irritants to the big cheese.

To be fair, they have this day announced £100m investment in infrastructure, of a kind, and that is progress.

I see good times and spotting days to come....

 

[User001]

TAP launching 7 new European routes this summer.

In a meeting, they did say those 7 routes could be from OPO/FAO/LIS but that they were focus img on the competition they face.

One would hope BHX could feature in those 7 routes.

 

[ethanegcc]

I was going to post this here too but it does say a hint has been given that all of the European routes have been previously served. Has TP ever served BHX?

 

[flymetothemoon]

No TP have never served BHX to my knowledge