Leeds Bradford - General Thread

[Runway 32]

I have to say I have found the airport to be no worse than it was a few years ago however, yes it does need expanding with improvements to bring it up to date but its no worse than many other airports in the UK. I think some of us are disapointed at the length of time it is taking to get the works started on the terminal but at least this should happen soon. I personally would always prefer to fly from LBA over MAN and I have recently moved house and am almost equal distance between LBA and MAN. Wawkrk, are you just disapointed we don't have our shiny new terminal yet?

 

[Runway 32]

I'm not being funny with my response but I am unable to enter the web address on this forum. Try google!

 

[lbaspotter]

Wawkak if you feel that bad about LBA dont use it anymore, Simple as vote with you feet.

Even better would be that you write to the airport and state you grievances with them, you may even get a reply from Managerment.

I know myself and many others will continue to support and use LBA and its services even though we know many things need to change. And that has to be sooner rather than later.

 

[wawkrk]

To support or not to support the airport is Irrelevant.
I have supported the airport for sure more than anyone on this website through using it.

Runway 32
You find the airport no worse than it was a few years ago?
So Bridgepoint have managed to maintain the standard set by Leeds City Council then?
My comments have gone completely over your head.

 

[User0001]

What do you mean wawkrk when you state that Bridgepoint 'will soon be history'? Please tell us what you know. Why have they 'come unstuck'?

Do I find the airport worse than a few years ago? NO NO NO I have travelled cheaply to many destinations that were impossible to get to when the airport was 'run' by the council because they would not spend any money on getting airlines in (or on anything else for that matter). The reason the airport has not improved in the last few years is in no small part down to the council. Leeds city could not run the airport properly by their own admission and so your comments baffle me. Your comments have gone over my head too because they are not logical unless you are perhaps a disgruntled employee. Whoever bought the airport back then would have struggled to contend with these conditions and the financial climate. Simply saying the place is a shambles is a cop out in my opinion because we all know that the airport is not ideal until these developments have taken place.

 

[wawkrk]

Well, I have certainly livened up the debate with LBA fawners.
I would imagine Bridgepoint are seriously short of cash. They paid far too much for the airport making it harder to recover such a huge investment. I cannot blame them for not throwing money at the place.
If it were not for the recession and growth had continued at the same rate, I cannot imgine how the pax would have coped with the slow progress.Time will tell but to me, nothing has changed in almost 4 years.I look forward to departing again shortly from the upstairs balcony.

 

[wawkrk]

One further point.
Can we have a poll showing how many times forum members actually use the airport as passengers.
I don't use it as much as I did in the past, so only 20 to 30 outbound inbound flights per year. Please add to the list.

wawkrk - 25 flights - next?

 

[rhinoscrazy]

One further point.
Can we have a poll showing how many times forum members actually use the airport as passengers.
I don't use it as much as I did in the past, so only 20 to 30 outbound inbound flights per year. Please add to the list.

wawkrk - 25 flights - next?

only 20-30 wow :crazy: do you fly regional or international

 

[Runway 32]

Wawkrk your comments have not gone over the top of my head at all. Bridgepoint haven't invested as much as they should have done yet at LBA and I am fully aware of this but the plans that they have with the airport were never going to happen over night! What I was trying to get across was that LBA is no worse to travel from now than it was three years ago even with the additional traffic so Bridgepoint must be doing something right. Yes I am fully aware of the issues at peak times in the summer months but even Manchester has these problems at their peak times.

 

[wawkrk]

OK Runway 32.Maybe over the top from me.

I am just getting a little wound up by people on here who love to pass judgement on my comments but in reality, they contribute very little to the airport other than by hot air and imagine that by using it one time per year to go to Majorca as an armchair traveller gives them the expert knowledge to comment.
The airport cannot survive on such users.
I ask again, can everybody enlighten me as to how often they use the airport?
Because, this is what it's all about, the bottom line.

 

[Aviador]

A very interesting read 'wawkrk' and I will add a poll to the thread regarding usage of the airport. As far as I am concerned every passenger is as equally important as the next but frequent flyers are of course the life blood of an airport not the once a year 'chav' passenger on a flight to Turkey.

Highlighting how important frequent flyers are, it is my view that one of the main reasons why the airport lost it's Bmi Heathrow service was because of the way the airline treated it's business passengers. Passengers were forced to use online check-in and manual check-in systems at the airport rather than just being able to check-in at a desk at the airport. The airline insisted the number of check-in staff had to be reduced and that any available staff had to mingle in the queues to direct passengers to the self check-in machines. All in the aid of saving money. All the exercise proved is that frequent flyers would turn away in their droves because they didn't want that kind of hassle when they got to the airport.

So frequent flyers are extremely important to an airport. It is my view that airports should offer their own frequent flyer reward scheme, no matter which airline the passenger uses. X number of flights equals free security fast track with an exceptional number of flights allowing for free access into the executive lounge. These sort of ideas would really enhance the passenger experience and put LBA above the rest.

As for LBA, wawkrk knows how I feel and I'd rather leave this subject for others to discuss here.

 

[lbaspotter]

Dont know why I’m doing this. Never mind here goes,

Well I’ve only used LBA x 4 times this year. 2 times to Dublin, Once to Belfast Int'l and Amsterdam.

If they had flights to Puerto Plata (Dominican Republic) from LBA I would use them every February. But like that going to happen. I guess I’ll just have to stick to using Manchester for Long Haul for now.

Hope that makes you feels better Wawkak. As to me it’s not how many times you use it. It all about getting customers back which includes both your business and leisure passengers.

It doesn’t matter if you only fly once a year or if you flying more regularly say every 2-3 times a month. It’s all about how you perceive the experience. And it can’t be that bad as its proven fact that more and more people are using LBA now and coming back, So Bridgepoint must be doing something right...

 

[pmscb]

Hi All. Well ive took part in the poll, but to be honest ive only used leeds bradford once in 2 years. The main reason for my trips abroad, being an ex travel agent upto april this year, was that alot of my flights/ holidays worked out to be alot cheaper to go from manchester, and that included the petrol to get there and back and also the car parking. Plus there was more frequencies. So if more frequencies then there is more offers to get bums on seats as they say, so prices can be reduced this way. But everybody is different, eg. some may only like to travel from leeds/ bradford airport, some may not like to travel to an airport further afield due to travelling times, etc, etc....

 

[Bigman]

I have only used it once to Amsterdam over the last few years. I do however get up there usually 2 days a week, so to some extent I am a regular airport user (certainly Yates's).

 

[wawkrk]

As I told you Aviador, this website is rather good and more focused on local issues at many airports.

 

[White Heather]

That is your opinion wawkrk. I don't see everyone agreeing with you either, despite your forecast in your earlier post.

I don't travel from the airport anywhere near as often as I would like to do, because my business doesn't require me to, so I am limited to leisure travel. That itself has been impossible over recent years due to my daughter being unable to fly pending a lung transplant, although at last that is done now and I have flights booked for 2011. However, frequency of use is, in my view, not relevant. I have every right to say my bit on the subject of LBA, because I didn't just complain about the airport being the way it was, I did something about it over 25 years ago and jointly founded the Support Group, took part in a public enquiry representing the supporters of the airport (despite the various threats made by a certain anti airport group) and when the airport got a 24 hour flying license, it was me that collected and took over 15,000 letters of support to Leeds Council Planning Department. That resulted in the Government declining to 'call in the application' and paved the way for the Council to approve it. Without that, there would have been no Jet2, no Ryanair and compared to what we have now, not much of an airport at all. I have also attended the vast majority of JCC meetings for 25 years too, raised numerous issues (such as the possible bus link to Horsforth and Guiseley) and generally done what I can for those of us who support the airport but are not in a position to get their views across. If your 'hot air' comment was aimed at me, then you will not be surprised that I disagree.

Perhaps you would explain your comment that my comments have a hollow ring to them? I assume you mean those I made which do not agree with your views? You seem to think it is OK to criticise the directors of the airport, although I doubt you have any 'evidence' to support your criticism. As I suggested, you should write to John Parkin and outline your thoughts to him. You are not going to achieve any action by simply posting your thoughts on here, even though I am sure we are all interested to read them. And yes, you have certainly livened things up, but as you have seen, I am not alone giving support to LBA. And, the support I give is balanced by a willingness to say what is wrong with it too - and again, I do something about it - or at least try to.

Nobody is pretending the airport is what it should be, but you go on about 4 years as though they should have had the place transformed by now. Whatever your business is, it is not project management, otherwise you would know that bearing in mind that the final approval for the terminal was given some considerable time after the outline consent (after the transport issues were agreed in accordance with the planning approval), it is completely unrealistic to expect a terminal expansion to be there by now, particularly taking into account the unexpected downturn in the economy and the general impact on aviation.

I agree that Bridgepoint could do a lot more to pacify those who are getting concerned about the lack of a shiny new terminal by telling everyone what their plans are, and I have written to say so, AND I have asked for the terminal development to be put on the agenda for the next JCC meeting if it isn't already. The problem is that it is almost certainly being treated as 'commercial in confidence' so extracting definite information is difficult knowing the local rag reporters, who are usually anti airport will be sitting in the spectator seats at the meeting.

However, as I posted before, why would Bridgepoint pay significant amounts of money out to comply with the terms of the planning approval, if they do not intend to follow through and build the terminal?? You are correct, they are not developers as such and they are an investment company, whose only hope of selling LBA in due course at a profit is to take advantage now of its success, develop the terminal and then sell in the future at a profit, exactly as they did at Birmingham, with considerable success.

It is to be hoped that Bridgepoint do not decide to sell LBA now since that will certainly result in further delay in any terminal development. New owners would be highly unlikely to adopt the Bridgepoint plans as they are, which would only result in a further planning application and the process starting all over. As a regular traveller, I can only suggest that if that happens, you start flying from MAN rather than put up with having to use LBA.

 

[wawkrk]

Hi Heather,

I am not actually getting at you, your enthusiasm is without question and we all want to see some progress.
"Hollow ring", I say that because we have been hearing a similar story for a long time now not only from you.
I see almost four years without any real visible progress from a passengers point of view, in fact deterioration because of increasing pressure from passenger numbers.
What I think you are saying is this, although the airport is now in private hands, it is the same numpties on the council who are stifling the progress trying to be made by Bridgepoint. Am I right?

 

[radar]

I'm a newcomer to the airport (and this board, hello!), but I've been extremely impressed by the recent performance of the airport during the recession. As I see it, it's not surprising at all that the terminal was delayed as growth in passenger numbers slowed, I expect the finance for projects like this is dependent on demonstrated passenger numbers.

 

[Aviador]

Welcome to Forums4airports 'radar' and I am sure your views regarding the airport will be shared by many others. It is clear that whatever the reason for the delay, people are passionately wanting the airport to grow to provide better services for the Yorkshire region. Hopefully sooner rather than later this will come to fruition.

 

[radar]

Thank you, its nice to be here.

If I may offer the perspective of an outsider, LBA has done extremely well over the downturn compared to nearly every other UK airport. It's natural to be impatient to see progress at the local airport, but it's worthwhile reflecting on how well the airport is doing right now, and the bright prospects for the future, and what that will bring.