Route news: Norse drops Kingston, BA adds more Faro flights, Southend gains Alicante

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• SamG says:

  23 Aug23 August 06:24

  Gatwick- Dubai DWC would seem like a no brainer. Short sector and plenty of demand that would be willing to pay for the premium cabin . I’d also have thought Phuket, Bali, Cancun a couple of times a week would work but maybe not at the yields they’d need for such a long flight.

  They could cherry pick some of the highest Christmas series down to the Canaries and Sharm el Sheik perhaps . Some weekend ski flights for the school holidays

  I’d say it is the wrong config of aircraft for Maldives but weekly to some of the bigger islands might work if they work with some tour ops , St Lucia etc. Probably too late for this year though

  I saw that Eurowings are flying Dubai it out of Berlin on an A320! No thank you!

  • Tom says:

    23 Aug23 August 06:29

    The issue with Phuket and Bali is normally length of flight, difficult to get fares high enough to justify it, particularly without a proper business class cabin that can subsidise economy. If Thai carry on with their seasonal triangle flights from London to Phuket that will probably mop up a lot of the economy demand Norse would need.

    • SamG says:

      23 Aug23 August 08:59

      Not running anymore ! have to connect in Bangkok onto a Thai Smile A320. Their pricing is usually not very keen either, suspect most UK traffic goes via the middle east

  • blenz101 says:

    23 Aug23 August 06:52

    I think Sharjah International would actually be a better bet and pick up the booming Ras Al-Khaimah market rather than trying to operate as a budget option into Dubai.

    Sharjah is better positioned than either DWC/DXB for RAK, doesn’t have the EK issues and as an airport is focused on low cost carriers which should keep costs down.

    RAK hotels have all the major western brands represented, almost all with private beaches and generally offer all inclusive packages which are designed to be attractive to those wanting winter sun but nervous about Dubai being high end and charging $20 for a poolside beer.

    • Bagoly says:

      23 Aug23 August 08:25

      If focus is RAK, it has its own airport RKT.
      Given how little business they have, they probably _would_ roll out the red carpet.

      • SamG says:

        23 Aug23 August 09:01

        Despite their efforts I don’t think RAK or Ajman etc are very well known in the UK market. I agree though, for someone looking for a “fly and flop” they aren’t a bad option though I suspect most combine with Dubai as well for a couple of nights

        • blenz101 says:

          23 Aug23 August 11:13

          This is sort of what I was suggesting. SHJ picks up easy access to Dubai but also ideally positioned for the northern emirates. I think you would be surprised how many Brits are holidaying in RAK these days, the hotels are being sold as packages when people are searching for Dubai. The Waldorf has actually been sold out on several occasions this summer.

          A quick search on BA Holidays for Dubai on a random week in Sept shows 65 flight and hotel options, 15 (23%) of them are in the northern emirates and generally cheaper and offering all inclusive packages. It’s not such a small market for the ‘fly and flop’ package crowd.

  • The real Swiss Tony says:

    23 Aug23 August 07:40

    BER-DXB is booked at 6hrs 10 mins. Not much different to the BA A320 ops to the Eastern Med…

    • SamG says:

      23 Aug23 August 08:56

      True – I avoid those too 😉

  • lumma says:

    23 Aug23 August 08:40

    Cancun would be in direct competition with BA, who you’d imagine would just try and crush them on price, plus you also have TUI flying there from Gatwick

  • Erico1875 says:

    23 Aug23 August 15:23

    The Gambia in winter, its only 6 hrs
    Only Tui fly direct from UK. Prices are quite steep even for economy

• Tom says:

  23 Aug23 August 06:26

  Maybe Oman Air would block it, but I’d think Muscat would be perfect too. Since BA dropped the direct flight a few years ago fares have gone sky high and there is plenty of premium leisure demand. Seychelles no longer has any direct flights from London since BA dropped it and so could be perfect too. Maldives I would think might be too competitive with BA and VS both flying direct and a million cheaper one-stop options too.

  • Chris W says:

    23 Aug23 August 09:29

    It’s a bit too unknown/exotic for a small start-up like Norse.

    If I was Norse I would be looking at where TUI are sending their 787s in winter for inspiration.

• KayGee says:

  23 Aug23 August 07:41

  Bit surprised by the lack of new routes being added by easyjet at Southend. The airport is a breeze to get to for those in Central/east London(livpool Street to boarding gate in 70min if you don’t have checkin). I fly to amsterdam regularly and am so pleased i can avoid the shambles that are Luton and Stansted. Flight timings are a bit inconvenient I guess and immigration on return is not great thanks to the lack of e-gates. But your point about shareholders is a bit concerning – I guess eventually the council may have to plough in some cash to save it?

  • Rob says:

    23 Aug23 August 07:48

    easy did 3 routes last Winter and there will be at least 7 this Winter, so a slow resurgence. It really needs a bigger commitment though, as you say – and unless easyJet opens a base there (as opposed to flying in from other bases) it’s not very reliable traffic either. As we saw with Doncaster Sheffield, unfortunately having a smart modern airport in a decent catchment area isn’t always enough.

  • lumma says:

    23 Aug23 August 08:36

    Personally I see a quiet airport and a lack of E gates being a benefit to flying to Southend

    • blue_wolf says:

      23 Aug23 August 12:20

      Why would lack of e-gates be a good thing?

      • lumma says:

        23 Aug23 August 18:56

        Because they often don’t work. There’s so few flights arriving at SEN that you’re through in no time at all

• Chris W says:

  23 Aug23 August 08:27

  Dubai, Cape Town, Bali, Bangkok.

  There are plenty of places Norse could try this winter.

  It is worrying that it is August and they still don’t seem to know what to do with their planes over winter.

  • Chris W says:

    23 Aug23 August 09:28

    Cancun!

    Why aren’t they trying these fairly obvious destinations?

    • Nick says:

      23 Aug23 August 12:18

      They’re only ‘obvious’ to armchair network planners, not in the real world.

      Questions that an actual airline would be asking…
      – Cape Town – we know customers will pay a premium to flight overnight in both directions, but can we justify leaving an aircraft on the ground all day?
      – Bali – is the runway long enough to depart for London will a full load? (Hint – it’s not)
      – Bangkok – will the yields be strong enough to justify very long sector lengths?
      – Dubai – is there too much competition?
      – Other UAE – have enough people heard of the places to deliver consistently strong loads? Can I make enough frequencies not to put people off who can’t do a whole week away?
      – Other places – do I even have the right to fly there? Why can’t others make it work?

      As we’ve seen with the routes they’ve pulled, it’s very difficult to make winter schedules work profitably. These decisions do prove they’ve got smarter management than the previous lot though, however disruptive it is to the (admittedly few) people who’ve bought tickets already.

      Personally I think they’d be better teaming up with a package holiday company for block bookings, at least in the first few years while they establish themselves again.

• John G says:

  23 Aug23 August 08:31

  The other nail in Norwegian’s coffin was cancelling flights and routes leaving customers high and dry. Not the way to build your brand. In this sense Norse seems to have learned nothing!

  • Rob says:

    23 Aug23 August 09:16

    Issue was reliance on the 787 which was a complete dog, reliability wise, for the first few years, especially with the engine issues.

• Tankmc says:

  23 Aug23 August 08:57

  DWC is an option for them. I am sure they would welcome the business.

  • Chris W says:

    23 Aug23 August 09:27

    LCC’s Wizz Air, Transavia and Pegasus all fly to DXB – don’t know why Norse would need to fly to DWC.

    • Rob says:

      23 Aug23 August 09:29

      Not from London though, which is the most important inernational market for Emirates, Etihad and Qatar.

• babyg_wc says:

  23 Aug23 August 09:07

  “swapping to Heathrow instead” ? Really i live in central London , with the exception of leaving from Heathrow T3 i would always choose LGW over LHR (better train2plane, lounge etc)…. but each to their own i guess.

  • David S says:

    23 Aug23 August 09:49

    I used to think that as well but with the Elizabeth line opening I would always go from LHR. You run the risk with LGW at present that if you have an early morning departure or late evening arrival then either the RMT or ASLEF are going to potentially complicate your journey. Surprisingly the flights out of LHR seem to be cheaper and I’m not convinced yet that Euroflyer are as good as mainstream BA.

    • sayling says:

      23 Aug23 August 10:18

      High Life ‘Boutique’ shop purchases can’t be delivered on-board with Euroflyer, I’ve recently discovered 😕

    • babyg_wc says:

      23 Aug23 August 11:14

      Ive struggled many times with the lizzie line, super unreliable and often cancelled – weird time tables (that are hard to follow/predict) when i tried catching it on the 17th from T3 there were many cancellations and ended up on the hex… but yes if your late evening flight is delayed coming into LGW it can be painful…

      • dougzz99 says:

        23 Aug23 August 12:44

        I agree the Elizabeth line is not yet what it could be. Really frustrating last time was the announcement that people with paper tickets could use the HEX, but those travelling contactless had to wait for the delayed, cancelled and further delayed Elizabeth Line service.

        • babyg_wc says:

          23 Aug23 August 12:49

          hmm thats an interesting point about paper tix… might try that route next time…

  • memesweeper says:

    23 Aug23 August 10:32

    +1

    With status I’d cheerfully take LGW over LHR T5, despite longer and pricier journey by train.

• Teresa says:

  23 Aug23 August 09:09

  Flights from SEN to Faro seem to end in October

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