BA Pull Out Of GCI!

Well BA sold Aurigny the slots. Trouble was that with the fleet reductions the 735 cannot fit into GCI on full load so BA had no other option.

now talk about ironic… a BA ATR covering the gap it left!!

It is a BA ATR. Pretty good for BA as they will not have to pay the remaining lease on the aircraft to have it sitting around.

lol YWs – how long in the waiting has this been!!!

God forbid my prediction is actually coming true and AURIGNY’s OWN ATR is on its way!!!

i think DAT only have 42’s – jethros just lists it as a G- reg due in May/Jun – possably one of the ex KLM-UK ones in storage at Norwich?

Possibly DAT again?

I thought it was coming from BA though thinking about it obviously not. Can’t be Titan because they only have the -42s.

I presume this will be a Titan ATR for the time being.

Yes the ferry that gets you someone near London I suppose :rolleyes:

We rely so heavily on the links to the mainland for tourism, business and the well being of the islands so BA pulling out of Guernsey altogether is a bit of a catastrophe.
Anyway, Aurigny will take the route over next month with an ATR 72 with 3 times daily flights. Leaves us in a bit of mess considering the Island Games are soon and we have only 3 return flights a day with Aurigny plus Flybe’s.

Aurigny being taken over by the States is a joke and I seriously fear for the future of airlinks over here. I mean there is nothing dubious at all with the them owning an airline plus controlling the route licensing :rolleyes: Aurigny would effectively have a monopoly and their interests obviously protected. Flybe. are threatening to review their services and are putting up a legal challenge saying “It would be impossible to compete against a States-subsidised airline” After all how can you compete with a state-run monopoly? Then Le Cocqs said it was bad for the taxpayer to prop up ‘a lame duck’.

The States will debated tomorrow on whether to buy the carrier. It is make or break time tomorrow.

I for one am changing my BA booking to Flybe of which I am being given the option. I totally disagree with them. Why should Guernsey’s government spend millions on an unnecessary and anti-competitive venture? Those slots should have gone to Flybe.

Mongu, don’t get me started on the runway extension, I am annoyed enough about this news 😡 It is possible yes though I wouldn’t hold your breath, so many and enquiries have gone into it.

Originally posted by Ren Frew
Sounds like the same constant battle between the Scottish Highlands and Islands Council and BA/BRA/etc.

Certain rural/lifeline routes should be run by the government at taxpayers subsidy to allow the people who live, work and farm in these communities the availability of air links. It’s not just a luxury, try rushing an injured farmer or premature baby to hospital on the mainland by ferry to give an example of why these links are vital.

Air transport shouldn’t just be run as a business, where airlines cherry pick the profitabale routes and ignore the rest when the purse strings need tightened. This is where nationalised industries have their plus points.

Ren ,

You’re right , this is one of AF’s mission since it’s partly owned by the goverment.
I don’t know what will happend with those “non-profitable” routes after AF privatisation.
However some local councils pay AF to bridge the gap of profitability on small routes.

I do believe that it is one of the missions of a governement to provide this kind of service to “small” destination as it does exist for power , gas and telephone.

Maybe I have a lefty viewpoint here ! 🙂

The ferry is sooooooo unreliable!

The ERJ145 requires long runways because of it’s braking performance in the event of a stop call immediately prior to V1 on a wet runway. This can be cured by reducing the number of passengers (ie weight reduction) but that obviously means lost revenue.

There’s always the ferry? :p

shame to see a vital link go…

ERJ’s require very long runways as far as I know.

Couldn’t they operate an ERJ 145 on the route. They seat about 50 don’t they?

Very true Ren, but the only way private companies are going to run small unprofitable routes is via direct subsidy or perhaps an “understanding” over issues like route approvals and landing rights. As of itself, the second merhod is probably illegal and the fiurst might or might not be illegal depending which lawyer you speak to!

I’m a little surprised that Guernsey doesn’t just extend the runway – Adrian, is this physically possible, or just too expensive?

Sounds like the same constant battle between the Scottish Highlands and Islands Council and BA/BRA/etc.

Certain rural/lifeline routes should be run by the government at taxpayers subsidy to allow the people who live, work and farm in these communities the availability of air links. It’s not just a luxury, try rushing an injured farmer or premature baby to hospital on the mainland by ferry to give an example of why these links are vital.

Air transport shouldn’t just be run as a business, where airlines cherry pick the profitabale routes and ignore the rest when the purse strings need tightened. This is where nationalised industries have their plus points.

I don’t blame BA, they have a company to run not a charity. If they can’t operate the 735 into Guernsey so be it because of costs and runway capabilities . It has been rumoured for ages that BA will pull out so no surprise.
I just don’t want Aurigny to be bought by the States, they have enough of a monopoly now. If they own Aurigny then guess who is going to be their major priority if other airlines want to compete? Considering we operate a system by which routes are subject to approval by the transport commity. I just see a total monopoly on Guernsey.

Bad luck, GCI is obviously the next victim in line. IOM will be next!

Buying Aurigny is a seriosly bad mistake though.