KLM

[danairamb]

Dec 20, 2011 20:08:04 GMT 1 @tristar said:

Dec 20, 2011 12:27:57 GMT 1 @carl727uk said:

In my opinion if they cant make it work no one will.

They had to make cuts and Liverpool being so close to Manchester was always going to be the fall guy no matter which way you look at it.

And Teeside is close to Newcastle, and Edinburgh to Glasgow. I am pretty certain they dont make any money out of Teeside if they cant out of LPL.

[Deleted]

Tees side, has or at least used to have two large ICI plants in the area Billingham and Wilton. I worked for a business travel implant with Billigham several times, and they used Tees side by preference, in those days they also had Brit Mid to LHR and I think Dan Air...but cant recal where that was to, but also KLM. Point is all full-fare paying passengers, transfering onwards at hubs.

I hope KLM do come back, but if we are to believe the government, the good times are a long way off !

[Deleted]

danairamb. Reading KLM's press release it would appear Liverpool was the first of many cost cutting initiatives. The price hike at Manchester primavista highlights would appear to be another. It would be interesting to see the load factors for the two Scottish airports to see which (if either) of these will be next for the chop.

Carl, our economy won't recover for many years but with the UK (and especially Liverpool) moving more toward international tourism as a global player KLM may be back sooner than you think. All we need now is a weak £ and Stellios's Fastjet amongst others could also be gracing our apron - not daft is he ;D

[delta154]

But, there are 2 flaws in that plan ste-t....

By doing what they have just done, KLM have made it clear that they are happy to serve the LPL area through Manchester, and, regards to Fastjet I thought it was now well established that Fastjet will be an intra-African LCC (unless LPL is planning to up sticks and move?)

[vanguard]

The only advantage of LPL moving would be the weather a bit warmer yes.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all

[steh]

There was a letter in yesterdays echo from a local business man who used both Liverpool and Manchester airports frequently. He said he generally uses Liverpool for European flights with easyjet or ryanair, but for longhaul he tends to go from Manchester on a carrier other than KLM, such as Emirates or Etihad. The reasons given were firstly the flight timings from/to Liverpool just werent frequent enough and involved too many hours spent in Schipol after a long flight, and secondly for pure comfort on long haul KLM simply wasnt as good as other carriers. He had used KLM on occasions, and he noticed there were never enough in business class to make it viable. Another odd point though is the business fares from Liverpool were often higher than Manchester, which you wouldnt expect if there is no demand. One example quoted was £3000 for a return to Rio, but £2000 from Manchester.

[danairamb]

Interesting post steh. Another factor to consider when choosing a carrier is frequent flyer points. KLM are in Skyteam which adds to its attraction though perhaps not as much were it a member of Star Alliance or One World. For North American travellers anyway, frequent flyer points play a huge role in deciding which carrier or routing to use. Though Ethihad and Emirates offer fantastic service their lack of alliance makes them less appealing than KLM would be. If Peel were to attract another carrier offering good international connections as well as membership in one of the major three alliances then LPL would remain a viable choice for international travellers. I dont really have much confidence in Peel's ability or even desire to attract a replacement for KLM, but one can always remain optimistic.

[vanguard]

Hi all,

It makes you wonder if Peel want anymore airlines flying out of Liverpool or are happy the way they are,makes one think.

Merry Christmas all.

[steh]

Dec 22, 2011 21:10:56 GMT 1 vanguard said:

Hi all,

It makes you wonder if Peel want anymore airlines flying out of Liverpool or are happy the way they are,makes one think.

Merry Christmas all.

From Peel's point of view, I suppose its about getting paid oper passenger and how much can be generated from passengers in terms of car park/fast track revenue. They would be far happier if easyjet or ryanair based another 737 there I guess, whereas from the city of Liverpool's point of view in terms of its desire to be a credible/viable business destination with worldwide connections, they'd much prefer three flights a day on any size of aircraft from a full service airline

[andyh]

It looks as though KLM's axe didn't just fall on Liverpool. Milan Malpensa is also being dropped, and capacity reduced on a number of other routes by switching rotations from KLM Mainline to City Hopper - including switching three of Manchester's rotations to E.190s from B.737s.

[bartt]

21 mins late pushing this morning because.....

They were Overbooked!!!

[mustangdave]

Reading on the LBA spotters site KLM are increasing there service to Leeds to 4 flights daily from summer 2012 still using Fokker 70s.

[liverpoolman1]

In view of the increases from MAN and LBA noted here, I trust that the Management at LJLA are pushing KLM to retain the Liverpool/Amsterdam service. I know that we, as mere observers to the unfolding drama, are not fully aware of the overall circumstances surrounding KLM's decision, but I am sure that LJLA bosses are looking at every sector of their Liverpool operation to ensure that KLM retain their service at LJLA. It's still not too late.

[calflier]

Hope your right Beemer,but its simply looks like KLM like most other airlines that have had flights at LPL before,have consolidated thier North west operation at Manchester,And before the pro Manchester lobby have a go,I am not suggesting its anything to do with Manchesters management,its just the way the airlines think,sad but true,I supported KLM,s service from LPL and flew by them to Dubai last june as part of a longer trip,however on return into Amsterdam,I too had to wait a good few hours in Amsterdam,so not really convient from that point of view,
I try to fly from Heathrow when I can,sometimes even night stopping in London, for early departures,as I find it much easier than travelling to Manchester,although the new coach will help,generally the fares are much higher from Manchester anyway,I am about to depart to the Far east on January 3rd for 10 weeks away, and I am flying out of Gatwick,no problem with Virgin trains to Euston then Gatwick express from Victoria,So any KLM flight I take in the future will be from the London area,but I expect the business users(who KLM want)will just switch to Manchester,
I hope there is replacement business of some sort,but even if there is how long will it last?,that will now be the worry,
best luck to Liverpool airport to 2012 and beyond,who knows what the future will hold

PS flew out of LBA for the first time in November to Dusseldorf,it doesnt compare with the experience out of LPL,the terminal at LBA, has been added to, so many times over the years,that it is a mess,its clean though,so in my opinion LPL has a lot going for it,
just my thoughts best regards Calflier.

[Speke-EZY]

I happened to visit the terminal building at Liverpool yesterday for the first time in (I would guess) a couple of months,and was surprised to see a row of giant promotional KLM banners hanging from the ceiling in the check-in area. They advertise the airline's world-wide route network to which the existing Liverpool-Amsterdam service connects. Does anybody know how long these banners have been here,or whether this means KLM has had a rethink about ending the Liverpool route? It seems odd to start promoting a soon-to-be defunct service in such a manner at this late stage.