Aviation Discussion

With IAG buying bmi, it has been (semi) confirmed that bmi will leave Star Alliance on the 18th of April.
http://asianaclub.flyasiana.com/Korean/Club2008/customer/Notice_View.jsp?Pkid=325 (In Korean only, im guessing Asiana have accidently broken an information embargo)

@starrymarkb- US Airways aren't that bad, not any worse than other American airlines such as Delta or AA. Their seats are not narrower than anyone else's really, slightly narrower than some, but the same as Emirates or Air France. Their service is also not that for an American airline :P

Sun! said:

With IAG buying bmi, it has been (semi) confirmed that bmi will leave Star Alliance on the 18th of April.
http://asianaclub.flyasiana.com/Korean/Club2008/customer/Notice_View.jsp?Pkid=325 (In Korean only, im guessing Asiana have accidently broken an information embargo)

@starrymarkb- US Airways aren't that bad, not any worse than other American airlines such as Delta or AA. Their seats are not narrower than anyone else's really, slightly narrower than some, but the same as Emirates or Air France. Their service is also not that for an American airline :P

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Thanks... Already registered with Aegean's FFP to keep something in *A, 3000miles needed for Silver

I don't mind US Airways and do enjoy their domestic services through DCA, although I find stopping at Phoenix on a trans-con really messes with the sleep pattern compared to NYC-LAX direct. I've already jumped ship to United but with a good 4,000 miles left to go until *G (it's the million miler scheme that's tempted me thinking long term).
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Sun! said:

With IAG buying bmi, it has been (semi) confirmed that bmi will leave Star Alliance on the 18th of April.
http://asianaclub.flyasiana.com/Korean/Club2008/customer/Notice_View.jsp?Pkid=325 (In Korean only, im guessing Asiana have accidently broken an information embargo)

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I do hope some sort of an official announcement is done soon as I'm starting to feel like we're going to wake up one day with an email welcoming us to BA Bronze/Rust tier and all our BMI miles gone into Avios Inches.

flymo said:

Some interesting comments above about Indonesia and The Philippines, who knows what will happen in the future.
BA used to fly to Manila (MNL) not so long ago as an extension of one of their Hong Kong (HKG) flights. Likewise Taipei (TPE) was also on the list as an extension of one of the HKG flights. It was something like TPE 5 times a week and MNL twice or something like that. I know the BA fifth freedom rights were well used from HKG - MNL by domestic helpers going to and from home. The ticket prices were much cheaper too than PR and CX on the route at the time.
I wonder if the market is there for a BA flight LHR to MNL direct, maybe 3 times a week or so?

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BA must have an idea how many passengers are traveling between LHR and MNL with Emirates, Etihad and Qatar, not to mention Cathay and Singapore. The thing that will make it or break it for BA is the number of premium tickets they can sell. If they cannot fill a 777 then a 787 would be ideal for this route. I'm sure they have their plans for the 787's pretty well mapped out already so, with new slots to fill, we could see a top up order for these emerging markets.

SwindonPkwy said:

I'm sure they have their plans for the 787's pretty well mapped out already so, with new slots to fill, we could see a top up order for these emerging markets.

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Plus they have 2 A330s to replace (They are not keeping the BMI ones - and they are not compatible with Iberia's A330s that are on order)

Sun! said:

With IAG buying bmi, it has been (semi) confirmed that bmi will leave Star Alliance on the 18th of April.
http://asianaclub.flyasiana.com/Korean/Club2008/customer/Notice_View.jsp?Pkid=325 (In Korean only, im guessing Asiana have accidently broken an information embargo)

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BA are now selling selected bmi flights. They're codeshare flights, with a BA flight number but operated by bmi.

They went on sale today. The list is avalible on ba.com but by the looks of it its all the Middle Eastern routes. That bmi serve but BA don't.

On a similar note, do we know whats happening with bmibaby and bmi regional yet? I understand IAG wasn't interested in them?

Heinz57 said:

On a similar note, do we know whats happening with bmibaby and bmi regional yet? I understand IAG wasn't interested in them?

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Nothing has been announced. I very much doubt BA is interested in running either of them. They tried and failed doing both low-cost and regional. Go Fly (sold to easyJet), BA Connect (sold to Flybe) e.t.c...

WestCoast said:

Nothing has been announced. I very much doubt BA is interested in running either of them. They tried and failed doing both low-cost and regional. Go Fly (sold to easyJet), BA Connect (sold to Flybe) e.t.c...

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Compared to what is on offer in the market, Go were really low-cost. An example being £6.50 all in with one piece of luggage and no credit card booking fees from Edinburgh to East Midlands. Puts the likes of Lying' Air in shame.

Fond memories.

Go was a spoiler idea though. If you are going to do low cost, then you have to have that mentality in running the airline. That's why Ryanair and Easyjet have been successful. BA, as have other major international airlines, have learned a lot from Ryanair. Most people I know who use Ryanair, could not give two hoots about their Chief Executive. They just like the fares! I tend to agree with them.

ivanhoe said:

Most people I know who use Ryanair, could not give two hoots about their Chief Executive. They just like the fares! I tend to agree with them.

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My issue with Ryanair is one of safety. Now I know that they have obviously passed all the necessary certification requirements; I just don't ever want to be on a 737-800, with 189 passengers on it, in an emergency. The likelihood of that emergency is slim but with so many LCC's out there, it will happen at some point.
I am happy to continue paying extra for a full service airline and get to choose my seat, for example.

SwindonPkwy said:

My issue with Ryanair is one of safety. Now I know that they have obviously passed all the necessary certification requirements; I just don't ever want to be on a 737-800, with 189 passengers on it, in an emergency. The likelihood of that emergency is slim but with so many LCC's out there, it will happen at some point.
I am happy to continue paying extra for a full service airline and get to choose my seat, for example.

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To be fare Ryanair are just as densely packed as most full service airlines are in economy. Lufthansa are refitting an extra couple of rows by using slimline seats. Plus when you consider how densely packed an Air France/KLM/Emirates/Air New Zealand 10 abreast 777 is you'll probably fare just the same.

bb21 said:

Compared to what is on offer in the market, Go were really low-cost. An example being £6.50 all in with one piece of luggage and no credit card booking fees from Edinburgh to East Midlands. Puts the likes of Lying' Air in shame.

Fond memories.

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Impossible now. It was unsustainable then even. Go Fly was a failure, more so than Buzz (KLM UK's attempt at a low-cost airline). The few years after 9/11 was all about bargains.

Costs have gone up from all angles, in the price of oil, increased airport charges, EU Emissions Trading Scheme and APD tax from UK departure points. Yet people just don't want to pay for it, so the low-cost airlines have become devious in the way they pass the real costs on. Airlines can't rely on subsidies like the railways, the rising costs have to be accounted for in some way.

I remember flying Liverpool - Belfast with Ryanair for £10 return, with no extras.
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SwindonPkwy said:

My issue with Ryanair is one of safety. Now I know that they have obviously passed all the necessary certification requirements; I just don't ever want to be on a 737-800, with 189 passengers on it, in an emergency. The likelihood of that emergency is slim but with so many LCC's out there, it will happen at some point.
I am happy to continue paying extra for a full service airline and get to choose my seat, for example.

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Most LCCs and charter carriers have the maximum number of seats installed, indeed easyJet has 156 on their A319s, which has necessitated an extra exit.

The LCCs have already had incidents (just like all other carriers) and with Ryanair being one of the leading airlines in Europe in terms of international passengers carried, it's to be expected. In 2008, the multiple bird strikes on the Ryanair flight in Rome upon landing and subsequent evacuation was carried out perfectly according to the investigators.

A KLM 738 seats 171, which isn't exactly masses fewer than a budget airline.

On the subject of Ryanair... http://travel.aol.co.uk/2012/04/06/...-emergency-landing-three-people-hospitalised/

Schnellzug said:

On the subject of Ryanair... http://travel.aol.co.uk/2012/04/06/...-emergency-landing-three-people-hospitalised/

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...and? The Pilot appears to have followed the correct procedure (i.e. a rapid decent to lower altitude) after a failure in pressurization. The only reason it makes news is because it's Ryanair.

just dropping in it as an item of news. There need be no ulterior motive, need there?

Schnellzug said:

just dropping in it as an item of news. There need be no ulterior motive, need there?

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No, but there is a certain tendency for these things to get reported ONLY in the mainstream news if they involve the likes of Ryanair e.t.c and not BA e.t.c. It's juicier.

A loss in pressure in unlikely, but not as rare as some think. There's probably a number of incidents each week somewhere in the world.

There was an infamous Daily Mail article http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...ges-26-000ft-minutes-drop-cabin-pressure.html, where the DM actually scrubbed the comments as they were so against the article! The article goes on and on about the passengers not being told about the rapid decent by the pilot, when he obviously couldn't as he would have been far too busy with an oxygen mask on.

Have a look at the emergencies on Flight Radar...

https://twitter.com/#!/flightradar24

Usually at least one mayday declared and lands safely per day. Today it was a CityJet 146, yesterday the A380 Testbed had one (it's currently test running the A350 engine) as did a Globus B737 and Virgin B744

More news of bmi/IAG

bmi will now leave Star Alliance on the 31st of May, although some reciprocal agreements will end before this.
1100 jobs will be lost (Mainly Headquaters staff/ back office staff <- bmi is one of Europes most top heavy airlines)
1500 jobs will be saved (Flight crew, cabin crew, engineers and customer facing roles in Heathrow)

BA will keep most of bmi's mainline fleet for the medium/ long term. Profitable destinations will be retained, while others cancelled with planes and slots re-deployed.

bmibaby and bmi Regional havent yet been disposed of, but will be very quickly.

Virgin Atlantic have decided to stick their oar in and appeal the regulators decision on the IAG/BMI deal;

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-17722171

Branson seems to be winging that the released slots have conditions attached (ie Domestic or Specific destinations), and that these routes must be flown for 3 years. It's been suggested that Virgin might try shorthaul for the 3 years, then claim they can't compete with BA and then use them for long haul.

First picture of the Malaysia Airlines A380 - the latest operator of the big bus.

Must say I'm not enthused by the livery, they seem to be going like Finnair and removing all colour!

starrymarkb said:

Must say I'm not enthused by the livery, they seem to be going like Finnair and removing all colour!

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I agree, Asian carriers usually have more exciting liveries than that! Anyway, the first routes for the Malaysian A380 are Kuala Lumpur to Amsterdam and London Heathrow, which should be interesting for those watching movements at both airports.

I follow the A380 deliveries and next up is Thai Airways - their first aircraft is awaiting painting.

Wonder how long it will be before Eva Air start Kittyfying A380s (I don't think they have any on order)

I will enjoy my BA Gold and 1:1 conversion following the latest BMI
Update .


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

This is the email that has been sent to Diamond Club members-


Dear ....

I'm writing to advise you of some important changes to the Diamond Club programme following the sale of bmi to IAG, the owner of British Airways, on 20 April 2012.

As a result, there are some key changes to your Diamond Club membership, which I would like to outline below, which also includes an invitation from British Airways.

Announcement of bmi's exit from Star Alliance
A new partnership with British Airways
Business as usual for Diamond Club
1. bmi's exit from Star Alliance

I'd firstly like to advise that from 20 April bmi will no longer be a member of Star Alliance.

However, you will still be able to enjoy the following Star Alliance benefits associated with your membership tier level until 31 May 2012.

You will continue to earn membership status miles and earn and spend destinations miles on bmi and Star Alliance carriers (excluding Lufthansa Group airlines) until 31 May 2012
For all Star Alliance carriers you will also be able to take advantage of your bmi and Star Alliance status benefits, including lounge access, priority check-in and priority boarding until 31 May 2012
From 1 June 2012 any benefits associated with your tier membership and the ability to earn status miles and earn and spend destinations miles on Star Alliance airlines will end
Star Alliance award bookings made before 31 May 2012 will be honoured
For further information including changes to award bookings, retrospective claims and award flight bookings please visit flybmi.com

2. A new partnership with British Airways

We're pleased to announce that Diamond Club members will benefit from a new partnership with British Airways from 20 April 2012.

All members will be able to earn destinations miles on BA, for flights taken from 20 April 2012, and we will shortly introduce the option to spend your destinations miles on BA award flights
From today, Diamond Club Gold and Silver members will be able to access the British Airways lounges at London Heathrow and London Gatwick, when flying with bmi or British Airways - please present your Diamond Club Gold or Silver card on arrival to gain access
As part of the transition of bmi into British Airways, from 1 May 2012 British Airways is inviting you, as a Diamond Club member, to also join the Executive Club at your equivalent tier status level. Diamond Club Gold customers will be invited to become Gold members of the Executive Club and Silver members to become Silver, which will be in addition to your Diamond Club membership. Further details will follow shortly.

You will also be able to transfer your destinations miles to Executive Club Avios points at a rate of 1:1. British Airways will also be offering Executive Club customers the ability to transfer from Executive Club Avios points into destinations miles at a rate of 1:1. For example 100 destinations miles could be transferred into 100 Avios points and vice versa.

We are creating an online tool that will allow Diamond Club and Executive Club customers to undertake transfers, which will be available from 3 July 2012. We will contact you nearer that date to explain how the tool will work and how to access it.

3. Business as usual for Diamond Club

Although today we are announcing a number of changes to the programme, we would like to assure you that it is business as usual for Diamond Club, including members who have a bmi Credit Card Account with MBNA.

We very much appreciate your loyalty to bmi and hope that you continue to enjoy the benefits of Diamond Club membership.

For more information on the changes please visit flybmi.com

We look forward to welcoming you



Good news for current members!

There has been a crash in Islamabad, involving Bhoja Air flight BHO123. 127 reported to be onboard at the time, with no reports of survivors.

Aircraft was a B732.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-17788698

Sympathies to the relatives of those involved.

starrymarkb said:

Must say I'm not enthused by the livery, they seem to be going like Finnair and removing all colour!

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This is not the final livery, for some reason they've not finished it, should look like....

easyJet have been announcing a lot of new routes today from UK bases, most of which are head to head against other carriers.

-London Gatwick to the Isle of Man, Luxembourg, Turin and Tallinn.
-Birmingham to Belfast International.
-Manchester to Tel Aviv.
-Newcastle to Amsterdam.
-Bristol to Copenhagen.

giblets said:

This is not the final livery, for some reason they've not finished it, should look like....

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I've always thought there's a lot of wasted space in the noses of these. If they moved the cockpit to the upper deck and extended the main deck right to the nose, 747-style, they could probably cram in a good couple of dozen extra seats. Still, it's better than all the space above the cabin on the 747.