Humberside Airport

[pug]

Sale imminent.. Importance to the region must not be overlooked.

[legolamb]

shouldn't this be in the transport, urban planning and infrastructure subforum?

[legolamb]

Any ideas what might happen to this long term masterplan? Surely the sale was looking likely a year ago when it was drawn up?

http://www.humbersideairport.com/huy...-2007-2030.pdf

[pug]

The masterplan will be reviewed to the requirements of any new owner... They are not blueprint plans anyway as things in aviation can change very quickly. I do take the point of land uses though, it is hard to see how anyone would develop it differently if the need arises for expansion...

The point of concern is the buyer. Peel (owners of doncaster) are rumoured bidders, though i am assured they are not the main bidder... Eddie Stobart (stobart air) also rumoured though i am told i will be 'astonished' as to who the rumoured frontrunner is. Apparantly said bidder asked for an extention of the bid date to get the bid together and it was granted, hence the delay of any news.

If the rumour, from the inside by the way, is true and it is a big investor with plenty of capital, it will give Humberside the best chance of expansion.

Current owner MAG are a local authority run organisation (owned by a number of greater Manchester councils) and therefore are risk averse. As Humberside requires forward investment they are not the best company to carry on owning it. The airport has until recently made a profit enabling MAG to sit on it investing very little to retain services or expand into new markets.

I sincerely hope any new owner will be taking it on as a long term investment, to invest in attracting new airlines and operators, to help the Hmber sub region be more competative when being marketed to global companies.

It is a fingers crossed moment for the next couple of weeks at least. One thing is for sure, if we lose this asset we WILL lose out for the long run. Particularly if this enables the expansion of Robin Hood airport....

[The Hedge]

Originally Posted by pug

The masterplan will be reviewed to the requirements of any new owner... They are not blueprint plans anyway as things in aviation can change very quickly. I do take the point of land uses though, it is hard to see how anyone would develop it differently if the need arises for expansion...

The point of concern is the buyer. Peel (owners of doncaster) are rumoured bidders, though i am assured they are not the main bidder... Eddie Stobart (stobart air) also rumoured though i am told i will be 'astonished' as to who the rumoured frontrunner is. Apparantly said bidder asked for an extention of the bid date to get the bid together and it was granted, hence the delay of any news.

If the rumour, from the inside by the way, is true and it is a big investor with plenty of capital, it will give Humberside the best chance of expansion.

Current owner MAG are a local authority run organisation (owned by a number of greater Manchester councils) and therefore are risk averse. As Humberside requires forward investment they are not the best company to carry on owning it. The airport has until recently made a profit enabling MAG to sit on it investing very little to retain services or expand into new markets.

I sincerely hope any new owner will be taking it on as a long term investment, to invest in attracting new airlines and operators, to help the Hmber sub region be more competative when being marketed to global companies.

It is a fingers crossed moment for the next couple of weeks at least. One thing is for sure, if we lose this asset we WILL lose out for the long run. Particularly if this enables the expansion of Robin Hood airport....

Thanks for this update Pug.

For years Humberside has been allowed to stagnate by MAG. Presumably this was also in part to stop passengers using an airport closer to home while increasing passenger traffic and business levels through Manchester Airport.

Let's hope the 'rumoured frontrunner' can properly develop and expand Humberside Airport for the benefit of Hull and the Humberside region.

[pug]

I agree, though the stagnation is largely down to the fatal idea of allowing Doncaster airport permission.... It just was not needed.

Had Robin Hood not opened it is safe to say that Humberside would have a based low cost operator with little coming out of the MAG pockets. Unfortunately they need to up their game by offering deals and subsidies, something MAG cannot do due to the nature of their organisation.

Its not going to be easy for any new owner, i just hope they have expansion as a priority, work on the fact that Doncaster is piggy in the middle and try and attract say Jet2 as its further from its base in Leeds than Doncaster is....

[pug]

new development at Humberside Airport is set to boost trade in the region.


Rosie Winterton, the Government Minister for Yorkshire and the Humber, was at the airport to open the Perishables Hub - a purpose-built temperature-controlled facility to handle air freight cargo - particularly seafood and other perishable goods.

She congratulated all involved in the "very impressive" £1.6-million development, adding: "This is exactly the kind of initiative we want to see being taken forward in our area."

She said the development was going to be a boost for the local economy and one which would cut down on the costs of transportation for firms and ensure goods reached their destinations more quickly.

Ms Winterton also said she was delighted to see the success of the partnership working involved.

This included North Lincolnshire Council, Anglia Cargo International and Humberside Airport, working together with Yorkshire Forward and funding from Europe.

Anglia Cargo International director Geoff Garrard-Hughes said the new 10,000 sq ft development would employ about six people.

The refrigerator will take about 130 pallets and Mr Garrard-Hughes said it offered a tool which meant companies in the area could use their local facility.

Icelandic fish, which was previously being carried elsewhere, is now using the Humberside Airport facility and the number of flights from Iceland has increased to three or four a week, each typically carrying 25 to 28 tonnes of cargo.

Mr Garrard-Hughes also said now the facility was here they would be able to target more business from other areas and would be handling dry cargo as well as fish.

Humberside Airport director Tony Lavan said: "It's a £1.6-million addition to the infrastructure and gives Humberside a state-of-the-art transit and perishables hub which will allow us to open up new markets into the Humber region."

He added: "We are working with Yorkshire Forward and North Lincolnshire Council to establish the new customer bases and the new transport of perishable goods opportunities."

From Humberbusiness.com

Good news, unfortunately tho they have misquoted the weekly number of flights. Direct flights are now only once weekly. Hopefully it will bring them back to four or six and may bring in others too?

[legolamb]

Humberside Airport not being sold
Tuesday, December 16, 2008, 15:30
Comment on this story

The owner of Humberside Airport has announced the Kirmington site will not be sold.
Manchester Airports Group (MAG) announced it is retaining its 82.7 per cent majority shareholding.
In April, it announced it was planning to sell its stake in the business to focus on its larger airports in Manchester, East Midlands and Bournemouth.
The decision by MAG was taken after all options for the airport – including a transfer of ownership – were considered as part of a strategic review.
Although MAG held talks with a number of potential purchasers, the group decided given several positive developments recently at Humberside Airport and the current economic climate, retaining its majority stake was the correct course of action.

[pug]

The rumoured buyer pulled out because of the downturn. Not a great time to buy an airport.

At least we know MAG will run it as an airport, who knows they may commit to new developments now?

New low cost service to Jersey next summer also, though it will replace the charter flights of previous summers, it will be operated by FlyBE as a scheduled route. Perhaps more from them in the future?

[pug]

Interesting interview with Tony Lavan, Humberside Airport MD...

Last month, Manchester Airports Group announced it is to retain its 82 per cent stake in Humberside Airport, describing it as a solid business with development opportunities. Business Editor David Laister met airport director Tony Lavan to find out what the future holds for the Kirmington base.


Having arrived in northern Lincolnshire as the review began, Tony Lavan wasn't sure what to expect from his new team as he walked into the terminal at Humberside.

He needn't have been concerned.

While the potential for change of ownership and new management can have an unsettling effect on the best of staff, all he discovered was a passion to demonstrate the strengths of a real economic driver that supports more than 700 jobs and helps underpin the region's business credentials.

Recalling his first few days last spring, Mr Lavan said: "My expectations of how staff would react was completely out of tune.

"I was amazed. It was so positive, there was a feeling of 'this is my airport, it has got to be business as usual, we will carry on and see what the future holds'.

"Because of that we managed to grow and bring business in, which I didn't originally expect to happen."

And such attitude inspired Mr Lavan, in his first posting away from Manchester.

"It was at that early stage that I began to get a passion for the airport myself," he said.

"If 160 people employed here want to take the airport forward given a chance, then there cannot be much that is going to get in our way."

The aviation industry was one of the first to suffer the forces of the economic downturn, and Mr Lavan is honest about the expectations over the next year.

But while passenger numbers are likely to drop quite significantly, the diversity and non-reliance on one aspect of the industry is the key to Humberside's future.

He said: "We have to look at Humberside in the context of where the world economic situation is at the moment, and particularly where the aviation industry is.

"At the moment it is not even treading water. It is an industry going backwards, and for the majority of airports there is not a likelihood it is going to change over the next 12 months.

"At best we need to retain what we have got and maintain our position and look for growth.

"At the earliest it would be our winter programme for 2009, but more likely it will be summer 2010."

Recent successes have seen new contracts won with offshore support firms, with scores more weekly helicopter flights.

And there was also the 10 per cent increase in travellers over the festive period.

Mr Lavan said: "We had a really good Christmas, and we saw that as a reaction to what is happening.

"There were two aspects, one was people saying 'we need a break', the second was the fairly cold, wet and frosty period prior to Christmas.

"When we broke that down we saw a massive increase in people using the KLM service. Only 10 per cent of those people actually go to Amsterdam (as an end destination).

"The rest are flying to 200 destinations around the world. That is almost the jewel in the crown, the international service and connectivity with four flights a day - the access to the world.

"Perhaps we don't do enough to publicise that for the region, the fact you can fly to the world from Humberside Airport.

"That really is our USP - that you can drive here quickly, park, and clear security in a single level terminal that is very easy to navigate."

The Canaries also proved popular, but it is not enough to halt a slide when it comes to people passing through the departure lounge.

"Year on year we will expect to see a downturn," said Mr Lavan.

"We had 450,000 passengers in the year to April 2008, we are now looking at 400,000 for this year.

"It is a short-term drop in - predominantly - the charter sector.

"There have been amalgamations and losses of tour operators. There has been consolidation of routes and aircraft.

"It has resulted in an overall reduction in capacity across the industry, which has all been influenced by the general economic situation."

The arrival of a neighbouring airport wasn't a great boost for Humberside either, but neither has it been the death knell that many first thought.

Mr Lavan said: "We have to be honest and say the opening of Robin Hood Airport had a big impact initially.

"A number of operators moved flights from here to Doncaster, but over a period of time we have managed to consolidate the flights that remained and have started to see more operators come in.

"It is not ideal to have another regional airport 35 miles away, but we are holding our own and growing niche markets like the offshore work."

This is where much of the new work has been seen.

"What is helping out over this period is a real increase in offshore activity," he said. "We have attracted a new contract with Bristow and CHC has also started a new contract which involves another 24 flights a week.

"It is all for the gas fields in the southern North Sea.

"This is exactly what the beauty is about Humberside, the diversity of the business. We do not have over-exposure to one aspect of the aviation revenues, we haven't got a reliance on low-cost operators like some airports have and all our eggs are not in one basket with one airline.

"We have maintenance work here, we have Eastern Airways with the only simulator of its kind in the world, and all that brings more passengers in.

"This diversity gives optimism going forward, there are lots of growth areas there."



Interesting development plans


REWARDING customer loyalty and working closely with the business community are key aims for the future of Humberside Airport.

For Mr Lavan, the role of airport director at Humberside is his first away from his home city, having joined Manchester Airports Group from school.

And what has struck him most about the area is the loyalty customers show, something he is keen to reciprocate once the economy gets back on its feet.

Mr Lavan said: "The Humber region is slightly different to anywhere else.

"The loyalty people have for the local airport is one of the real positives, it has a very, very loyal catchment, almost to the extent where they will not take a holiday if it is not from Humberside.

"We know that 90 per cent of all the passengers are within a 45 minute drive time.

"If we have the connectivity and destinations we will fill the seats on the aircraft.

"A very loyal catchment wants to fly from here, and what they need are the routes. The focus is to get back the right routes to serve that market."

An advantage of having an on-site travel agency is that he can get an immediate feel for what the customers want.

And the plan is to put that to good use as soon as it is practical to do so.

Mr Lavan said: "We have to accept at the moment that decision making in every company is slowed by everyone checking their own performance.

"My thoughts about consolidation and retaining business apply to everyone else as well.

"There are not many organisations willing to take a chance at the moment.

"There is, however, a measure between standing still and taking some risks and putting a foot on the accelerator a little."

And routes are not the only developments that are being worked up so that when the time is right the airport is read to move swiftly.

"We are still moving forward. There are interesting development plans for the future.

"There could be another maintenance hangar built on the airport site, and we have had outline discussions for a hotel development, which is something that has been talked about for a long time.

"Everyone agrees it is the right thing to do. We could fill three-quarters of a hotel from the business coming through from CHC and Eastern Airways."

Mr Lavan, who is living in Barton, joined MAG as a mechanical apprentice.

He moved from engineering and into operations and the final two positions he held were general manager of engineering and fire services at Manchester, before heading up Ringway Handling Services, the $owned aircraft ground handling business there.

It was from that role that he came to Humberside Airport, with a remit of ‘business as usual’ for the duration of the review period.

Now the airport is clear of that chapter, Mr Lavan is keen to work with partners in the region and the industry to move forward.

"We cannot be an island at this time," he said. "We need to do some collaborative working with both the aviation community and the local community."

One example is to reverse the scaling back of flights of fresh fish now the new perishables hub is operational at the airport.

"We have flights from Icelandair, bringing fish in," said Mr Lavan. "We had five flights a week but that went one flight a week due to logistical changes. We are now working with North Lincolnshire Council and strategic development people at Yorkshire Forward and Anglia Cargo, operators of the hub, to look at a workstream for outward supply operations.

"We need an export consolidation operation to make the Icelandair flight work. They love Humberside, the quick turnaround, but they need to take something back.We are working in a holistic way to identify what the supply needs are. It could be flower bulbs, radishes or whatever, we just need to work out what it is."

Source; Grimsby Telegraph

[pug]

Travel company swaps destinations

HUMBERSIDE Airport’s largest tour operator has dropped six holiday destinations from its summer flight programme in favour of more popular holiday hotspots.

Thomas Cook, who fly the majority of the airport’s 450,000 holidaymakers abroad, will not be operating flights to Tenerife, Lanzarote, Gran Canaria, Menorca, Ibiza and Portugal this summer.

However, it has increased the capacity on its flights to Cyprus, Turkey and Majorca as demand for those destinations increases.

A spokeswoman said: “Thomas Cook is the largest operator working out of Humberside Airport and we remain committed to Humberside Airport.

“However, from time to time, it is necessary to make adjustments to our flight programmes in accordance with demand.”

Holidaymakers who wish to fly to the Canary and Balearic islands will now have to fly from other airports in the region.

Sunseekers Keith Parker and his wife Monica, of Grimsby’s Weelsby Road, were told last week they would now have to depart from Leeds Bradford airport for the two-week Tenerife break they booked in December.
Keith (62) said: “It would have meant about £150 extra in a taxi fare for a round trip.

“I spoke to a couple of travel agents and they said no one is flying to Tenerife any more, so it’s not just because of the credit crunch.

“Personally, I think if Thomas Cook are pulling their flights, it sounds like a death knell for the airport.”
However, both Thomas Cook and Humberside Airport have refuted this, saying destinations outside the Eurozone, such as Turkey, offer better value for money for customers in the current financial climate.
In addition, the tour operator will also be using its own Thomas Cook Airlines this summer, following the success of the winter flight programme operating at Humberside.

The Thomas Cook spokeswoman added: “We think this really does reiterate to customers our commitment to the airport.”

A spokeswoman for the airport said it was continually working with tour operators to find a greater choice of destinations and flights for customers, and added: “Routes do change over time, and programmes do alter.
“But both Thomas Cook and Humberside Airport are committed to making sure we have flights for our customers where there is demand.

“For example, a new operator called Holidays4U will also be running flights to Turkey from Humberside and Flybe has increased its capacity on flights to Jersey.”

source; thisisgrimsby

[pug]

The CAA just released the provisional passanger statistics for March 09. Humberside held up well last month handling 25,551 passangers. This is up 10.7% on March 08.

Comparing this with Robin Hood Doncaster Sheffield Intergalagtic Spaceport, which though it handled 60,251 in March this is down 23.4% on March 08 and greater falls expected over the coming months....

[pug]

Rumours of a well known airline looking at a new base, the smart money is on Humberside. This has been doing the rounds for years now though on and off. Hopefuly they may clinch it this time.

[pug]

Mods

Any chance of this thread moving to the new Humberside sub-forum? Many thanks

[pug]

Would seem Doncaster have attracted Easyjet... Shame that Humberside hasnt had any expansion of late. Some rumours were going around a couple of months ago but have gone quiet now.

It should not be overlooked how important Humberside would be towards the bid to host world cup matches, KLM being particularly important for worldwide connections.

[pug]

Looks like there could be an interesting development ahead for Humberside this summer. Malaga has appeared on the low-cost airline FlyBE's booking engine as a saturday service during the summer. This adds to their Jersey service. There has been no announcement yet so fingers crossed there could be more to come...

[pug]

Flybe announces new summer 2010 route from Humberside



Leading regional airline launches first ever scheduled service to Malaga from Humberside Airport.

Flybe, the UK’s number one domestic airline, has today 06/01/2010 announced a brand new weekly summer service from Humberside Airport to Malaga for 2010 with seats now on sale from £44.99 one-way including taxes and charges for travel effective 29th May to 11th September 2010.

The new Saturday route, in partnership with Humberside Airport, will be the first ever scheduled service to Malaga from the region. It will be operated by one of the airline’s state-of-the-art 118-seat Embraer 195 jet aircraft featuring comfortable 2 x 2 seating configuration and expands Flybe’s presence at the airport from where it began operating its successful Jersey route last year.

Mike Rutter, Flybe’s Chief Commercial Officer, comments: “We’re delighted to be adding this brand new service to Spain from Humberside and to increasing our presence at the airport and remain committed to expanding our services out of the region.”

Tony Lavan, Director, Humberside Airport said: “Today's announcement is great news for the airport and a great start to the new year. Flybe’s new scheduled service follows the introduction of Jersey last year which was extremely well received. It is great to see the airline extending its commitment with the launch of a weekly flight to Malaga and I am sure that the new addition to the schedule will prove popular with passengers.”

Adds Mr Rutter: “Flybe prides itself on ensuring that travellers have the widest possible choice of affordable, quality flights to attractive business and leisure destinations. With people already planning next year’s holidays and wanting their budgets to go as far as possible, it’s advisable to book early to take advantage of the lowest possible fares.”

humbersideairport.com

[Chris (Newcastle)]

Originally Posted by pug

humbersideairport.com

I'd recommend Malaga as a link to Andalusia which has some of the best beaches, driving scenery (new motorways) and historical towns and cities - Granada, Cordoba, Seville, Ronda.

I'd go now....

[pug]

It seems FlyBe are increasing their committment at Humberside, they are to announce yet another new route, a service to Belfast City (George Best) Airport at a 4 x weekly frequency.

Another good committment to the region.

[pug]

Here is the press release in the Yorkshire Post

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« Previous « PreviousNext » Next »View GalleryPublished Date: 18 February 2010
By Alexandra Wood
HUMBERSIDE Airport has announced a new four-times a week service to Belfast.


The route will be operated by British airline Flybe, using one of its fleet of 78-seater Q-400 aircraft.

Flybe began operating flights to Jersey from the Kirmington airport last year and last month announced a new Saturday service to the Spanish resort of Malaga starting this summer.

Seats on the Belfast flights are now on sale from £25.99 one-way, starting on May 27.

The route is the first scheduled service between Humberside and Northern Ireland.

Flybe's chief commercial officer Mike Rutter said: "We're delighted to be adding yet another new service from Humberside and to be increasing the already extensive choice of affordable routes we operate from Belfast for our Northern Ireland travellers."

Humberside Airport director Tony Lavan said: "We're delighted that Flybe will be extending their commitment to the airport and the region by introducing another new route from Humberside Airport. We are sure that Belfast will be a popular addition to the schedule"

To most this news may seem insignificant, though this news is excellent for the region. If these flights are successful then it will almost certainly mean more will be announced in the future, possibly to the likes of Paris and Dublin.