Great Western Coffee Shop

Flybe to cut 500 jobs despite return to profit

(http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/71036000/jpg/_71036617_71036615.jpg)
FlyBe boss Saad Hammad: "We have excessive costs which we must deal with immediately"

Flybe, the Exeter-based airline, has announced plans to cut 500 jobs across the business, despite reporting a return to profit. Pre-tax profits were ^13.8m for the six months to 30 September, compared with a loss of ^1.6m a year earlier.

The company said its turnaround plan was on track to make ^40m of savings this year and ^45m in 2014-15. But the pilot's union, Balpa, said it was "shocked" by the decision to cut jobs. Flybe employs 2,700 staff.

Flybe has been carrying out cost-cutting measures, but chief executive Saad Hammad, who joined the company in August, said more were now needed. "It was clear to me that the existing Phase 1 and 2 cost savings were necessary but we simply needed to do more and to do it immediately," he said in a statement.

Mr Hammad told the BBC he could not say where the latest job losses would fall at this stage. "We're consulting with unions and our staff," he said.

Flybe cut 490 jobs in 2012-13, with a further 100 going in the first half of 2013-14. As part of the cost-cutting programme some routes could "possibly" go, Mr Hammad said. "These are challenging times," he added.

Group revenues rose to ^351.1m in the six months, up from ^340.8m in the same period last year. The carrier now has 96 aircraft in its fleet, with 28 belonging to Flybe Finland, its joint venture with Finnish Air.

Passenger numbers increased 5.6% to 4.3 million in the first half of the year.

Investors welcomed Flybe's decision to carry out additional cost cuts, sending its shares up by 40.5% to 95.75p.

Analysis

(http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/57942000/jpg/_57942487_richardwestcott.jpg)
Richard Westcott
BBC transport correspondent

No airline is finding it easy at the moment. They rarely do. Even the all-conquering Ryanair has announced two profit warnings in two months and pledged to be nicer to its customers.

But Flybe is different to all those big companies. It runs smaller aircraft and doesn't fill them up as much, making it harder to turn a profit. Plus, 74.3% of its flights are domestic, meaning that it often pays two lots of Air Passenger Duty, because you pay every time you take off from a UK airport. A flight abroad only pays once.

John Strickland, director of JLS consulting, told me that Flybe's future relies on making their own regional model work, competing with the trains for example, rather than going head-to-head with the big low-cost airlines. And step one is to start selling more seats on each aeroplane.

I do think Flybe will survive, but many of the more marginal regional destinations they serve, some on a very seasonal basis (Newquay being a great example*) may not.

There is no "may not" about Newquay though. It has already been announced Flybe are ending all flights from Newquay in March 2014.

As part of this, bases like Southampton may actually gain routes - an application has already been made to serve Frankfurt from there from next year, for example. There is also talk that they may press their Southampton fleet into nightime service on routes to Spain, Portugal and North Africa - this is what I meant by sweating the assets, which currently sit idle at Southampton between roughly 10pm and 6.30am

The only other thing to say is that Southampton is *very* reliant on Flybe (who fly probably 90% of it's passengers), so it will live or die depending on the airline's fortunes and what it decides to do with it's ops there.   

Flybe cuts Cardiff Airport flights to Paris and Glasgow

(http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/71535000/jpg/_71535279_018087798-1.jpg)
Flybe recently announced plans to cut 500 UK jobs

Airline Flybe is to axe its flights from Cardiff to Paris and Glasgow.

Services to Paris Charles de Gaulle and Glasgow will be withdrawn from 19 January, and passengers will be offered alternative flights or refunds. However, the airline will still run planned flights to the two destinations for fans travelling to Six Nations rugby matches between 20-24 February.

Cardiff Airport said it was speaking to "a number of airlines" about running the Paris and Glasgow routes.

The announcement came as the company finalised its summer 2014 schedule, and confirmed it will keep three existing Cardiff services to Belfast City, Edinburgh and Jersey.

Paul Simmons, Flybe's chief commercial officer, said: "We have taken a long hard look at all the routes we fly from Cardiff to make sure they are what our customers really want and that they operate at the best possible times for everyone."

Cardiff airport chief executive Jon Horne said it was "unfortunate that the popular Cardiff to Glasgow and Paris routes will drop" from Flybe's schedule. He added: "We are already in discussion with a number of airlines regarding the opportunity to pick up the Glasgow and Paris routes, which currently handle 46,000 and 29,000 passengers respectively per annum. Our focus is on securing an alternative carrier as soon as possible in order to avoid any break in service. We will also continue to work closely with Flybe and explore with them other route opportunities from Cardiff as their restructuring process continues."

In November Flybe said some of its routes could "possibly" be scrapped after it announced plans to cut 500 jobs. Although it operates services from Cardiff, the Exeter-based airline does not have any staff based there.

In October it announced four new direct ski routes from Cardiff Airport to Geneva, Lyon, Chambray and Grenoble. The routes, running from December to April, marked the return of ski destination services at Cardiff after a three-year absence.

Four injured after plane blown off Stornoway runway

Four people have been injured after a plane came off the runway at Stornoway Airport on the Isle of Lewis.

The Loganair service was due to fly to Glasgow at about 08:30. It is thought it may have been caught in strong crosswinds.

Police Scotland said two men were taken to hospital and two women received minor injuries but declined medical assistance.

A full air accident investigation into the incident is under way.

There were 25 passengers and three crew members on board the aircraft.

After leaving the runway the plane came to rest on the grass next to it. The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service sent three appliances to the scene.

One passenger told the BBC it felt as if the tail was caught by a crosswind.

Murdo John MacAskill, who was on board, said: "The plane came down with a bump and we veered far off to the left. I looked out the window and I saw the grass coming up and I knew that there was something wrong so entered the brace position and that's when the plane crashed. We were evacuated from the plane within, I would say, under five minutes. Everyone was standing on the tarmac then and by that stage you had the fire service and the police there."

(http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/80020000/jpg/_80020026_stornoway.jpg)

(http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/80021000/jpg/_80021631_storn5.jpg)

A statement from the airport operators said: "An outbound Saab 340 aircraft operated by Loganair veered off the runway at Stornoway Airport at 8.33am this morning. Efforts to remove the aircraft from the runway are ongoing and investigations into the cause of the incident are under way. It is it our intention to resume normal operations as soon as the aircraft is safely removed from the runway. There are no scheduled arrivals or departures at Stornoway until later this afternoon."

A Police Scotland spokesman said: "As a result of the incident two male passengers received injuries and were taken to Stornoway Hospital for further assessment/medical treatment. Two female passengers received minor injuries and declined medical assistance. A full air accident investigation has now been launched and will be carried out by the AAIB in conjuction with Police Scotland."

A Loganair spokesman added: "All passengers and crew were safely evacuated and returned to the airport's terminal. Two passengers sustained what we understand are minor injuries and have gone to the local hospital. A full investigation is now under way to ascertain the cause of the incident and the Air Accident Investigation Branch has been notified."

(http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/80024000/jpg/_80024173_storn3.jpg)

(http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/80024000/jpg/_80024174_storn2.jpg)

Although a flybe aircraft it was on charter to Loganair at the time of this incident.

Unsurprising frankly - why would *anyone* traipse all the way to LCY, go through security etc, fly & get from the airport to city centre when you can get hourly trains from PAD that drop you a hell of a lot closer to where you want to be without any hanging about?

Unsurprising frankly - why would *anyone* traipse all the way to LCY, go through security etc, fly & get from the airport to city centre when you can get hourly trains from PAD that drop you a hell of a lot closer to where you want to be without any hanging about?

I have a work colleague (lives in Exmouth) who quite regularly uses the EXT-LCY for day trips, and it seems to work for him, and is often cheaper than the train. LCY is about 20mins by DLR/foot from our City Office.

However, Flybe, the airline which operates these flights, is now up for sale and so I guess the future of these flights is far from assured.

Furthermore, does anyone have any information regarding the future of the Exeter to London City route? It’s defied the naysayers, but hard to imagine it surviving the latest crisis.

Newquay to Gatwick and now Heathrow is a bit of a special case, as it's operated under a PSO (Public Service Obligation) which means government funding is in place should it be needed to sustain it as a route if required. Chatter on the aviation forums suggests it stands on its own two feet financially at the moment.

It's a great shame that flights from Plymouth to London weren't similarly regarded as a special case.

I would have chosen to subsidise Newquay.

Seen speculations that the real prize are Flybe's slots at Heathrow and the rest would be incidental.

I think you'll find that the slots that Flybe use to fly their current Aberdeen and Edinburgh services from Heathrow are what is known as "remedy slots" (from the BA takeover of bmi) and can only be used to a very small, specific list of destinations. They aren't Flybe's to sell, as I understand it.

Little Red used A320's leased from Aer Lingus, which were too much aircraft to compete with BA on those routes. The 78-seat Q400's that Flybe use are more suited (and only a few minutes slower than a pure jet on sectors of this length).

FLYBE takeover just announced: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-46834827

New topic required..... :P

Flybe is being bought for £2.2m by a consortium including Virgin Atlantic and Stobart Group.

It will operate under the Virgin Atlantic brand, marking a return by Virgin to domestic flights, following a failed attempt five years ago.

Based in Exeter, Flybe carries around eight million passengers a year from airports such as Southampton, Cardiff and Aberdeen, to the UK and Europe.

The deal needs shareholder approval, but is already backed by the board.

The move comes after Flybe's profits warning in October .

[article continues]

That BBC story is over a month old, dated 11th January. I've found this dated today though. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-47329014

That BBC story is over a month old

Over to the shareholders, then. Stobart already have a toe in the door, via William Tinkler (12.2% holding). He is on a number of Stobart's boards, and was previously MD of WA Holdings, former owners of Carlisle Airport.

(no more ... Cap D'agde)

I have used them a number of times from Southampton - a much more pleasant experience than Heathrow or Gatwick on those occasions when getting to Scotland for a short trip outweighed the pleasant experience of taking the train, and also to get to Amsterdam, Ireland, Spain and various obscure French provincial airports.

I have been surprised at how few people in the Thames Valley or Surrey seem unaware of their services - a bit like XC or the Gatwick line. However in recent times I've noticed that they have cut quite a few of their route, especially some of their French routes (no more Beziers Cap D'agde), so I guess that they've struggled to make them pay. I hope the new owners keep a reasonable number of routes to Southampton going.


Stobart and Tinkler have fallen out in a big way - allegations of falling well short of proper standards of coporate governance on his part, and he's recently lost a court case,  see https://www.standard.co.uk/business/stobart-group-claims-victory-in-high-court-battle-with-andrew-tinkler-a4068141.html-

I'd suggest that as most people in the Thames Valley are within striking distance of Heathrow, Southampton airport probably wouldn't be a practical option?

Except for some Flybe staff who are now facing redundancies in order to streamline the business.

TG - once you take into account-

1 - Much shorter check in/baggage recovery times
2 - Compact terminal with short distance to gates
3 - Station just the other side of the road to the terminal building
4 - Cheaper carparking much closer to the airport with short transfer times
5 - Ready access to M27, M3 one junction away, A34 not far further, which while busy is seldom anything like as bad as the M4 and M25 around Heathrow, and much closer to Reading/Newbury/Oxford than Gatwick, or by train via Basingstoke and Reading (direct XC trains to Reading & Oxford)

It's all much more convenient - try it sometime if you are going to Scotland, Dublin or those airports in Europe it serves (that is if they are not conveniently on the rail network or time is important)!

I live 20 mins from Heathrow, no need for car parking. 1 hr 30 mins from Southampton, so it's no contest really.

I live 20 mins from Heathrow, no need for car parking. 1 hr 30 mins from Southampton, so it's no contest really

At the location of my moniker, I'm almost equidistant between LHR and SOU.

For flights to destinations available from SOU that will always be my choice, for the reasons that eightondee mentions.

Over the last year, I've taken 7 day-return trips, to the likes of Guernsey (not available from LHR, until a new single-daily summer-season-only flight that was announced this week), Belfast City and Jersey (not available from LHR) and only experienced one delay.

At SOU it's quite possible (having checked in on-line) to arrive 45 mins (to allow time for security) before departure, and after arrival be in the car driving out of the airport 10 after stepping off the aircraft. Try that at LHR! 

Flying from Southampton is so much ... better ... than from one of the London airports but, yes, it's a well hidden surprise to many people I speak to.

Newquay - Heathrow flights (re)started today.

https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/cornwall-newquay-airport-heathrow-flights-subsidised-flybe-planes-trains-a8847866.html

Incredibly good news for the region, especially for business.

Flybe sincerely apologises to all our customers and partners affected by the current flight cancellations. Whilst 95% of Flybe flights are operating as per normal, we do recognize the impact of today’s cancellations.

We are doing our best to mitigate the impact of the current situation that has arisen due to a combination of factors including seasonality, pilots’ end of leave year, Easter holidays, base restructuring and the shortage of pilots across the industry that Flybe has highlighted over recent months.

We have already identified several mitigation actions and will be issuing further updates throughout the day.

All those affected have been emailed and advised they can re-book for travel on an alternative flight or apply for a full refund.

Customers are advised to regularly check our website for more details.

looks like the end for FlyBe then?

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-51746564

website down too.

We’re sorry to hear about the collapse of  @flybe. We’d like to help those affected by allowing them free travel today on any @firstgroupplc train, by producing evidence of their Flybe booking. This includes  @GWRHelp, @AvantiWestCoast, @SW_Railway & @Hull_Trains. #Flybecollapse

Replying to @PaulCliftonBBC Hi Paul, it's devastating for its passengers and staff. We're already speaking to other airlines about taking on its routes. Our advice to passengers due to travel with Flybe is not to travel to the airport and to visit the CAA’s website for advice http://www.caa.co.uk/news

Flybe, which operated regional services from airports across the United Kingdom, has entered administration.

All Flybe flights, and those operated by Stobart Air, are cancelled. Therefore, please do not go to the airport as your flight will not be operating.

Flybe customers are therefore urged to make their own alternative travel arrangements via other airlines, rail or coach operators.

For flights operated by Flybe franchise partners (Eastern Airways, and Blue Islands) passengers should make contact with that airline to confirm your travel arrangements.

The UK Civil Aviation Authority will provide advice and information to consumers, so please check our website and Twitter feed @UK_CAA for more information.

Commenting, Richard Moriarty Chief Executive at the UK Civil Aviation Authority, said: “This is a sad day for UK aviation and we know that Flybe's decision to stop trading will be very distressing for all of its employees and customers.

“We urge passengers planning to fly with this airline not to go to the airport as all Flybe flights are cancelled.  For the latest advice, Flybe customers should visit the CAA website or the CAA's Twitter feed for more information.

“Flybe also operated a number of codeshare partnerships with international airlines.  If you have an international ticket you should make contact with that airline to confirm your travel arrangements.”

Booked flight with credit or debit card

If you booked directly with Flybe and paid by credit card you may be protected under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 and should contact your card issuer for further information.  Similarly, if you paid by debit or charge card you should contact your card issuer for advice as you may be able to make a claim under their charge back rules.

If you purchased travel insurance that includes cover for scheduled airline failure, known as SAFI, you should contact your insurer. If you did not book directly with Flybe and purchased your tickets through a third party, you should contact your booking or travel agent in the first instance.

Negative response letter

Passengers who booked directly with the company via either a credit, charge or debit card may alternatively be able to make a claim through their card provider. Some card providers will ask for a negative response letter confirming the position. Passengers may also be able to make a claim against their travel insurer.  (This letter will be published on this page shortly) 

Direct booking with an airline

If you paid the airline directly by credit card you might be protected by Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974. You should check with your card issuer for further advice. You may have similar cover if you paid by Visa debit card and should check with your bank.

Booked through an Airline Ticket Agent

If you booked your ticket through an airline ticket agent you should speak to the agent in the first instance; they may have provided travel insurance that includes Scheduled Airline Failure cover.

Scheduled Airline Failure Insurance (SAFI)

Some airlines and airline ticket agents will offer customers either a specific Scheduled Airline Failure Insurance (SAFI) policy or include similar protection within a broader travel insurance product. The type of protection provided may vary depending on the type of policy taken out. A policy may simply cover the cost of the original tickets purchased or any unused portion, or the additional cost of purchasing new flights, such as new tickets for travel back to the UK.

Booked with an ATOL holder (Package Holiday)

If you have booked a trip that includes flights and hotels with a travel firm that holds an ATOL (Air Travel Organiser's Licence) and received confirmation that you are ATOL protected, the travel firm is responsible for your flight arrangements and must either make alternative flights available for you so that your trip can continue or provide a full refund. If you are abroad, it should make arrangements to bring you home at the end of your trip. Contact the ATOL travel firm for more information.

Notes to editors

The Civil Aviation Authority believes that very few Flybe passengers are ATOL protected and those people should make arrangements through their travel agent, who are responsible for providing alternative arrangements. The government has not commissioned the CAA to organise any repatriation flights as there is capacity in the market for people to travel via alternative airlines, rail and coach operations.

Wrong airline!  It is FlyBMI that has gone into Administration

Excellent offer of free travel for Flybe ticket holders from First Group TOCs.

https://twitter.com/GWRHelp/status/1235483794335031296?s=19

EDIT: Ah, I see grahame quoted a similar tweet. As you were.

Right second time.

This thread is a mess!  FlyBMI and now FlyBE ... I will see if I can tidy up subject lines!

I might have just done that while you were posting, grahame!

Departures & arrivals
Arrival and departure information is currently unavailable

Why is it that information system break down when you most need them?

https://www.southamptonairport.com/departures-arrivals/ :

Why is it that information system break down when you most need them?

I think the graph from the BBC article (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-51749882) might give a good indication of why. 90% of all flights out of Southampton are affected.

Back up and running, with a message about FlyBe not operating any more. There are no other flights to show. Southampton council was in the process of planning an extension to the runway to enable bigger airlines to operate, as EasyJet have said they want to start services from there. That has been put on hold, and there aren't many other operators of turboprop aircraft who could take over from Flybe.

Looks like Loganair are stepping in starting next week, at least for Edinburgh, Glasgow, Newcastle and maybe a couple more.  I wonder if they’ll use ex-FlyBe aeroplanes?

All routes that I used when I was still working, because you could basically get almost a full working day in and avoid a hotel stay.

Paul

Posted by: broadgage
Insert Quote
Whilst I am sorry for those thrown out of work, and those whose travel plans have been disrupted, taking the wider view the failure of another airline is good news for the environment.
If we are serious about the climate emergency, we need to fly less and not more. Air travel is very carbon intensive and likely to remain so.

Hopefully some people will now fly less, making use of rail instead, or even staying in one place.

Some of the routes formerly operated by Flybe will presumably be taken over by competitors, but others may close permanently. Those who flew infrequently may have to accept the extra time taken by rail.
Those who flew frequently might have to review their location and business affairs so as to reduce the need for such frequent long distance travel.

The rail line from Newquay to Par isn't much of an improvement over using a horse and cart. Flybe's Dash aircraft were amongst the most environmentally friendly aircraft out there.

It is the speed of services generally to Cornwall that is therefore the issue not the Newquay branch.

....and that is why the replacement of Flybe on the PSO Newquay to London route needs to get sorted PDQ, with government assistance if possible. Anything beyond Exeter (or Plymouth at a stretch) is not doable for a day trip by rail from London and the Thames Valley.

Posted by: broadgage
Insert Quote

I really can't make up my mind whether Broadgage lives in the past or the future, but it's some kind of utopian dreamworld, whatever it is.

Hopefully some people will now fly less, making use of rail instead, or even staying in one place.

Some of the routes formerly operated by Flybe will presumably be taken over by competitors, but others may close permanently. Those who flew infrequently may have to accept the extra time taken by rail.
Those who flew frequently might have to review their location and business affairs so as to reduce the need for such frequent long distance travel.

...I'm fairly sure that all or nearly all of Flybe's aircraft are leased, so the lessors will re-possess and then try to re-market them. They may in time find their way to other operators (anywhere globally) but those operators will need to have pilots type-rated to fly them, and I would be fairly sure that an operator like Loganair (which operates different types) won't have many, if any, that are rated to fly Flybe's Q400's, for example.

....and that is why the replacement of Flybe on the PSO Newquay to London route needs to get sorted PDQ, with government assistance if possible. Anything beyond Exeter (or Plymouth at a stretch) is not doable for a day trip by rail from London and the Thames Valley.

Not quite true.  Depends what you consider as doable.....

London Paddington d0637  Penzance a1141
Penzance d1745  London Paddington a2356

Penzance d0458  London Paddington a1000
London Paddington d1804  (FO d1904) Penzance a2307 (FO a0034)

Lots of alternatives (mostly hourly throughout the day) and lots of intermediate places not served by direct flights.

Just out of interest what would be the comparable times from Central London to Penzance by flying?

At a walk-up cost of £294.20 - or, if you are lucky enough to qualify for a railcard that is valid in the early morning, £194.85 (OK, slightly cheaper if you purchase two singles)!

Not quite true.  Depends what you consider as doable.....

London Paddington d0637  Penzance a1141
Penzance d1745  London Paddington a2356

Loganair have said that their intention to takeover (some of) the former Flybe routes serving Glasgow, Edinburgh & Newcastle will require the recruitment of around 100 additional staff and preference will be given to (suitably qualified) ex-Flybe people. I guess that implies they wouldn't be averse to leasing a small number of the mothballed Q400's unless they are prepared to retrain pilots & cabin crew which would presumably delay reinstatement of the specified services.

It would be very good for our local economy if Flybe Aviation Services, which was registered as a separate entity some time ago and is still in business, could continue as the UK Q400 engineering base.

London Paddington d0637  Penzance a1141
Penzance d1745  London Paddington a2356

Penzance d0458  London Paddington a1000
London Paddington d1804  (FO d1904) Penzance a2307 (FO a0034)

... For pure jets, they have 4 Embraer ERJ-135 and 13 ERJ-135 aircraft, with a common rating. ...

I think that should read: "For pure jets, they have 4 Embraer ERJ-135 and 13 ERJ-145 aircraft, with a common rating." (Some of the later comments need that for their sense.)

There were many Cornish folks on social media yesterday (look at Newquay Airport's Facebook page, as an example) decrying the loss of the London airlink and the business and personal impacts, so I stand by my hope that it is resurrected asap.

The Flybe fleet (https://www.planespotters.net/airline/Flybe), or more accurately the former Flybe fleet, had a few owned aircraft, mainly the Q400s, but mainly leased. I am not sure of the exact split so base this on a small random sample in G-INFO (https://siteapps.caa.co.uk/g-info/), the CAA's registration portal.

As for type ratings, there are unfortunately no common ratings between Flybe and Loganair. Flybe's turboprop aircraft were all DHC Dash-8 400 (Q400 in common parlance), needing the EASA DHC8 type rating. Loganair use four different turbo prop types: one ATR 42 and three ATR 72s, with a common rating to cover both, 14 Saab 340s, and 2 Saab 2000s, each of which has its own rating. For pure jets, they have 4 Embraer ERJ-135 and 13 ERJ-145 aircraft, with a common rating. Flybe had 9 ERJ-175 and a single ERJ-195, both of which can be flown with the EMB170 rating.

Commercial pilots can only be current on one type, so even though a Flybe pilot may have flown ERJ-145s before the airline changed, they can't just walk into them again. The reason for this rule is to avoid confusion. The primary flight controls are the same, much of the layout of the secondary controls will be very similar, but there are critical differences in weights and airspeeds especially. They are, however, in the same class of aircraft, being either twin engine jet or twin engine turboprop. Conversion to a new type of the same class won't take long, and could involve as little as a few days in a simulator. A period of flying with a supervising pilot will follow - they are all pilot and co-pilot anyway.

Looking at the difference in the fleets may give a pointer as to why it all went wrong. In every case, Flybe have the larger aircraft. That is a good thing if they are full, much less so if not, and a couple of empty seats can be the difference between profit and loss for a flight. Loganair seems to have adopted a more cautious approach.

Interesting stuff, and presumably much of the Loganair fleet is tailored to specific ‘island hopping’ routes around the Scottish islands etc.  If it was a TOC I’m sure people would be mentioning the number of microfleets...  :)

Paul

The choice of Brazilian Embraer ERJ-145 aircraft is interesting.

I'm fairly sure that all or nearly all of Flybe's aircraft are leased, so the lessors will re-possess and then try to re-market them.

Turboprops have just as nice interiors as jets, but fly lower, typically 25,000 feet or so

Talk on aviation forums already suggesting that about 15 of Flybe's parked Q400's are about to be snapped up, following a statement from the leasing company that owns them yesterday.

Lots of speculation as to who this might be - possibly Stobart Air for operations out of Belfast City and Southampton? (15 is about the no. that Flybe had based at those 2 airports). There would of course be a ready supply of rated based pilots to fly them out of those locations.

Does this mean we’ll see the aviation equivalent of “livery froth” before long?

I would hazard a guess and say that most of  Loganair's 145s are "hand me downs" from BA when BA pulled out of a lot of UK domestic routes, many of which were actually operated by  Loganair in BA livery.

The Q400 is capable of flight at higher levels, but my understanding is that the FL250 restriction is in place by regulatory authorities as it doesn't have drop-down oxygen for passengers  (if the pressurisation goes at FL250, you have less airspace to dive through to get to levels where oxygen is sufficient than if you were higher).

The ones that drop down in emergencies (or system failure more often) are fed from a chemical reaction, and cost several hundred pounds each. The reaction is exothermic, and fires have happened when they have malfunctioned.

3 hrs to Plymouth is not doable in a day return to/from London? I suspect the stats would show quite a lot of such journeys are undertaken.

Interesting ! From yesterday's Telegraph Business & Money section:

https://postimg.cc/G95ZSjwQ

The Q400 is capable of flight at higher levels, but my understanding is that the FL250 restriction is in place by regulatory authorities as it doesn't have drop-down oxygen for passengers  (if the pressurisation goes at FL250, you have less airspace to dive through to get to levels where oxygen is sufficient than if you were higher).

Given that more Q400 operators don't need to go above FL250 as the flights are too short, hardly any if any airlines have taken it up.

Flybe didn't and were restricted to FL250, but some of their sectors were definitely not short (for a turboprop), eg, the likes of Southampton-Alicante at about 2hrs 45min. Saying that, due to the speed of the Q400, even these sectors were only about 15-20mins longer than they would be in a pure jet.

Out of interest, very few of the ex-Flybe aircraft have moved since the Company folded at the beginning of March. For example, I believe the 6 Q400's that landed at Southampton on that final evening are still there (although they are having engine runs on I think a weekly basis). One of the few that has moved was the one that ended-up at Heathrow that night, it was ferried to Exeter on 3rd April. Only a few others of their approx. 65 aircraft fleet have moved since.

That's not true

The commercial reality is (I suspect) that the unfortunate bank or leasing company that owns them can negotiate a better deal with Southampton airport to keep these planes that are now without a leasing customer than paying for storage elsewhere in what must be the most difficult market for them for many years

Yes, the Training Academy has been sold into the Public Sector, but reportedly for a fraction of what it cost Flybe to build it.

Don't forget the building cost included fitting out the engineering workshop and setting up two flight simulators, DCC have only bought the shell of the building. The government also provided funding for the training academy which is why Flybe never sold it as originally planned, as they would have to pay that government money back.

Simulator time will be in demand, as pilots need to stay current.

Chat on aviation forums suggests that both the Q400 and Embraer sims are now with Flight Safety International, the Q400 at Farnborough. The Embraer one was apparently dismantled and moved within a few days of the airline going into administration.

A Flybe plane has been outside the arrivals/departures on the tarmac at Newquay since the evening of failure. It hasn’t moved

Newquay airport reporting a new operator will resume flights to Heathrow under the public service obligation in September, only once a day; but in the interim BA flights to Heathrow will resume in July with it's limited service.
Eastern Airways will commence three flights a week to Teeside.
Logan Air? will commence it's Scottish flights, plus those to Newcastle, Norwich, Leeds.

An investigation has been launched after a collision between two planes on the tarmac at Aberdeen International Airport.
The nose of one of the aircraft ended up wedged under the engine of the other on Tuesday evening, lifting it off the ground.
No passengers were on board the Loganair jet, which was struck by the former Flybe plane.
The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) has been informed.

Skills fade in ground handling?  :o

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-north-east-orkney-shetland-53076806

I wonder if it was being towed, taxying under its own power, or someone didn't check the parking brake.

Newquay airport reporting a new operator will resume flights to Heathrow under the public service obligation in September, only once a day; but in the interim BA flights to Heathrow will resume in July with it's limited service.
Eastern Airways will commence three flights a week to Teeside.
Logan Air? will commence it's Scottish flights, plus those to Newcastle, Norwich, Leeds.

Was being taxied apparently, after a few months parked-up.

Chat on aviation fora from people who know the Q400 is that this was probably a brake pressure accumulator issue. There is apparently a manual way to pump to create the pressure (a handle in one of the landing gear wells) but speculation is that this wasn't done.

I'm sure Loganair, who are starting to ramp up operations at the moment, could've well done without this.

It was parked up preparing for engine start. Chocks all removed and presumably the accumulator lost pressure. Although why nobody tried to use the tiller or rudder pedals is beyond me.

When it sort-of-nearly happened to me, it was because I had my head down with the checklist, going through the controls and dials, blissfully unaware that I was trundling majestically towards an expensive police helicopter until the instructor in the right-hand seat said "You might want to look out of the window...". Nosewheel steering on a Q400 is hydraulically powered, so maybe the horn wasn't working.

It's hydraulically powered but can still work, basically like a car when power steering goes.

https://www.flybe.com/en
On 28 January 2023, the High Court appointed David Pike and Mike Pink as Joint Administrators of Flybe Limited (“Flybe”).

Flybe has now ceased trading and all flights from and to the UK operated by Flybe have been cancelled and will not be rescheduled.

If you are a passenger affected by this event, please read the advice below.

(Continues)

The AAIB report is going to be interesting.

Summary:
G-JECK was to be flown from Aberdeen Airport to Weeze Airport, Germany. The aircraft had been in storage at Aberdeen since March 2020 and was parked on a self-manoeuvring stand which had a 1° slope. During the pre-departure checks, the chocks were removed from both the mainwheels and the nosewheels. The hydraulic pressure in the park brake system subsequently reduced to the point where the brakes could no longer prevent G JECK from moving, and the aircraft rolled across a taxiway before colliding with G-SAJS, which was parked on an adjacent stand. There were no injuries