Isles of Scilly sea ferry and air services - merged posts

[whole diary]

[FarWestJohn]

There is talk about the helicopter link to Scilly moving to St.Erth from Penzance.

'THE HELICOPTER link to the Isles of Scilly could be retained in west Cornwall after a deal was struck for an alternative site in St Erth.

British International Helicopters (BIH) confirmed this week it had reached an agreement with a landowner for a new heliport adjacent to the St Erth industrial estate off the A30.

The move is subject to planning permission and the successful sale of the current heliport at Eastern Green in Penzance to supermarket giant Sainsbury's. But if successful, it will create a transport hub enabling passengers easy access to the helicopters from the mainline train station and the A30.'

Full story here: http://www.southwestbusiness.co.uk/cornwall/Deal-struck-save-link-Scilly/article-3570868-detail/article.html

[The Tall Controller]

As if they didn't have enough supermarkets in that area, they're going to get another!

[smokey]

I'm sure that had the Helicoptor service moved to Newquay, with the extra fuel costs (oh and ^5 airport tax) I very much doubt that it would run for two years before being AXED.

Mind anyone with half a Brain would build a New Supermarket on the Heliport site put a flat rooof on it and have a Helipad on top 

[old original]

BIH (the Isles of Scilly helicopter) have stopped taking bookings for travel after 31st October, pending moving their operations from Penzance. They are currently awaiting to see if planning permission will be granted for a supermarket (Sainsburys) to be built on the current heliport site. If it is, they will then decide from where they will operate. 4 sites were possible, Lands End (now discounted due to local opposition), "somewhere" just outside Penzance, and as mentioned above near St.Erth or Newquay.

BIH have already purchased/rented a hangar at Newquay for maintainence purposes

[JayMac]

BIH's website frontpage confirms they are taking bookings beyond 31st October.

[RailCornwall]

Heliport proposals for west Cornwall village 

British International Helicopters confirm their preferred site for flights is in St Erth

A helicopter company has said plans for its new Cornish heliport should go on show in a month.

British International Helicopters has confirmed its preferred site for the flights to the Isles of Scilly is in a field in west Cornwall.

People living in St Erth near Penzance said they did not know the service was planned for the site.

more ^..

WWW^▸ (World Wide Web).BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page).CO.UK^▸ (United Kingdom)/NEWS
29-Jun-2011 @ 20:51

[RailCornwall]

Heliport Plans submitted so far to Cornwall Council ...

Will help with location guidance
 
see here ^..

PLANNING.CORNWALL.GOV.UK^▸ (United Kingdom)/ONLINE-APPLICATIONS
18-Jul-2011 @ 16:25

[JayMac]

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

St Erth British International Helicopters plan dropped

A Cornish helicopter travel firm has dropped a plan for a new base at St Erth near Penzance.

British International Helicopters (BIH), which flies to the Isles of Scilly, faced opposition from villagers worried about noise and pollution.

It is moving out of its current Penzance base in June 2012 after selling it to Sainsbury's.

BIH said villagers' concerns "remain unresolved" and it would use Newquay Airport until another base was found.

Opponents 'very pleased'

BIH, which has operated the service since 1964, already has its aircraft maintenance and Navy support contracts based at the airport.

Managing director Tony Jones said St Erth was "the most suitable available site in Cornwall for a new heliport".

He added: "It is also very important to British International to be a good neighbour within the community".

Airport managing director Al Titterington said: "We will work closely with BIH to ensure that the move to Newquay will be seamless and that their customers have as little inconvenience as possible".

David Everett of West Cornwall Green Party said: "I am very pleased.

"I have used the helicopters and I don't see what was wrong with the Penzance which was good for road and rail connections."

The Isles of Scilly are also served by a ferry from Penzance and planes from Land's End, Newquay, Exeter, Southampton and Bristol.

[RailCornwall]

Bad news for Scilly, the ferry is in need of replacement soon, the docking facilities at both ends need ungrading and no finance is forthcoming for either. Doubling the journey time from Newquay for the Helicopter service will result in both less and more expensive journies. Shame really.

[The SprinterMeister]

Bad news for Scilly, the ferry is in need of replacement soon, the docking facilities at both ends need ungrading and no finance is forthcoming for either. Doubling the journey time from Newquay for the Helicopter service will result in both less and more expensive journies. Shame really.

Bit half baked selling the Pzed Heliport site to Sainsburys before a new site had been agreed really...

Still a nice new supermarket should create a few more nice empty / closed shops for the townspeople of Pzed.

[vacman]

Bad news for Scilly, the ferry is in need of replacement soon, the docking facilities at both ends need ungrading and no finance is forthcoming for either. Doubling the journey time from Newquay for the Helicopter service will result in both less and more expensive journies. Shame really.

Still a nice new supermarket should create a few more nice empty / closed shops for the townspeople of Pzed.

most of PZ already empty so will create some much needed jobs for the town.

[smokey]

Compared to Other places the Size of Penzance, Penzance is riding things well, there aren't that many empty Shops in Penzance.

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

Helicopter firm BIH to operate from Newquay Airport

Helicopter flights from Cornwall to the Isles of Scilly will leave from Newquay Airport next summer until a new base is found.

British International Helicopters (BIH) has to sell its current site at Eastern Green in Penzance to raise cash to reinvest in the business.

It was forced to find an alternative base after facing opposition over plans to move to St Erth.

BIH said it was still committed to finding a new base in west Cornwall.

In a statement, the company said it would continue operating from its current location until 30 June 2012, after which it will operate the service from Newquay Airport.

BIH, which has operated the service since 1964, already has its aircraft maintenance and Navy support contracts based at the airport.

Sainsbury's supermarket has already been granted planning permission by Cornwall Council to build on the existing heliport site at Eastern Green.

[FarWestJohn]

Radio Cornwall is reporting that the helicopter service to the Islands will finish in November after nearly 50 years. This will be a sad blow to the Islands and Penzance.

[bobm]

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page)

A helicopter service from Cornwall to the Isles of Scilly is to end, its operators have announced.

British International Helicopters (BIH) is to end its service from Penzance, which has run since 1964, in November.

The company blamed the decision on uncertainty created by legal action over its sale of land to supermarket giant Sainsbury's.

St Ives Lib Dem MP^▸ (Member of Parliament) Andrew George has called the announcement "appaling" and a "disaster".

'Kick in the teeth'
 
BIH has to move from the current 15-acre site at the end of October because of the Sainsbury's deal.

It planned to use the proceeds from the sale to buy new aircraft and bid for new business.

But the company, which has not operated services this week, said the decision to close the route was "finally triggered by legal action taken by Tesco and two private individuals".

It said potential delays caused by the challenges "created too many uncertainties for the passenger service to continue".

BIH said the closure would affect employees and that a formal redundancy consultation process had begun with staff.

The independent Cornwall councillor for Porthleven and Helston South, Andrew Wallis, said the decision was a "kick in the teeth" for the communities of the islands and west Cornwall.

He said: "To me, this is two supermarkets squabbling over a piece of land and the communities of Penzance and the Isles of Scilly are the ones to miss out."

Mr George said he had called for an emergency meeting over the link.

Conservative-Independent led Cornwall Council said it was "extremely disappointed" by the decision to end the service, which can have up to 40 flights daily and is thought to be used by up to 130,000 people a year.

It said: "We are keen to continue to talk to BIH about the future of the helicopter service and to see what support can be provided."

The Scillonian ferry service remains.

Andrew May, chairman of the Isles of Scilly Steamship Group, said his company would work with the islands' community in an attempt to compensate for BIH's pulling out.

FGW^▸ (First Great Western) have sold travel packages including the helicopter for a few years - see here.