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inspector_blakey
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« Reply #195 on: January 10, 2011, 18:24:16 » |
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Hmm...have to say that the bulk of those comments just strike me as the "usual suspects", a gang of raging right-wing whingers with nothing better to do with their time than scour local news websites looking for an outlet for their inexplicable bile. I would bet very good money that the overwhelming majority of them have never set foot on an ASW aircraft.
Let's face it, if those flights really were "vital" to the economy of Plymouth, presumably someone would have actually used them, in which case they wouldn't be getting the chop.
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RailCornwall
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« Reply #196 on: January 10, 2011, 18:51:35 » |
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Going to be disastrous for incoming investment, the real big players wont be content with the rail equivalent, hopefully Flybe will up their game at Newquay, Several highprofile projects could be at threat. Some weekly commuters are going to be very seriously affected, those who choose to spend their weekends here and spend heavily whilst here and work in London during the week.
Pity really, as rapid links into the world air system are essential these days.
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woody
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« Reply #197 on: January 10, 2011, 19:25:27 » |
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The company I worked for 27 years in Plymouth (which litrally overlooks the end of Plymouths runway) is an American owned company who top people regularly use the air link to/fro the states.For them rail is not an option to travel to Plymouth and there are many firms in the Plymouth area in their position and as one wag put it on another Rail Forum west of Exeter its the "speed of a cow".Hence the genuine concern for the loss of the air links.Personally now I am not bothered(I am not in a hurry anymore) but I can see why some other people are.
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inspector_blakey
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« Reply #198 on: January 10, 2011, 19:31:38 » |
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Pity really, as rapid links into the world air system are essential these days.
Probably true, but a flight from Newquay or Plymouth to Gatwick does not, realistically, link you into the world air system unless you regard the world air system as Gatwick's staple diet of charter flights to Malaga and Mykonos. To reach the bulk of the world air system you need to make a cumbersome train or bus journey through to Heathrow (for which BA» recommends a connection time of the order of 3 hours), and unless you're able to make a through booking including your onward flight then you're high and dry if anything goes awry with ASW or your connection to Heathrow. Faced with that, the difference between a straightforward train journey to LHR (either using Reading RailAir or HEx) and a flight to Gatwick I would suspect becomes rather marginal. This may be why this allegedly essential link has not proved economic. That may be particularly true when you consider the flexibility and frequency of service offered by FGW▸ compared to ASW on the return journey: if your flight back from wherever is seriously delayed then I would suspect you may find yourself waiting some considerable time for the next ASW service home, whereas unless it's very late at night FGW would probably be able to accommodate you an hour or so later. |
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inspector_blakey
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« Reply #200 on: January 11, 2011, 15:19:29 » |
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Technically true but a bit disingenuous to post that link without putting the list in some kind of context - true there is an extensive European network from Gatwick, operated both by BA» and low-cost carriers, but globally...?
Virgin, BA, US Airways and a few others operate limited services out of Gatwick to the USA, true. But these aside, the vast majority of the non-European destinations on that list you will notice are served by airlines such as Thomas Cook and Monarch. Thomas Cook has a total of 21 long-haul capable aircraft (assuming their 757 fleet is used for ETOPS operations), and Monarch has 2 (or possibly 9 if you factor in some ancient A300 and 757-200 aircraft), so although there is a long list of "global" destinations that they serve, scheduled flights to them are going to be extremely thin on the ground and certainly seasonal. Something tells me you're not going to be flying from Gatwick to Calgary, for example, much more frequently than once a week, and then only in ski season...
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The Tall Controller
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« Reply #201 on: January 11, 2011, 20:14:52 » |
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Its not that much faster to fly. Given that you have to spend 1 hour in the terminal before the flight and then spend some time actually getting to London itself.
I flew down from Edinburgh and it was only 2 hours quicker than the train!
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woody
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« Reply #202 on: January 11, 2011, 21:43:27 » |
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Free train offer for Air Southwest London passengers.First Great Western ( FGW▸ ) will honour tickets from Plymouth or Newquay after Air Southwest announced flights would stop at the end of January. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-12166485 |
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JayMac
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« Reply #203 on: January 11, 2011, 21:56:56 » |
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You have to admire FGWs▸ chutzpah. Stick another nail in the coffin!  |
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"A clear conscience laughs at a false accusation."
"Treat everyone the same until you find out they're an idiot."
"Moral indignation is a technique used to endow the idiot with dignity."
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inspector_blakey
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« Reply #204 on: January 11, 2011, 22:02:34 » |
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First class as well - looks like FGW▸ might have an impressive PR▸ coup on their hands here!
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LiskeardRich
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« Reply #205 on: January 12, 2011, 01:25:47 » |
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First class as well - looks like FGW▸ might have an impressive PR▸ coup on their hands here!
exactly impress the people who've lost their flight, have a good train journey in first class, job done, they'll book future journeys through FGW As mentioned above,a train Paddington to Plymouth is pretty much the same journey time (inclusive of check in times etc) as going Victoria-gatwick-plymouth, then from plymouth airport into the city. what is the average journey time Paddington-Plymouth by air: Victoria-Gatwick approx 30mins? check in min 1 hour flight 90 mins, check out at plymouth with baggage collection 30mins approx (although i've known baggage collection at gatwick to take up to an hour going the other way) Taxi into Plymouth from airport 15mins? so the air travel option is looking at 3 1/2-4 hours total time |
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All posts are my own personal believes, opinions and understandings!
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devon_metro
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« Reply #206 on: January 12, 2011, 01:30:36 » |
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Bear in mind the fact that many people in business travel without baggage - simply walk on bags.
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vacman
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« Reply #207 on: January 12, 2011, 19:31:13 » |
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and the fact you can get a decent breakfast on the morning trains.
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SDS
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« Reply #209 on: January 13, 2011, 17:18:35 » |
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I was looking over an internal weekly newsletter about this and apparently they can also exchange it for a sleeper berth. Don't know if that would be free or otherwise.
I will have to have a closer look and find out what its all about.
Didn't vermin WC▸ do something like this a while back saying that if you exchanged your check-in ticket or e-ticket theyd give you a free first class ticket London - Somewhere.
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I do not work for FGW▸ and posts should not be assumed and do not imply they are statements, unless explicitly stated that they are, from any TOC▸ including First Great Western.
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