2017 Antwerp Airport (ANR/EBAW) latest news

[sn26567]

we do not want to discuss tui airlines here, but antwerp airport.

Hello pinoa, and welcome to Luchtzak.

I did move your post from the "airline experience and trip report" forum to the "Antwerp airport" topic in the "Latest aviation news forum". I hope you don't mind.

[Stij]

... 'hie klaape we aantwarps, in charleroi, doa klaape ze fraans'.......

That's when you feel so ashamed for your ignorant, stupid, stubborn, moronic, 2 digit IQ... Flemish neighbor...

No other words for such a behavior...

Stij

[jan_olieslagers]

It is not the first negative comment I hear about that Antwerp Belair, more's the pity. Then again, when I entertained a visiting pilot friend there, the waiter was keen on producing a few words of Russian...

[crew1990]

I think the problem come from Antwerp Airport,
when you go in the website of Ostend, Charleroi, Liege and of course Brussels,you can find info at least in french, dutch and english. For Antwerp Airpot it's only Dutch and English

What for a mentality there really.

[koninckske]

It is a Belgian problem. Was at Charleroi Airport on Monday and got a very bad attitude from the people there as well. They refuse to speak any other language than French, not even English. This is just not acceptable when you work in an airport, but it is unfair to say it is only a problem at Antwerp airport.

[sn26567]

In such cases the best way is to write a letter of complaint to as many responsible people as possible, giving a maximum of details: names, places, date and hour, and so on. The culprits will not do it again!

[saratoga]

Well, when i am in wallonie, i always try to speak french, out of respect, (and no my french is not good at all). But at least i am doing an effort.

So it should be the other way around. If our wallonian friends come to the flemish part, at least try, just out of respect. A few words is appreciating a lot (doesn't have to be fluent at all.) That's all we ask.

[crew1990]

Well, when i am in wallonie, i always try to speak french, out of respect, (and no my french is not good at all). But at least i am doing an effort.

So it should be the other way around. If our wallonian friends come to the flemish part, at least try, just out of respect. A few words is appreciating a lot (doesn't have to be fluent at all.) That's all we ask.

You always try, like I do when I'm in Flanders or even in Brussels when I'm speaking to a Dutch speaking person. But not everybody do that, in the south like in the north. Last time I was in a supermarket in the region of my parent close to Luxembourg, and a couple of Flemish people started to yell at the shop seller because he said the price in French.

The effort need to come from both side, and the only way to solve is to me education, we need more french classes in walloonia, and more french classes in flanders. The announcement in the train should also be in French and Dutch in all region.

[b720]

At an AirPort, one can be French, Swiss? Besides it is certainly not a saiter's business whether a wallon can speak Nl or not, or a Flemish person can speak French...
People working at an airport should make an effort to speak whatever language they have a basic knowledge of, or at least say politely that they do not speak that language.. in English... no need to insult people ..

[Stij]

Language of the costumer prevails... and if you can't, you apologize and ask if it;s possible to converse in another language... It's not more difficult than that.

Cheers,

Stij

[Ozzie1969]

we need more french classes in walloonia

... because Walloons can't speak proper French?

[PttU]

With Berchem trainstation offering trains in all directions, at 2km from ANR's frontdoor, with a busconnection at least 3x/hr (late Sunday evening) to 5x/hr (daytime weekdays) for a 11 min. short ride, I understand NMBS/SNCB's lack of intrest in buidling an airport trainstation.

Yes, daytime.
The boarding pass for a TUI flight even mentions baggage drop off closing 1 hour before departure at ANR, and I guess the standard advice of 2 hours before departure isn't changed. As quite some flights take off around 7AM, and if you wish to be there in time, that's hard to achieve by train+bus.

[Stij]

Yes, daytime.
The boarding pass for a TUI flight even mentions baggage drop off closing 1 hour before departure at ANR, and I guess the standard advice of 2 hours before departure isn't changed. As quite some flights take off around 7AM, and if you wish to be there in time, that's hard to achieve by train+bus.

From BRU as well... it s a nationwide Belgian Rail Problem...

Stij

[DIBO]

Exactly, so there is totally no point in having a trainstation build at the airport.
And re-opening the perfect Kiss&Ride zone and re-activating the bus stop 5m. from the frontdoor, are the first and foremost priorities on the landside, at almost zero cost (it's all there, unused for over a year).

Airport management, should better concentrate it's efforts (and getting in the newspapers) on intense lobbying for getting an E190-E2 based at ANR from 2019 onwards or getting Air Baltic's CS300's doing the leisure destinations, so that more people per flight, with much more quieter footprint, can fly a lot further, and that the large potential in the Antwerp region of customers for the Canary Islands, can be served as well. (I know, keep on dreaming...)

[saratoga]

I fully agree. There is not much effort done to attract other players to EBAW. Unless.. there is no one really interested, which also possible. I stay with my own opinion, they should invest more in the airport to attract bizz jetoperators, more FBO's like eg Signature, more fuel suppliers and why not maintenance facilities for these type of aircraft. I used to believe also that antwerp airport has some potential for scheduled flight, but apparently it is not. I was wrong. So ebaw should have more succes as a "Biggin Hill" so to speak. The only thing i see is spending time on securing the parking lot, new departure hall, but that is it.

The same for Ostend as well, not much improvement. So there must be some lack of interest to fly these airports.

[Stij]

What would help instead of a trainstation is a dedicated airport shuttle bus from central and berchem station running between 500 and 000.

[PttU]

Airport management, should better concentrate it's efforts (and getting in the newspapers) on intense lobbying for getting an E190-E2 based at ANR from 2019 onwards or getting Air Baltic's CS300's doing the leisure destinations, so that more people per flight, with much more quieter footprint, can fly a lot further, and that the large potential in the Antwerp region of customers for the Canary Islands, can be served as well. (I know, keep on dreaming...)

Being based in ANR or not, an E190-E2 or flights with an Avro, Air Baltic or someone else,... all doesn't matter to me: I just want more options, more destinations, either business- or leisure-targeted.

[Stij]

What would help instead of a trainstation is a dedicated airport shuttle bus from central and berchem station running between 500 and 000.

And because I want to prove my point:

Currently the are 3 bus lines connecting Berchem Railway station to the ANR: 50, 51 and 52. VERY CONFUSING. The good news is that they run every 15min... not bad...
These all stop on the same platform (yippee) but they share this platform with lines 20, 420 and 421. VERY CONFUSING.
The first bus arrives at 5:08, the last one arrives at 23:34: Excellent for pax, maybe to late for people working at airport
The first bus leaves at 5:07, the last one departs at 23:38: Excellent for pax and people working at airport (I think)

In short: A lot of good work can be done by creating a dedicated bus line from the Roosevelt Square, via Central station and Berchem station to the airport from dedicated platforms. A round trip should last less than 60min, so 6 dedicated busses can create a 10min frequency.

And if the bus isn't enough anymore, expand the tram to there (as it was in the past), it's just 1300m from Groenenhoek.
And if that's not enough, the premetro,2500m from Plantin
And if that doesn't do the trick any more either, planes must have become extremely silent and one can create a real railway station and adapt the whole Antwerp railway layout.

Maybe Mr. Buelens should give Mr. Weyts a call first before Mr. Bellot.

Cheers,

Stij

[ostair]

I fully agree. There is not much effort done to attract other players to EBAW. Unless.. there is no one really interested, which also possible.

Given that both ANR and OST have the same management its rather not looking for customers but hoping they fall from the sky.
They believe they are running "niche" airports and airlines should contact them first.

Do nothing to harm the TUI-Mr Buelens relationship...
Low cost not welcome at OST.

As for public transport(De lijn), Mr Weyts had a meeting with Mr Buelens concerning the coastal tram/airport.
Answer was, NO MONEY.
Guess it willl be the same here.
The only goodwill gesture was that line 86 now stops at the airport during the evening/night(weekend).

[sn26567]

Do nothing to harm the TUI-Mr Buelens relationship...
Low cost not welcome at OST.

As if TUI were not a low cost...