Ref: BMI CEO resigns..

[beaucaire]

BMI did never have a strong media or marketing presence outside the UK. Most potential passengers in Belgium,Germany,France ,Scandinavia or Italy never thought of BMI as an aggressive airline. They never had an immage here in France .I think that the parent-companies LH and SAS did a lousy job in integrating BMI in a helpful way into the Star-conglomerate.But I even think that LH are a little bit to descret about their presence currently and will face stormy days ahead with the "Vereinigung Cockpit" ( the pilot's union ).As the chairman of KLM said yesterday, even LH will become obliged to enter the race for mergers in the airline-world.Bare marketing-alliances as STAR are practicing might be an outdated model in the race for more cost-control and efficiency.But BMI should have been fully intergrated in LH and become an integral part of the system.Merge BMI,Germanwings,Spanair and Air-One in Italy into one operating unit executing LH feeders into STAR hubs in Europe ,use MAN as gateway to the US beeing fed by Germanwings,Air One,Spanair and BMI .

[Humberside]

Interesting idea but don't forget Germanwings is a LoCo, Eurowings is a feeder airline for Lufthansa though. It would be Air Dolomiti not Air One in Ital, I think Air One are a codeshare partner and Air Dolomiti a Lufthansa Regional airline.

If that did happen - unlikely, the bmi name should be kept, in the UK at least. Also wouldn't this have implications on foreign traffic rights, e.g. if it was a German company, could bmi still operate transatlantic from MAN?

Personally, I think Lufthansa should take over the company, perhaps leave SAS with their 20% and get them to expand both MAN and LHR-UK as a feeder for long haul routes. Let them add routes like LHR-NCL, Jerset, Isle of Man, Plymouth and Humberside and from MAN to BHD, DUB, BOH. Then they should continue to add a few select long haul money making routes from LHR and MAN, particularly focusing on countries with a star alliance airline. In Europe, they should focus on feed to LHR (with routes like their present AMS, BRU, CDG) and to star alliance airline countries (like their Hanover route). Once they've done that and are profiatble then they should expand further into Europe.

Regional should do thin routes out of MAN and LHR for mainline, perhaps using some ERJ-170 and concentrate on building and developing niches (LBA). Perhaps they could add a few more routes from EDI and build a mini hub (CDG, Oslo, LCY, BHD etc)

bmi baby should be sold, but be wise. Take routes like MAN-BFS away from them first and give it to mainline/regional from BHD

That would be my master plan - oh and if advertising isn't good in Europe, improve it