NCB thinks that there is no potential for A318 flights from Liege.
Even a Fokker 50 would be challenging to fill, a reverse hub system is impossible for the cities mentioned and Emirates will not be interested in Liege. Yield calculators are great but RASM is unpredictable compared to CASM.
Just compare the grammar between NCB and Beontop and you see the difference
but I think that the project can work if it finds its right niche, the right equipment and the right airport.
I have a good idea of who is involved on this project at the management level but I wonder where funding will be found.
NCB appreciates that so many members now suddenly see 15 Q400's in SN's fleet including co-pilot Tolipanebas and backpacker Cathay Belgium. We have reached the 5th stage of the Kubler Ross model, acceptance. It's also appreciated that you now all shifted from Boston to JFK while 10 months ago we were debating one against 10 that BOS is better than JFK?? Make me laugh.
Discussion is funny but as usual, the level is too low.
Ryanair is becoming Belgium's largest airline as predicted, Senegal does what it wants with regards to 5th freedom through DKR and Belgium has nothing to say about it at all. Imagine if Senegal Airlines would use BRU to continue to LHR, FRA, MUC, that would be unacceptable wouldn't it? Then why should SN be given the right to operate triangular through DKR? by the way, whether you load pax in DKR to other destinations or not, it's still 5th freedom flights.
The DKR issue shows the weakness of the triangular system, cargo is only an optional revenue needed to operate an A333 on 3000NM inefficient triangular routes, B787/A350 can never replace the A333's because SN needs cheap planes to operate under an inefficient triangular model.
You don't need to be Einstein to figure that triangular flights bring more costs than direct flights and that SN needs to compensate that higher cost by stuffing the A333's hold with cargo. I've been saying that all along but dreamers think that you can sell cargo at 5 euro the kg average, forget it. Passengers will always be more lucrative.
This is the reason why A350/787 won't work, capital cost is too high.
In Europe, lowering CASM using A319 is a great idea but remember most Ryanair return fares are cheaper than BRU's taxes already. Pax will increase and revenues will increase but cost will increase as well, so it will be a zero operation unless SN can fill those flights with feeding pax. But to fill them with feeding, they need to triple longhaul capacity in no time and at the moment, it looks like they're losing 9W so the reverse is true.
I have yet to see Star's benefits compared to the previous codeshares. 2010 was a good year for most airlines but SN didn't turn much of a profit if at all.
Using the current operating model, SN is likely to lose its foothold in Africa within 5 years. Yesterday Tap announced Bamako, looking at Accra.
This is a "partner" airline, so imagine how little the non-Star competition will care about SN's position in Africa.
From 2016, airlines from Portugal, Spain and Italy will use their good positioning to fly Europe-Africa with A320's and more African airlines will start competing aggressively, so who is going to use SN any longer?
By my estimates, if due to increasing competition SN loses the equivalent revenue of 20 to 30 pax flying to Africa on each A333 flight today at current yields, they can kiss Africa goodbye.
If you don't understand that, you will never understand that a narrow body operation is, IMO, the only option of last resort for SN to make it through the next 5 years.
Anyways, it's still funny to read your armchair management theories. Keep on and make us laugh.
Lower CASM = profit, right? ONLY IF YOU CAN FILL THOSE SEATS GOD D*MN IT! If they can't fill an RJ85 at 60%, why do you need an A319 that costs more to operate? Fill the other 40%, see if it makes sense, then if it does but it never will, go bigger.
Great of SN that they dumped many seats in January at rock bottom fares. Better fill seats cheap and make a small loss in the winter than sell expensive, fly empty and fill Ryanair's planes.
I hope that Tolipanebas becomes CEO and Regi co-ceo of SN, so we can fly to Geneva and Milan on an A380.
If we had to rely on Cathay Belgium, we would see second hand space shuttles with SN liveries.
. Again, if a route out of Carcassonne was profitable, I think Air France would already have started it. I never claimed that Ryanair made a mistake when adding Carcassonne to its network.
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but anyway, this airport is not in Andora 