sn26567 wrote:Would the solution be in a new type of STOL aircraft?
The CS100 can operate at MTOW (ISA) out of ANR, much better and quieter than the E190, which itself seems to be doing its job covering large part of Europe out of ANR.
But I don't think that a 100+ seater is the solution (nor affordable). Only very popular destinations seem to yield good LF on the 100+ seaters and there JAF is already active.
Travel Service has agreed on an ACMI leasing of one of their Boeing 737-800s to VLM Airlines for the 2015/16 winter season. The aircraft will be based in Brussels.
What's the point? A new base in BRU? Charter traffic?
This is exactly what I don't understand: why does SunWeb ask VLM, which does not have the right aircraft and must lease a 738 from Travel Service, to operate such flights? Wouldn't it have been easier (and cheaper) for SunWeb to ask the aircraft directly from Travel Service?
Such a construction generally only makes financial sense if the intermediator can make some other use of whatever is first leased in, and then rented out again (here a plane).
Will be interesting to see if VLM plans to operate that plane for others too?
I hope they will, because otherwise I agree with André: sunweb could have asked travel service directly.
Unless of course VLM are somehow bound to honor a charter contract concluded a long time ago when they were planning on having introduced the SSJ by now and may have included using their SSJ for charter flying during the calmest period of the week in their business case for it. That would not surprise me one bit.
Now that they don't have that plane (yet, if ever?), the contract with Sunweb may however force them to rent capacity from elsewhere, depending the exact terms of the contract.
Not sure its such a great piece of news for them at all, really.
From what I read on the Sunweb-site, this flight is only operating on Wednesday and Sunday. That would leave VLM plenty of room to operate another charter from BRU and could very well make them a bit cheaper than Travel Service itself.
I imagine it's not as easy for Travel Service to find another Belgian customer as it is for VLM. At the same time, it wouldn't make much sense for them to fly the plane back and forth between Brussels and Prague all the time to service other customers that they do have.
As Inquirer said while I was typing... But yeah, the idea that this is really VLM being bitten by overly optimistic decisions from the past sounds likely as well. And not good news at all.
as Inquirer said while I was typing... But yeah, the idea that this is really VLM being bitten by overly optimistic decisions from the past sounds likely as well. And not good news at all.
Well the least you can say is that VLM continues to surprise us! Hopefully their cash flow stays positive after all those new 'endeavours'. Maybe the ACMI plane will be used for ad hoc charters and,who knows, other Sunweb destinations, or even new VLM-destinations out of Brussels.
That would also mean only a single pilot position? Airlines will love that! Mind you, it needs to be the left half, indeed, or you'd not have a proper captain's seat!
But yeah, the idea that this is really VLM being bitten by overly optimistic decisions from the past sounds likely as well. And not good news at all.
