[TominScotland]

VoyageVoyage

A wet lease is a leasing arrangement whereby one airline (lessor) provides an aircraft, complete crew, maintenance, and insurance (ACMI) to an airline [or other type of business acting as a broker of air travel] (the lessee), which pays by hours operated. The lessee provides fuel and covers airport fees, and any other duties, taxes, etc. The flight uses the flight number of the lessee.

[Ab0dache]

Good question VoyageVoyage!

Alex provides helpfull report links telling what the future owner wants to do with Cityjet: “to tap into demand for regional business flights beyond Europe’s big airline hubs”. So it means it won’t be to fly to CDG. AF has confirmed they will keep co-operating with Cityjet. This is not for the routes Cityjet had under the franchise agreement with AF (mainly the LCY routes that are about to see the WX code for the summer timetable). That’s more for the wet-lease routes such as your NCL-CDG one.
We can easily say then you will never find the NCL-CDG route sold on the Cityjet web-site. You will always have to buy it with AF.

The route is still shown this week as operated by Cityjet. HOP! operates only two lines to the UK. HOP! AIRLINAIR to Bristol and HOP! REGIONAL to Aberdeen. And I believe all other services to the UK under an AF code are operated either directly with a AF aircraft & crew or by Flybe (nothing new here, AF had already a wet-lese agreement in the past with British European).
It is interesting to note AF does not for instance anymore operates itself the flights to Torino. It is either Cityjet or HOP! REGIONAL.

If HOP! REGIONAL is asked to operate one day the NCL route or some of the flights, the good news for you is that you will be on newer aircrafts than the Avro. HOP! REGIONAL operates only an embraer aircraft fleet, with the newest E90 & E70 with a business class service if you pay for. And to/from CDG, there is opnly HOP! REGIONAL operating, but the route to Bristol. HOP! BRITAIR only operates elsewhere (with a bombardier fleet).
Because different work rules between each of the airlines, AIRLINAIR, BRITAIR & REGIONAL have never merged in reality (such as Cityjet & VLM) at this stage. HOP! is only the umbrella brand and probably the new name of AIRLINAIR.

Also the current total HOP! companies’ fleet is about 106 aircrafts. They have already got rid-off of some aircrafts. And some people say the target is about 86 aircrafts. Thay have already cut some frequencies and close some routes (under A5 or AF codes). Even if the new HOP! management achieves to run effeciently the aircraft use, they are some limits, no? They will not have enought aircratfs available to take over all the routes.
So you may see the Cityjet avros longer than expected on the NCL-CDG route.

The last point is about what Alexandre de Juniac is going to announce this month probably, regarding futher adjustments on the european network. CDG-Pisa is already or is to be cut. I do not have the feeling NCL-CDG is on the list. But I do not have the figures about route profitability and strategy.

I hope this gives you some ideas.

[Ab0dache]

I do agree there is also a market for regional connections for business travellers who are not in the big economic centres of Europe as stated by the future owner of Cityjet. This is a nice strategy for Cityjet.
This is to create in a way a business oriented customers new VOLOTEA (with the avros) and mini-VOLOTEA (with the VLM’s fokkers 50 and Intersky’s Dashs) company.

I wonder anyway if they are going to achieve it. Even outside the big economic centres of Europe, companies tends to focus on best-buy fares regarding transportation costs. Yes business travellers rather like direct flights instead of going via a hub, although time constraints does seem not to be inforced anymore in some companies like flying long-haul with one stop. But are we ready to pay for it? They will have to generate enough revenue to sustain the activity. It cannot be with a £149 return fare I guess.

It could explain why Cityjet jumps to open the Cardiff-Glasgow service just after the Flybe closure, anticipating in a way their new strategy.

I have used in 2008 a kind of this business traveller oriented route with a regional airline. It was on an expensive fare, the full one. I found the return flight to be too late finally. I switched then to a legacy carrier in a nearby airport which has more frequency and an earlier flight back. It was also less expensive. This route does not exist anymore today although the airline still exists on a smaller scale.

I wish Cityjet to achieve this strategical goal. I hope this will generate the sustainable revenue. This will help the business travellers with alternative routes outside the big economics centres indeed.

[AMcWhirter]

Here’s today’s interview given by the potential future owner of Cityjet, Hans Rudolf Wohrl, to Ruediger Kiani-Kress of Wirtschafts Woche.

The article is in German. I used the Google translation bar.

One interesting fact emerged is when the writer asked Herr Wohrl which flights will be cancelled ?

Herr Wohrl replied, “For details it is still too early. First we need to get the contract. The current owners [of Cityjet] are responsible for the summer 2014 timetable.”

http://www.wiwo.de/unternehmen/dienstleister/hans-rudolf-woehrl-es-gibt-in-europa-nicht-nur-billigflug/9285978.html

But the plan remains as discussed earlier. In other words the new combined Cityjet/Intersky airline would look at linking regional points which are away from the major business centres.

[MarcusUK]

A response from KKLM Public relations with regard to my enquiries about Cityjet and the operation of the LCY – AMS routes.

“Many thanks for your email below.

I appreciate your concerns and I am writing to inform that KLM currently operates the Amsterdam-London Heathrow route 12 times a day. At the moment KLM has no plans to operate the Amsterdam-London City route. As I am sure you know, the AIR FRANCE-KLM Group shares all available information via several websites including the dedicated financial site: http://www.airfranceklm-finance.com. Please, check it at your own convenience for further updates.

In regards to Cityjet, I am really sorry to hear that you’re not satisfied with the levels of service that the company offers. Should you wish to contact them directly, the details of their Communication Department are as follows: “

Cityjet are closing 3 routes to Germany, they have closed the Edinburgh route (BA have added planes and now have a monopoloy on that route, one Dutch route is going, and planes are to be sent to be based in Cardiff.
Making bookings, the pre-fiox WX will appear instead of AF from March 2014.
Fares for this period, will NOT earn ANY Flying Blue miles or count as a flight towards your membership, until you pay the 3rd level of fare. This is over 210% more than the existing ones. £95 to £220+.

Clearly, with the aim for Cityjet’s new owners to be cononced that creating secondary Business airport links around Europe, based from Germany, services cannot continue and will not from LCY.
There must be many slots up for grabs, and lots of business to take by BA or any other Airline.

Klm are, and will lose more passengers on this route, running old, and cramped aircraft, (BA run new Embraers) with no FFP benefits or care about recognising your business.

It suprises me how out of touch KLM really are, as they are completely unaware of even the common information we can see out there.
I replied and told them just that.

[Ab0dache]

That will be a bit strange: KLM goes to Manston but if Cityjet leaves the AMS-LCY route, it will not go to takeover the route.

I think there are lots of “if” at this stage.

1) The procedure to sell Cityjet to Intro-aviation seems to be very long. An additional quarter has been announced. Intro-aviation is not yet the owner. It is just the beginning of the year, and Alitalia is already asking banks for additional loans. What might happen again about this Cityjet sale during this quarter?
I do not see KLM’s PR saying the company takes over the route with CityHopper until Cityjet makes an announcement of one day maybe leaving the route.

2) Intro-aviation has a nice strategy on paper. It has not gone so far with it: currently few routes and only 5 aircrafts. Okay the company wants to buy Cityjet and to go up to 50 aircrafts. That’s almost 5 more aircrafts than Cityjet + Inter-sky. Connecting business airports around Europe is also the job/strategy of bmiregional or eastern airways for instance, with smaller sized aircraft.
95 seats on an avro have to be sold: I believe that’s a lot for business airports outside the big economic centers in Europe. Which amount of revenue is it possible to generate on those routes?
I still expect Cityjet will remain on LCY for yet some months because routes to DUB or AMS are a better use of the aircraft and crew than the other routes of the new strategy. I believe also Cardiff will see more fokkers 50 than avros.

Let’s give anyway a chance to Intro-aviation to achieve its goal.

[World78]

Cityjet will increase capacity on several London City routes on March 30 as part of its summer 2014 schedule.
Read the full article…

[MarcusUK]

They certainly have the slots and planes to do this, having announced they will cease the three routes to Germany, and already lost the EDI route.

Running flights to Italy, hardly helps Alitalia or the Skyteam?

If they use the WX prefix as from March 1st 2014, and no benefits or links to AF KLM /Skyteam, then they intend to operate as a separate entity already?
This “Entering into a new Industrial arrangement” with AF, is very generalistic.

The market for AF / KLM shares seemed to like the news of Cityjet and its debts being rid of though, along with the profitable Group last 1/4 results, as shares jumped by 12% in the last 48 hrs.

Better they be sold off and part, and allow some of the AF staff being made redundant, or KLM take over their key routes. So much uncertainty, I will not be booking with them until all is clear and black and white.

[NameRemoved-18/12/14]

As for the Luxembourg route, and according to local press, Luxair will up its frequency from 5 to 6 daily flights on weekdays as of the Summer timetable with the possibility of this being increased to 7.

[AMcWhirter]

alexpo1 – that’s good to know re LUX.

Another route which Cityjet will be cancelling is the LCY-Dundee service. That route dates back to the days of Suckling Airways and was, I believe, the Scottish city’s first air link with London.

The LCY route is Dundee’s only scheduled service. Without it, the airport is now threatened with closure.

http://www.scotsman.com/news/transport/dundee-airport-at-risk-after-london-route-closure-1-3243111

[SimonS1]

Tough one for Dundee airport, however I presume “efforts to introduce a public service obligation….will continue.” Is a translation for “it’s uneconomic but hopefully taxpayers will foot the bill”?

[Ab0dache]

It sounds like it for me.

A public service obligation means the tax payers will give subsidies to the airline operating the service. Everything is done in full transparency at least here. I rather like this way. It can be discussed if Dundee needs to remain open and have a air link with London.

But that’s a different way when Ryanair ask for marketing fees to be paid outside the EU by the taxpayers just to open or not close some services to an airport such as the likes of Charleroi and others. It is not transparent here as no public service obligation has been declared and everything is forced by Ryanair. Ryanair makes a profit only from the “fake” (but still real revenue) mkt fees paid by the taxpayers.

[SimonS1]

I just don’t agree that taxpayers should foot the bill full stop.

If the service was viable it would have survived. Otherwise use an alternative means of transport – Dundee is only an hour or so on the train from Edinburgh, it’s not exactly the Highlands and Islands.

[MarcusUK]

I think we have to be very cautious until their Contract is signed, and then see what the new owners actually do. There are clearly going to be a lot of slots vacant at LCY, currently taken up by BA it seems.

They have already withdrawn 3 planes and made almost 100 redundant, re-locating some planes to Cardiff, and pulling out of other cities, with a poorer portfolio. They are a failing Airline, and what “industrial arrangement” will be with AF is rather strange.

As they change to the prefix WX from March 2014, who know if we fly with an Alliance out of Skyteam by this time, without it they can only lose more business.

[Ab0dache]

For sure SimonS1, Dundee is not far from Edinburgh, although you spent time to get to the station at Edinburgh, wait for the train departure, arrive at the Dundee’s station and then get to your final destination.

I believe the local taxpayers (and not the national ones) are going to foot the bill. It is up to them, and their elected representatives, to consider if it is important to keep running Dundee’s airport in the interest of some added value for the local economic activities, from having a direct air service to London, with maybe a better involved operating airline than Cityjet.
I feel we cannot take the decision being outside the area while of course everyone can have an opinion on that.

The airport already exists and have some costs with or without any commercial services. What is the retirement cost impact of closing it right now? Certainly not a cash going out but a kind of a negative accounting expense.

That would be interesting to have opinions from the community living in the close Dundee’s area.

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