[Anonymous]

[VintageKrug]

Looks like another airline managed an 11th hour rescue on Friday:

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/lastgasp-cash-keeps-airline-flying-ndash-for-now-1820805.html

[jimthehorsegod]

As a previous customer of theirs (MAN – VYR) last year, I can only really say it’s a shame they survived. Every aspect of their offering is as poor as I’ve experienced anywhere else in all my years of flying.

The industry doesn’t need companies like this, they’re exactly the sort of mess that a recession is supposed to trim off…

[VintageKrug]

I have never flown them.

But the received opinion appears to that their move into longhaul was ill advised and, frankly, a shambles as your experience confirms.

I didn’t realise they have been going, in various guises, for 30 years.

Shorthaul has a good following especially in the regions, and they are by all accounts not so bad in this arena. Hopefully they will stick to their knitting and focus on what they do best.

They do provide ground services to Flybe, amongst others, so it would not just be Flyglobespan customers affected by any collapse.

Lots of protestations today that the funding was not urgently needed, but “no smoke..” is my reluctant assessment.

[RogEdwards]

I have used SH flyglobespan for the last few years and never had a problem with them. Flights have been bang on time or early, seat pitch is reasonable, seats are pre-allocated and the seats are the same space saver leather seats that BA use in Euro-Traveller.

A fiver buys me a huge cup of brand coffee and a bacon pannini which is a choice that BA no longer gives me on shorthaul after breakfast.

For short breaks to Europe – I would certainly miss flyglobespan – I like them more than East Jet or Ryan Air.

[jimthehorsegod]

I have to concede that I haven’t tried their SH services, but it does sounds as though these are the airline’s area of expertise, as their longhaul was utterly dreadful. I think when we went they were consolidating flights too (we lost a day of our honeymoon as a result) and the whole experience was just one thing after another really.

Still, bottom line is it’s never nice for a company to struggle, for both passengers (our FGS trip was on 31st Aug last year, the week of XL’s demise!) and staff, so let’s hop the cash injection keeps them safe and they stick to charters and SH services…

[NTarrant]

I have never travelled with them but a former colleague was due to go to YYZ from Doncaster and he received notification that it was cancelled and alternative was from MAN, same days. They did give him the rail fare from East Yorkshire to MAN and a large contribution towards the hotel he had to pay for on the night before departure.

He was impressed by the customer service on the ground but in the air it was a different matter!

[Bunnahabhain]

Appreciate this is a forum on business travel, which Globespan’s shorthaul services don’t really aim to cater for. But having used them several times for leisure breaks to the Med from Scotland, I hope they survive although did wonder if they would go at the time of XL, Zoom etc. One advantage over the other tour operators and LCCs that Globespan offers is the ability to include airport to hotel transfers (at a reasonable rate too) both ways if booking a return flight and hotel together. Ok transfers, which can sometimes cost more than the flight if using taxis, are part of any package holiday, but many limit you to multiples of 7 days. Globespan lets you include transfers for any combination of flight dates; some routes have daily flights. Easyjet etc have partner companies providing airport to hotel transfers but it’s one more booking and these can be pricey.

[Grandholmrobbo]

I agree with earlier posters about Flyglobespan.
As the first airline to have taken a chance and based a holiday aircraft in Aberdeen, I salute them. I fly with them probably 3 or 4 times a year and have never had a problem. Short haul yes, Long haul does sound like a different story though.
Selfishly if they did go, I doubt if another airline would step in and take over all the many routes ex Aberdeen.
Trust me, every flight I’ve been on has been at least 90% full as well.

[Age_of_Reason]

I agree with the supporters of Fly-GS. They are invaluable to scottish customers, who are numerous, more numerous than the competition seems to want to acknowledge. Scotland is also burdened with a BAA monopoly which we have been promised would be broken.
Fly-GS longhaul farrago was largely due to Icelandair foisting surplus aircraft which proved unreliable to FlyGS.
I hope they survive.

[VintageKrug]

Sadly my no smoke without fire assessment proved correct.

RIP Globespan.

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