[FDOS_UK]

Of course the passengers prefer it, right up-to the point it costs them more for their tickets. At which point, the majority of the travelling public will switch to a LCC to save a few quid.

[/quote]

And which LCC competes with BA across their extensive shorthaul route network, from Heathrow?

[GrahamC]

[quote quote=816929]
And which LCC competes with BA across their extensive shorthaul route network, from Heathrow?
[/quote]

I’ll let you in on a secret travel tip…..

There are other airports. 🙂

While there will always be a subset of destinations/passengers that are only effectively served from Heathrow, the majority of the travelling public have long been aware there are alternatives.

[Tallinnman]

Wonder if BA will put Qatar aircraft on routes to Egypt?

[capetonianm]

Qatar Airways and Qatar are not exactly flavour of the month. I am not convinced that this will do BA’s image much good. They are digging themselves ever deeper into the brown stuff.

[FDOS_UK]

[quote quote=816930]

FDOS_UK wrote:

And which LCC competes with BA across their extensive shorthaul route network, from Heathrow?

I’ll let you in on a secret travel tip…..

There are other airports. ?

While there will always be a subset of destinations/passengers that are only effectively served from Heathrow, the majority of the travelling public have long been aware there are alternatives.

[/quote]

So, please would you make a list of London airports that serve Brussels International with a direct flight?

[AMcWhirter]

Eurostar is stronger on the Brussels route than it is on Paris.

Over the years air service has been cut from the London airports with the exception of LHR.

It is true that EZY started LGW-Brussels flights in 2014 but they did not survive long.

Easyjet to fly new routes to Brussels and Strasbourg

[FDOS_UK]

ALex, I agree with you, Eurostar is a very good option for Brussels. Of course, there is the Stansted-Charleroi schlepp, but that isn’t a great choice for those travelling into central Brussels.

But that is not the point GrahamC was making and it was typical of people who assume that there are lots of options for business travellers, who need to fly. BA have an extensive route network and this is a strength.

[GrahamC]

[quote quote=816941]But that is not the point GrahamC was making and it was typical of people who assume that there are lots of options for business travellers, who need to fly. BA have an extensive route network and this is a strength.
[/quote]

That is not the point I made but thank you for finding one of the routes I alluded to when I said:

there will always be a subset of destinations/passengers that are only effectively served from Heathrow

Is that the only route you found? I would have expected a few more of them to be honest.

It doesn’t change my original point, passengers will generally be supportive of service improvements right up to the point they have to pay for them.

Decreasing seat pitch and moving from 8 to 9, or 9 to 10 across seating is a perfect example of this. No passenger will ever say they want 10 across seating but plenty of passengers will book airlines that implement it if the ticket prices are lower than the competition.

[Tallinnman]

Graham C – Airline ticket prices are dynamic so I’m not sure how much the size of the seat effects the price as the airline will always charge what they can get away with
. In terms of airlines operating densified economy cabins ie 10 across 777 or 9 across 787 – regular travellers will try to avoid these if in economy but schedules will dictate in many cases. The remainder of travellers simply don’t know and make stupid decisions from a comfort point of view. Also on many occasions smaller seats are even more expensive than competing more comfortable flights so it isn’t about the price it is about the airline’s inability to display their products in the various sales channels in a way that differentiates their offer and creates value for the consumer.

[SimonS1]

[quote quote=816942]

FDOS_UK wrote:

But that is not the point GrahamC was making and it was typical of people who assume that there are lots of options for business travellers, who need to fly. BA have an extensive route network and this is a strength.

That is not the point I made but thank you for finding one of the routes I alluded to when I said:

there will always be a subset of destinations/passengers that are only effectively served from Heathrow

Is that the only route you found? I would have expected a few more of them to be honest.

It doesn’t change my original point, passengers will generally be supportive of service improvements right up to the point they have to pay for them.

Decreasing seat pitch and moving from 8 to 9, or 9 to 10 across seating is a perfect example of this. No passenger will ever say they want 10 across seating but plenty of passengers will book airlines that implement it if the ticket prices are lower than the competition.

[/quote]

Honestly, I doubt 90% of travellers travelling in economy have a clue whether its 9 or 10 across.

BA are going from 9 to 10 across. Assuming other things remain equal will they a) reduce prices or b) keep prices the same and bank the increased profits. Not a hard one to work out really.

[Flightlevel]

LGW serves more international destinations than LHR, obviously not so frequently to some,that’s why it needs a 2nd RWY and may get it before LHR’s 3rd with no Con. majority?
BA must be paying for the QR better service on their flights to maintain a QR standard on their ‘planes, since its only 2 weeks a price they consider worthwhile and doesn’t require re-training in cash food sales. Enjoy it while it lasts!

[FDOS_UK]

Is that the only route you found? I would have expected a few more of them to be honest.

It doesn’t change my original point, passengers will generally be supportive of service improvements right up to the point they have to pay for them.

ROFL. Brussels was the route specifically mentioned in the post that you commented on.

So, once again, how many other airports could the passengers on that flight have chosen for a trip to or from Heathrow?

SimonS1 has dealt with the rest of your point.

[FDOS_UK]

[quote quote=816958]LGW serves more international destinations than LHR, obviously not so frequently to some,that’s why it needs a 2nd RWY and may get it before LHR’s 3rd with no Con. majority?
BA must be paying for the QR better service on their flights to maintain a QR standard on their ‘planes, since its only 2 weeks a price they consider worthwhile and doesn’t require re-training in cash food sales. Enjoy it while it lasts!

[/quote]

That’s an interesting point in your first sentence. If you look at the FR network from LTN, STN and LGW, it is enormous, but often the destinations are not the same as those from Heathrow – e.g. if you want a direct flight to Bremen, you are committed to STN – for a city with a population of ~560-675,000 (depending whether you include Bremerhaven).

So there isn’t as much choice as many people think – Alex McWhirter made this point recently, saying a lot of people have no option but to fly with Ryanair.

[FDOS_UK]

[quote quote=816947]Graham C – Airline ticket prices are dynamic so I’m not sure how much the size of the seat effects the price as the airline will always charge what they can get away with
. In terms of airlines operating densified economy cabins ie 10 across 777 or 9 across 787 – regular travellers will try to avoid these if in economy but schedules will dictate in many cases. The remainder of travellers simply don’t know and make stupid decisions from a comfort point of view. Also on many occasions smaller seats are even more expensive than competing more comfortable flights so it isn’t about the price it is about the airline’s inability to display their products in the various sales channels in a way that differentiates their offer and creates value for the consumer.

[/quote]

Excellent post.

[GrahamC]

[quote quote=816951]
Honestly, I doubt 90% of travellers travelling in economy have a clue whether its 9 or 10 across.

BA are going from 9 to 10 across. Assuming other things remain equal will they a) reduce prices or b) keep prices the same and bank the increased profits. Not a hard one to work out really.

[/quote]

Absolutely. It’s an unfortunate commercial necessity for an airline to remain competitive.

The majority of travellers appreciate the extra space, additional frills, free drinks and in-flight meal but when it comes to booking time many (most) will opt for the cheapest option. Inevitably this is resulting in a race to the bottom to reduce prices.

Personally I’m quite happy to pay more to travel in a little more comfort, as I suspect are most contributors to this forum.

This goes back to my original point. Of course passengers express support for the temporary service improvements they’re experiencing on the Qatar operated flights as it’s come at no additional cost to them. That’s not the same as BA incorporating those improvements into their operating model and increasing ticket prices accordingly. The result of which would be a further shift to the competing LCCs operating from nearby airports.

[Author]

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