[Cardinal Sin]

On the other hand, most majors have GA reliever airports that are not too far away (e.g. Andrewsfield for Stansted, Redhill for Gatwick, Denham for Heathrow) for those who want to do passenger pick-ups and drop-offs.

How easy are the ground transfers or should it be assumed it would need to be a taxi each way?

Well, of course Bristol used to have Filton....

[Cardinal Sin]

@Cardinal Sin, of that £180.60 do you know how much was "Handling"?

Often when I've looked at larger airfields (Cardiff and Gloucester very much honourable exceptions; Exeter too, IIRC) the landing has been OK but it is the addition of mandatory handling (for which you get almost nothing as a GA flight) that makes the visit not viable.

For a 1.3 MTOW aircraft the fees are:

• £35.00/tonne or part thereof,
• ATC fee £20.50/Tonne,
• Police Service Agreement £2.25/tonne.
• Handling fee £35:00.

This totals £150.50 plus VAT.

[Dave W]

Ouch.

[townleyc]

Something wrong there. There's definitely at least a group TB10 there that has flown several times lately, and I'm pretty sure there are Bizjets based there (including Dyson's?).

Is that a Hoover jet?



KE

[James Chan]

How easy are the ground transfers or should it be assumed it would need to be a taxi each way?

Pretty straightforward.

Taxis each way are the standard AFAIK, although if you know the right people I'm sure they'll be able help arrange and smooth out some timings such that neither taxi driver, nor pilot nor passengers are waiting for too long.

[Cardinal Sin]

Ouch.

That's what I said to the people at Bristol and Wessex who do not set the fee, or, I understand profit from it, but do have the joy of collecting it.

[Flyingfemme]

Last time we wanted to drop somebody off at Bristol for a flight home it was going to be more than £500..............for a Caravan.

[Cardinal Sin]

Last time we wanted to drop somebody off at Bristol for a flight home it was going to be more than £500..............for a Caravan.

What would you pay at Newcastle or Liverpool?

[Dave W]

Depends if the train ticket from there to Bristol is First Class or Standard, I suppose.

[Flyingfemme]

Last time we wanted to drop somebody off at Bristol for a flight home it was going to be more than £500..............for a Caravan.

What would you pay at Newcastle or Liverpool?

I don't know - haven't asked. But they didn't get the business anyway.

[Cardinal Sin]

Bristol's annual report https://s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/docu ... 318e0ca631 says they achieved Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisaion (EBITDA) of £6.15 per passenger.

I'd say the £180 they want to charge me is just a little excessive in that context. Even if you count me twice, and my passenger once, that's still 10 times as good as landing someone in an Easyjet A320.

[jacekowski]

I'd say the £180 they want to charge me is just a little excessive in that context. Even if you count me twice, and my passenger once, that's still 10 times as good as landing someone in an Easyjet A320.

A320 has up to 183 passengers on board, so with average load factor of 90% (it is probably higher, but somewhere 90% rings a bell) that is £1012 for one airplane. in that context £180 is a very good deal.

[Dave W]

£1012 / (183 * 0.9) = £6.14 per pax

£180/(4) = £45 per pax (take the pilot as paying occupant, given it is GA)

Where's the "...very good deal"?

[jacekowski]

£1012 / (183 * 0.9) = £6.14 per pax

£180/(4) = £45 per pax (take the pilot as paying occupant, given it is GA)

Where's the "...very good deal"?

It is not from our point of view, but from the airports point of view, if they let 1 A320 land, they make £1000, if they let 1 172 land they make £180.
Obviously that is not the way to do it if you are nowhere near full capacity (correct way would be to charge maximum you can get away with for each group (same way airlines price their seats, someone booking last minute going for a day, probably a business traveller that doesn't care about price and can charge him maximum amount, someone going for a week booking months in advance, probably someone price sensitive and price needs to be a lot lower)).
But i doubt lower prices at Bristol would attract much GA traffic anyway, there is nothing anywhere near the airport worth visiting, and on public transport Gloucester is only 30 minutes further away.

[Dave W]

It is not from our point of view, but from the airports point of view, if they let 1 A320 land, they make £1000, if they let 1 172 land they make £180.

Only if the C172 landing is somehow causing an A320 to be turned away.

If it isn't then they are not fully sweating the asset of the airport infrastructure.