O N T O U R: The Regionals Meet at Dublin
Alison Chambers reports
”No one starts an airline any more ” they start a low cost airline,” remarked aviation industry veteran Malcolm Forrest from SNECMA. Little wonder then, that once again, the low cost carriers ” living with them; adapting their principles and whether ERA should expand to include them ” was debated at the annual gathering of the European Regions Airline Association in Dublin last week.
Bringing a fresh stimulus to the topic was Roberto Stinga, former president of Netherlands-based Air Exel. His new low cost venture V-Bird, which will start this winter with four Airbus A320s, leased from ILFC, will be based at Germany”s Niederrhein Airport ” 55 kms from Dusseldorf. Initial routes will be to Munich, Berlin (Schonefeld), Copenhagen, Vienna, Maastricht, Nice and Helsinki with services to the UK (most likely Birmingham and Manchester, he says) commencing in 2005. Stinga was making his last appearance as an ERA Board member, but wants to be back for ERA in Vienna, where the next annual general assembly will take place. Vienna has been selected because of its location as a natural gateway for eastern Europe and from May 2004, 10 new member states will join the EU.
”Expanding the European Union,” along with discrimination against air transport and the need to protect members from unnecessary regulations, was the main theme of this year”s assembly. It is one that will bring a fresh stimulus to the industry, highlighted ERA director general Mike Ambrose. ”Markets that airlines wouldn”t dream of approaching today will become day to day operations in five years,” he believes and mainstay aircraft will be regional types, flown by smaller operators.
Dr Laszlo Kiss, director general of ECAC, and key speaker at ERA, warned however, that joining the EU could not be done overnight. ”We have been working for 10 years to try and ensure air transport is ready for full membership, but that”s not to say there won”t be any difficulties.” Gusztav Szegedy, maintenance quality manager at Malev Hungarian Airlines, also acknowledged that the legislation process was slow and there were issues with the translation of JAA documents. ”English is the language of aviation and there are issues with the quality and quantity of translation issues to be resolved,” he said. Todd Freeman, of GECAS, said an expanded EU will benefit consumers, but fleet growth is likely to be marginal. ”What we do expect is re-structured networks and increased productivity,” he told delegates.
At a stunning gala dinner on Thursday night ERA presented its 2003/2004 Airline of the Year awards. Full service airlines ” Air Nostrum of Spain; Eastern Airways of the UK and Air Botnia of Finland ” scooped Gold, Silver and Bronze, respectively ” Air Nostrum taking the gold for the second consecutive year. Air Nostrum offers a one class Regional Business Class product on its international and domestic services and it operates as an Iberia franchise ” but uniquely at its own risk. Recently it has resisted Iberia ideas to adopt some low cost principles on its 53-strong Bombardier and ATR fleet. Eastern Airways, acknowledged by the judges (10 journalists from continental Europe) to be the most punctual airline of all the entrants this year, won praise for consistently being profitable in markets (with 19 and 30-seaters) where others have either abandoned or failed. Like Air Nostrum and Eastern, Air Botnia, part of the SAS Group, has also seen increased profits and an expanded route network. It will offer 60% more capacity when it adds the last four Avro RJs off the Woodford production line in October, the airline said. London City Airport was Airport of the Year (runners up Cardiff International and Stuttgart) and veteran former Flight International hack Ian Goold won the Hank McGonagle Excellence in Journalism Award.
Embraer Aircraft brought the 170 to Dublin and took several airlines on a demo on Wednesday afternoon. It was the aircraft”s first stop in a demo tour of western and eastern Europe, which concludes on 3 October. Among the airlines being visited is Fokker 50 airline VLM of Belgium. Regional of France is also another candidate for the large Embraer jet family and president Jacques Bankir acknowledged the airline was evaluating both the 170 and 190.
Boeing was bullish about the prospects of its 717. Commenting on the Recommended Future Programme from Star Alliance for a family of aircraft in the 70 to 130-seat category, Jim Phillips, VP-717 Programme acknowledged that talks with the group were the ”most advanced.” But there was caution from Eurowings of Germany ” which is participating in the evaluation ” that with several aircraft in the group still grounded, a decision may not be forthcoming until 2004. Meanwhile, Eurowings is building up its 50-seat RJ fleet with the addition of two CRJs. Both Eurowings and Aegean of Greece, whose president Antonis Simigdalas will become ERA president from September 2004 ” a popular figure among ERA airlines, are focused on becoming all jet operators. Both are retiring ATR aircraft, but as ERA showed there are plenty of airlines looking to expand their ATR operations ” among them Air Wales, attending as an observer this year.
Bombardier too was bullish about the Q400 and maximizing its opportunities for European regionals moving into low cost operations. Buoyed by the type”s success at FlyBE, which now has seven of the aircraft and Norwegian regional”s Wideroe”s announcement at ERA that it too is becoming a low fare airline with its Q400 and ”300 series, the manufacturer sees more opportunities for the aircraft, which ”burns about half the fuel, with similar block times as a jet,” said VP marketing and airline analysis Barry MacKinnon.
A notable absentee this year (and there were several missing airline CEOs in Dublin) was Moritz Suter, ERA”s founding president. His increasing frustration with the Federal Swiss Authorities in connection with strict new operating criteria concerning the Saab 2000 at Lugano Airport is prohibiting the launch of his new airline venture, Hello. He is expected to make an announcement in Berne this week, but says he is prepared to pull the plug on the whole venture if he cannot get a positive outcome from FOCA. ”It is strange that when I want to start a new airline, the 2000 is forbidden, after a proven 34,000 approaches without problems,” he says and questions the driver for this decision. Suter is not alone in wishing to start scheduled services from Lugano, using the Saab 2000, which he will probably lease from SWISS. Since the latter”s decision to significantly reduce its services there, two more start ups are also waiting in the wings ” Baboo and Darwin Airlines. Saab Aircraft Leasing, pressed on the issue at its press briefing said that it has proposed an alternative flight profile requiring an initial 6 degree approach and a final approach of 5.5 degrees, rather than the full 6 degree approach demanded by FOCA.
For more members news and issues debated at ERA in Dublin see http://www.eraa.org or http://www.emeraldmedia.co.uk. The spring meeting of the European Regions Airline Association will take place in Barcelona during 24-25 March and the General Assembly during 29 September to 1 October in Vienna, Austria.