Originally Posted by
d3vski
I'm with IAG here.
Why should they fork out X amount of billions in funding the extra runaway, terminal and other infrastructure at Heathrow if they do not get first dibs on new slots.
The competition argument is flawed. No new airline can challenge BA entrenched position and even a new terminal and runaway will not help.
The competition is BA vs Lufty vs KLM vs AF vs ME3 at their respective hubs.
As far as I am concerned, BA can be as powerful as they can get at Heathrow because if they become too greedy and do not provide service, I will shift to KLM or ME3, etc.
A strong UK needs a strong. Heathrow and in turn a strong BA to maintain equilibrium in world aviation.
Without the above, we will become a second rate country which has sold off the national infrastructure to foreign entities.....oh wait, that ship has already sailed!
I'm sorry but this is misunderstanding how a monopolistic airline, BA at LHR in this case, affects the market. It's not true to say passengers can freely choose other airlines when they then have to compromise on convenience, flight times, in-flight comfort or whatever. BA have a stranglehold on slots at LHR and that is not good for competition, full stop.
If the market was truly open for me to choose as a consumer, then why can't I fly on an airline of my preference to New York (e.g. a ME3 or Far Eastern airline), despite it being a crowded route anyway? If the market was liberalised and passengers truly had a choice with little compromise, you can be sure that BA would have long-already upped its game on issues such as the CW hard product.
But whatever else, this government dithering helps absolutely no-one. And they're all to blame. In 2005 Tony Blair and the then Labour government was in the throes of taking a decision to go ahead with a third LHR runway, and indeed stood on that ticket, but then bottled it. The last (Tory/Lib Dem) coalition government bottled it, despite getting huge attention. Now the Tory government is kicking it down the field in some ridiculous hope this decision will simply sort itself out somehow. It's the most awful leadership. Please just
make a decision. Even if that decision is no new runways anywhere, that's better than this nonsense.
Rant over
