babats

Reported in the DM - IAG looking to take up LGW slots vacated by TC. Also reported drop in profits due to pilots' strike - https://www.dailymail.co.uk/money/ma...k-airport.html -

And from the BBC - strike cost £121m - https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-49836391

Lefly

I would like a BRU-LGW service but I doubt it will happen...

ratypus

back in the 90's maybe...I remember that service!

would actually be really good to see more business destinations from LGW - even if just upping frequency (e.g. Amsterdam, Vienna are useful from Gatwick but 1/2 services a day at awkward times for work); maybe another East Coast route? I can dream...

UKtravelbear

so the strike cost even more then than the earlier figure of £40m (which some on here thought was an over estimate!)

As to the slots - more likely to go to Vueling and Level than BA. That's if IAG get any of them.

RGS5526

Restoration of MAN-LGW (and back again) would be nice.

BrianDromey

What have been the main changes with the Monarch slots? If I remember the first season was pretty much the MON schedule - have there been many new routes or frequency increases to destinations not around the med?

bhbloke

That last MAN flight was always Russian roulette at weekends, whether they'd run it or not.

Some of those awful coach rides back from MAN arriving home at 2AM.

rapidex

Some of the Monarch slots were leased to Thomas Cook.

DYKWIA

I think the figure quoted was £40m per day. So, 2 full days plus the cancelled services on the 27th, £121m would seem about right.

UKtravelbear

Oh dear a scramble for BA to try and lease them out again ASAP or will BA have to do a bit of slot sitting and operate LGW-CWL so as to not breach the 80-20 rule?

LimitingFactor

LGW<->NQY for slot sitting please! The Flybe LHR link is great, but doesn't work so well for some of my holidays,

LF

babats

My original thinking was that you're an MEP living South of London - but then you won't be needing the service for much longer!

babats

And NCL-LGW

'andad

With the hot meal "BA" used to serve on the ATR.

lcylocal

When BA got the Monarch slots as well as let Thomas Cook and Qatar operate some of them there was also an assortment of wet lease short haul aircraft - Titan were certainly used, but a few others were too.

Over time the fleet has grown to cover these, primarily by not retiring A320 CEO series aircraft as new NEO aircraft have arrived. 4 CEOs have gone so far replaced by 16 NEOs. There are 8 more CEOs due to go this year (and potentially the two that went earlier this month could come back depending on condition?), so this seems to be a decent potential pool of aircraft depending on how many cycles they have done.

The bigger issue may be finding sufficient flight crew to operate more aircraft given the current industrial relations issues.