LHR - MCO Rumour
Aug 4, 2022, 6:37 am
#1
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LHR - MCO Rumour
I heard today from a London based flight attendant that I have personally known for years that United had bought three pairs of slots from British Airways, and one she had been told was going to be used on a direct flight to Florida and Orlando had been mentioned to her? They have never flown to Florida direct and I know it are it is not a international crew base. I cant find anything about slots being sold by BA so wonder if this is just here say...Anyone heard anything?
Aug 4, 2022, 6:51 am
#2
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They have a FA base at LHR, but not pilots. Im not an expert, but wouldn't they also need some maintenance crews for the long-haul aircraft? They dont have the crews in MCO or LHR to make this work, so it would be pretty expensive to do it. If they bought the slots, my guess is it would be for their hubs as opposed for a one-off.
Aug 4, 2022, 7:07 am
#4
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I heard today from a London based flight attendant that I have personally known for years that United had bought three pairs of slots from British Airways, and one she had been told was going to be used on a direct flight to Florida and Orlando had been mentioned to her? They have never flown to Florida direct and I know it are it is not a international crew base. I cant find anything about slots being sold by BA so wonder if this is just here say...Anyone heard anything?
Aug 4, 2022, 7:30 am
#5
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I find it impossible to believe that BA willingly sold any LHR slots. They and AA were required by the competition authorities to give up slots for certain routes through 2024 (extended now to 2026) which is how UA got LHR-BOS, but there was nothing about MCO in that.
https://simpleflying.com/british-air...ion-authority/
https://simpleflying.com/british-air...ion-authority/
Aug 4, 2022, 8:13 am
#7
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Aug 4, 2022, 9:55 am
#9
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I've lost count of the stories told to me by flight attendants (and other airline employees) with total, emphatic certitude, mostly about routes, new / abandoned stations, and pending mergers or aircraft acquisitions, that proved to be entirely without basis.
Aug 4, 2022, 9:57 am
#10
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They have a FA base at LHR, but not pilots. Im not an expert, but wouldn't they also need some maintenance crews for the long-haul aircraft? They dont have the crews in MCO or LHR to make this work, so it would be pretty expensive to do it. If they bought the slots, my guess is it would be for their hubs as opposed for a one-off.
Aug 4, 2022, 10:00 am
#11
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No disrespect, but this is how many unfounded rumours begin. The only employees who would actually know about somethine like this would be fired for telling anyone about it before an official announcement.
Aug 4, 2022, 10:07 am
#12
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I agree with this. Not sure how a FA could know unless she was divulging info from a friend and both with face potential displace for doing so.
Aug 4, 2022, 11:03 am
#13
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Aug 4, 2022, 1:00 pm
#14
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They have a FA base at LHR, but not pilots. Im not an expert, but wouldn't they also need some maintenance crews for the long-haul aircraft? They dont have the crews in MCO or LHR to make this work, so it would be pretty expensive to do it. If they bought the slots, my guess is it would be for their hubs as opposed for a one-off.
