Brussels Airport is a disaster when it freezes and snows

[sdbelgium]

We could always do what British Airways does: they'll operate a Boeing 747-400 today on BA315/9 LHR-CDG-LHR.

[cnc]

We would need more than 60 flights each way per day to absorb the backlog ...
I'm surprised that ryanair didn't react.
For now, the only "cheap" solution would be to fly ryanair from london to anywhere in europe and then from anywhere to charleroi.

how about the ferry (ship) to calais?

[Acid-drop]

I think anything the average joe could think about is full.

[sdbelgium]

We could always do what British Airways does: they'll operate a Boeing 747-400 today on BA315/9 LHR-CDG-LHR.

Lufthansa will send 2 A340-600 and 2 B747-400 on FRA-LHR-FRA tomorrow.

[continental060]

hello,

Are there any upgrades on the LHR-BRU-LHR routes?

[sdbelgium]

Not for the moment. BA using A319s today, BD 1 A320 and 4 ERJ145s. Tomorrow 3 BD ERJ145s, 2 BD A320s + 4 BA A319s and 1 BA A321.

[continental060]

thanks,

[airazurxtror]

Jetairfly to come to the rescue with flights to/from London :

http://www.standaard.be/artikel/detail. ... 122009_030

http://www.rtlinfo.be/info/monde/europe ... ar-bloques

[sdbelgium]

Yes, JAF is to operate the following flights to Gatwick today and tomorrow (Zulu times).

Code: Select all

21DEC  JAF9101  BRU 1730  LGW 1830  738  OO-VAC  189/189
21DEC  JAF9102  LGW 2000  BRU 2100  738  OO-VAC  189/189

22DEC  JAF9203  BRU 1130  LGW 1230  738  OO-JAF  189/189
22DEC  JAF9204  LGW 1400  BRU 1500  738  OO-JAF  189/189

[Acid-drop]

Please don't mention this marketing move ...
There a thousands of pax blocked there, if not a hundred thousand, it's not 2 round trip that will help anything
I'm not saying it's not positive, but the press understand it like THE solution, which is not

[cnc]

this is not a marketing move...
JAF is doing the flights for free for people who booked eurostar tripts with jetair

[Charlie Roy]

Gatwick airport has been closed most of this afternoon, I wonder if those JAF flights will proceed?
I have a lot of sympathy all those stranded travellers

[sdbelgium]

Today's JAF flight to LGW is already delayed for 1 hour (STD now 19u30 LT). Thomas Cook will also operate an extra flight to Gatwick today (FQ9156 scheduled to depart BRU at 19u45 LT).

[N77014]

this is not a marketing move...
JAF is doing the flights for free for people who booked eurostar tripts with jetair

Well, I presume JAF will ask a refund for all unused train tickets ( = train tickets of the passengers boarding their plane ) to Eurostar. So this amount can pay for the flight. Could be an interesting deal for them... depending on the average train ticket fare of course...

[dna]

LGW is now closed for de-icing of the runway. And BA has cancelled all domestic and European flights scheduled to leave from LHR after 1900 hrs. London City and Luton also closed.

[FLYAIR10]

There a thousands of pax blocked there, if not a hundred thousand, it's not 2 round trip that will help anything

Why not set up a (temporary) airshuttle between Southend & Lydd to Ostend, like in the early sixties?
(Times of Channel express,British Air Ferries,etc..)
2-3 planes could make quite a lot of rotations each day for the short hop accross the Channel.
Passengers could be moved by train or busses from London / continental cities to the uncongested airports..
Just an idea...

[SN1203]

Why not set up a (temporary) airshuttle between Southend & Lydd to Ostend

Not very realistic, letting a plane fly is not like dispatching a cab to some place. You need a plane and more important a crew. Crews are bound to some serious duty time regulations etc. so after the awful weather in Europe in the past few days, airlines that were affected must be very restricted in terms of crew reserves and need every spare crew as back-up for the normal day-to-day operations. It must be very difficult for an airline to find crews at such a short notice to dispatch multiple flights across the North Sea.

[FLYAIR10]

Why not set up a (temporary) airshuttle between Southend & Lydd to Ostend

Not very realistic, letting a plane fly is not like dispatching a cab to some place. You need a plane and more important a crew. Crews are bound to some serious duty time regulations etc. so after the awful weather in Europe in the past few days, airlines that were affected must be very restricted in terms of crew reserves and need every spare crew as back-up for the normal day-to-day operations. It must be very difficult for an airline to find crews at such a short notice to dispatch multiple flights across the North Sea.

Of course a plane is not a cab and the wheather conditions have been putting the crewroster under pressure.
But many airlines have been reducing their capacity because of lower demand and because of winter.
So,I guess finding some planes and crews to operate a 1 week shuttle can not be that difficult.
1 crew could make 4 rotations a day on these short Channel hops,...or not?

[euroflyer]

Not only BRU is a disaster when it snows ...

Last night FRA had been completely closed from 22h40 until around 3h30 this morning. Before 22h40 operations had already been restricted. We had about 10 cm of fresh snow between 17h00 and midnight yesterday. Some 5,000 pax were lucky enough to be booked into a hotel somewhere in FRA, but more than 3,000 had to spent the night at the airport. More than 1,500 temporary 'beds' have been provided and installed in the airport and quite a number of pax slept in aircrafts according to media reports this morning. Now temperature is above freezing in FRA and it started raining so all three runways are back in operation, but still a big backlog of flights and pax from the last days ...

[Propwash]

[Topic Off]

Eurostar moves again

UPDATE ON EUROSTAR SERVICES ON TUESDAY 22 DECEMBER 2009

Eurostar will be resuming a restricted service from Tuesday 22 December. Trains will depart from 07.30 to 18.00.

We continue to strongly advise customers whose journeys are not essential not to travel and to change their tickets for travel on a later date or have their tickets refunded.

ONLY CUSTOMERS WHO HOLD A TICKET THAT WAS ORIGINALLY FOR TRAVEL ON SATURDAY 19 OR SUNDAY 20 DECEMBER WILL BE ELIGIBLE FOR TRAVEL ON TUESDAY 22 DECEMBER. Seats will not be bookable in advance.

Customers holding tickets for Monday 21 and Tuesday 22 December will be eligible for travel on Wednesday 23 December. Customers holding tickets for Wednesday 23 or Thursday 24 December will be eligible for travel on Thursday 24 December.

Customers are advised not to attempt to travel independently via the channel ports or the Channel Tunnel unless they have confirmed bookings.

Source (Eurostar)

[Topic On]