Cardiff: Loganair Flights, New Routes & Schedule Updates

[Nuffsaid]

Loganair are probably waiting for the Coronavirus panic to subside and also for aircraft availability before ramping up to hopefully 3 daily.
Hopefully Dublin and Paris can now be reinstated ASAP.

 

[Jerry]

Hopefully Dublin and Paris can now be reinstated ASAP.

I fear those maybe a lot harder to regain but we'll have to wait and see. At least Edinburgh will return.

 

[Jerry]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1235601673181114368

 

[Jarvo]

'Air routeS'
Hopefully that doesn't refer to CWL-EDI and EDI-CWL being counted as multiple routes!
Or maybe they're referring to GLA too?

 

[aviatorconcorde]

Good news. Even though it’s only a daily flight, Loganair are giving what they can offer.

This was arranged very quick though. I think Loganair and the airport knew something we didn’t.

 

[Jerry]

'Air routeS'
Hopefully that doesn't refer to CWL-EDI and EDI-CWL being counted as multiple routes!
Or maybe they're referring to GLA too?

It's possible that it's a general ad and that they've just put Cardiff in. It could be replaced by say Manchester or Birmingham.

 

[Jerry]

Times for the Edinburgh route.
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturdays
EDI-CWL 10.15-11.35 CWL-EDI 12.05-13.25
Wednesday
EDI-CWL 10.40-12.00 CWL-EDI 12.30-13.50
Friday and Sunday
EDI-CWL 14.20-15.40 CWL-EDI 16.10-17.30
7 weekly flights altogether. I had a look at September and beyond where the airport said the route goes 10 weekly and it's carries on as 7 weekly. Hopefully the extra flights will be added at a later date.
In all from April Loganair will operate 15 weekly flights between 2 routes.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

It's funny how things that go round come round.

When Flybe pulled some of its CWL routes in 2014 including EDI CityJet stepped in. A year or more later the WG did a major deal with Flybe to return to the airport in a much bigger presence including the EDI route (part of Flybe's Project Blackbird which was an attempt to find a home for its unwanted E195s). That was a ten-year agreement which we now know was to last less than five years.

In the meantime Loganair had advertised a CWL-EDI service to run alongside City Jet's but when the Project Blackbird deal was announced Loganair scuppered that idea before it even started, and CityJet pulled out of CWL criticising the airport for the way it had treated them.

Ironically CityJet's CEO at the time later became CEO of Flybe.

Will the new service be on a small EJet or are Loganair sourcing larger aircraft? Loganair is already in the throes of a major expansion in terms of routes and now they are at it again. If they can make it all work the obvious question is why couldn't Flybe?

Good news anyway and it is to be hoped that more of the erstwhile Flybe routes quickly find new operators.

 

[Jerry]

Will the new service be on a small EJet or are Loganair sourcing larger aircraft? Loganair is already in the throes of a major expansion in terms of routes and now they are at it again. If they can make it all work the obvious question is why couldn't Flybe?

It'll be on the E145, same aircraft type as the GLA route. I think Loganair will be ok, they seem well run and i think they'll stick to what they know Scotland, Newcastle and maybe Northern Ireland which i'd have thought would be the profitable part of Flybe. What is interesting to see is that i don't think they've launched any flights to London?

 

[TheLocalYokel]

It'll be on the E145, same aircraft type as the GLA route. I think Loganair will be ok, they seem well run and i think they'll stick to what they know Scotland, Newcastle and maybe Northern Ireland which i'd have thought would be the profitable part of Flybe. What is interesting to see is that i don't think they've launched any flights to London?

Thanks. Smaller aircraft than Flybe's Q400s re passenger capacity but they are jets. Furthermore, with the coronavirus having a negative effect on passenger numbers generally, having fewer seats to fill might be no bad thing in the short to medium term.

 

[Jerry]

Thanks. Smaller aircraft than Flybe's Q400s re passenger capacity but they are jets. Furthermore, with the coronavirus having a negative effect on passenger numbers generally, having fewer seats to fill might be no bad thing in the short to medium term.

Yes capacity on the route will be drastically reduced but at least the route will still exist and hopefully over time they'll add frequency to the route.

 

[Jerry]

My trip report of the inaugural flight to Glasgow is now out!

 

[TheLocalYokel]

I believe that flybmi always had a good reputation for onboard service and it seems that Loganair with the same owners as the now defunct flybmi are the same.

The bagpipes would have driven me scatty in the confined departure area. We love Scotland and visit often but the sound of bagpipes is the one thing about that country that I can happily do without.

It's certainly a different experience on a small jet cmpared with the likes of easyJet and Ryanair. In the early 90s we used KLM Cityhopper 33-seat Saab 340 turbo-props on several occasions. They were a bit cramped, much like the Jetstreams I would imagine although I've never flown on one. From your comments on the video the small Embraer jets are not at all bad to ride in.

 

[Jerry]

I believe that flybmi always had a good reputation for onboard service and it seems that Loganair with the same owners as the now defunct flybmi are the same.

The bagpipes would have driven me scatty in the confined departure area. We love Scotland and visit often but the sound of bagpipes is the one thing about that country that I can happily do without.

It's certainly a different experience on a small jet cmpared with the likes of easyJet and Ryanair. In the early 90s we used KLM Cityhopper 33-seat Saab 340 turbo-props on several occasions. They were a bit cramped, much like the Jetstreams I would imagine although I've never flown on one. From your comments on the video the small Embraer jets are not at all bad to ride in.

I probably didn't give enough praise for the cabin crew lady in the video. She was really friendly and gave really good service. I don't know if flyBMI served alcohol but I was surprised Loganair didn't, not even whiskey! I wasn't bothered but a few passengers did ask.

I enjoyed flying on the E145 reminded me a bit of flying on the Fokker 70 with the engines at the back and was probably as close to me flying on a private jet as I'll get. It definitely was a different experience the next day boarding the much bigger Easyjet A320! Me personally I preferred the E145 as I do like regional aircraft more than the A320/737 aircraft.
I'm heading back to Scotland on Thursday to Aberdeen, supposed to be flying with Eastern but at the moment I haven't trouble getting confirmation off them whether I've lost my booking or not because I booked it with Flybe but can't find the confirmation email. I might have to rebook which is an inconvenience but only a minor one compared to the thousands of people who have lost their jobs and potentially will lose them.

 

[Jarvo]

As great as the route to Edinburgh continuing is, I've looked for my flights for 3 months in advance and its coming out as £300-400 per person return.
I know Loganair have a lesser frequency and smaller aircraft, but that price is gutting for someone who needs the route and used to be able to do it for ~£100 return including airport parking.

 

[Jerry]

As great as the route to Edinburgh continuing is, I've looked for my flights for 3 months in advance and its coming out as £300-400 per person return.
I know Loganair have a lesser frequency and smaller aircraft, but that price is gutting for someone who needs the route and used to be able to do it for ~£100 return including airport parking.

Flights must be selling well to be that high! I think we can just only hope that they'll add extra frequencies over time!

 

[Foxlimayankee]

What dates are you looking at? I've looked at last 2 weeks of June and flights are showing less than £70 each way. Most are actually £49.99

 

[Jarvo]

What dates are you looking at? I've looked at last 2 weeks of June and flights are showing less than £70 each way. Most are actually £49.99

You're not wrong actually! I just looked on the loganair website myself and the prices are great! I was sent the prices by my sister and I have no idea what she searched on skyscanner to come up with those prices, must have been via DOH or something

 

[Jerry]

You're not wrong actually! I just looked on the loganair website myself and the prices are great! I was sent the prices by my sister and I have no idea what she searched on skyscanner to come up with those prices, must have been via DOH or something

Sounds like KLM prices for a route like that.

 

[Jerry]

It looks like most probably due to coronavirus Loganair have taken flights off sale on the Glasgow route for March, April and May. They are as follows.
Wednesday 18/3/20, Wednesday 25/3/20, Tuesday 31/3/20, Tuesday 7/4/20, Wednesday 15/4/20, Monday 20/4/20, Tuesday 28/4/20. Looks like there will be no flights on Tuesdays and Wednesdays in May. It also looks like during April and May some of the 20.50 departures on Fridays and the 11.05 departures on Sundays have been taken offsale or are marked as sold out. It looks like the schedule gets back to normal in June.
Edinburgh looks unaffected so far.