Birmingham Airport Review 2008

Now on line at -

.

http://bhx2008-baeg.blogspot.com/

Wednesday 24 December 2008 - flybe Dash 8 G-ECOM enters service to Jersey

flybe's latest Dash 8Q-400 G-ECOM - which had arrived at

BHX on delivery on Friday 19 December 2008 - entered

service operating the morning "BE 501/502" service to

Jersey and Guernsey before parking up on Stand 25

Tuesday 23 December 2008 - Turkish Boeing 737 TC-JGS makes its first visit to BHX

Turkish Airlines Boeing 737-8F2 TC-JGS operated their service

from Istanbul - the first visit of a TK 73H on the route since it

had started the previous week

.

Hamburg Airbus A319-112 D-AHIJ which had operated the
return "Santa" flight from Enontekio on Monday evening - having

swapped over with D-AHIK - positioned out to Manchester

Monday 22 December 2008 - Hamburg Airbus A319 D-AHIK in 10th Anniversary scheme

Hamburg operated another "Santa" flight to Enontekio in

Finnish Lapland - Airbus A319-112 D-AHIK positioned in from

Saarbruken over an hour late and wears their "10 Jahre"

10th anniversary colour scheme

.

Eurocypria Boeing 737-8Q8 5B-DBU operated an extra IT

flight to Larnaca as the Christmas holiday rush started

Sunday 21 December 2008 - Sky-Taxi Mustang PH-ORJ visits the Elmdon apron

Cessna 510 Mustang PH-ORJ of Sky-Taxi was a

morning visitor to the Elmdon apron

.

Turkish Airbus A320 TC-JPA operated their service to Istanbul
. KLM cityhopper Fokker 70 PH-KZF operated
their lunchtime service to Amsterdam
. flybe Dash 8Q-400 G-JEDP in their "Low cost but
not at any cost" special green colour scheme
. flybe Embraer 145 G-EMBX is currently operating without any titles
.
easyJet Airbus A319 G-EZAJ operated their service to
Grenoble which had restarted the previous weekend
for the ski season
.

Titan Boeing 737-300QC G-POWC positioned in from Stansted

to operate their weekly IT flight to Chambery which had been

delayed from Saturday due to the weather - snow! - in the Alps

Saturday 20 December 2008

Emirates Boeing 777-300ER A6-ECK operated their

midday service from Dubai - its first visit to BHX

Friday 19 December 2008 - Hamburg Boeing 737 D-AHIG operates "Santa flight" to Finland

Hamburg Boeing 737-300 D-AHIG was a mid morning departure
operating another "Santa flight" to Enontekio in Finnish Lapland

.

Turkmenistan Boeing 757 EZ-A011 arrives from Ashkabad

- the aircraft is now in their new "green" colour scheme

.

KLM cityhopper Embraer 190 PH-EZB operated their

lunchtime service from Amsterdam - the second KLM

E90 to first visit with three days!

Thursday 18 December 2008 - easyJet Airbus A319 HB-JZP operates their flight to Geneva

easyJet Swiss Airbus A319 HB-JZP operated their service to Geneva

.

Turkish Airlines Airbus A320 TC-JPT passes the new

International Pier the external structure of which was
completed today -

http://bhxflightguide-news.blogspot.com/2008/12/new-international-pier-starts-to-take.html
.

Hamburg Boeing 737-300 D-AHIG was an early morning departure

operating a "Santa flight" to Enontekio in Finnish Lapland

Birmingham Airport's new International Pier starts to take shape

The last piece of steel frame for the main building of the

International Pier Project was installed at Birmingham

Airport today, Thursday 18 December 2008

.

The building is being constructed to provide the Airport

with state-of-the-art facilities to handle increasing demand,

and to meet the Airport’s exciting aspirations to improve

global connectivity from the Midlands
.

The construction of the International Pier, which started

in June this year at a cost of £45m, is the single biggest

investment the Airport has made in over 20 years, and

will replace the current out-dated facility constructed in

1984 on Terminal One
.

The building will provide enhanced air-bridged aircraft

parking for seven wide-bodied next generation

environmentally-efficient aircraft such as the Airbus

A350 or the Boeing 787 ‘Dreamliner’, as well as the

larger aircraft types we already see at Birmingham

today like the Airbus A330 and Boeing 747 and 777

.

The flexible parking arrangement can also provide more

space for up to 13 short-haul jets at any given time

.

Will Heynes, the Airport’s Operations Director, who fixed
the last bolt in the final piece of steel frame, said, "Today
signifies the completion of the main steel structure and we
can really see the Pier taking shape. This building will play
an important part in our strategy for long-haul carriers and

will help us meet our aspirations to provide world-wide
services from the Midlands. It will be an essential piece
of Airport infrastructure should we get final approval
for our runway extension in the New Year"
.

Construction of the three storey building which is 240
metres long and 24 metres wide, is being carried out by
Laing O’Rourke Construction Limited. Colin Potts, the
Project Leader for Laing O’Rourke, "We are delighted to be
undertaking the construction of the New International Pier
and to continue our long standing association with
Birmingham Airport which began nearly 30 years ago"
.

Passengers will depart from the lounge on the top floor
of the building. On the second floor arriving passengers
will be speedily channelled through to Immigration and
Customs facilities. The second floor will also provide space
for a new Executive Lounge for Emirates Airlines. Meanwhile,
the ground floor will also provide office accommodation
for airline and handling agents
.

The Pier will also provide vertical segregation to separate
inbound and outbound passenger traffic, in line with
national security requirements. New gate lounges for
passengers will also be created
.

The building has been designed to encompass the latest

building regulations and meets the latest environmental

standards and performances for buildings of this type. The

project team have established a collaborative working

environment to plan the works in detail using process

mapping, 3D modelling and well monitored performance

measures to ensure that all the stakeholders deliver on

programme

.
The Project Manager on the construction is Mace Limited,

the Architect is Pascall & Watson, and the Structural,

Civil and Fire Engineering is by Buro Happold. Mechanical

and Electrical design is by Hulley and Kirkwood, the CDM

Coordinator is Mace Sustain and the Cost Management

Consultant is Faithful and Gould

.

A view of the full length of the new International Pier

.

Thursday 18 December 2008

Wednesday 17 December 2008 - Embraer 190 PH-EZA makes first visit of a KLM "E90" to BHX

KLM cityhopper Embraer 190 PH-EZA operated their lunchtime

service from Amsterdam - the first visit of a KLM E90 to BHX

.

Lufthansa Canadair CRJ 900 D-ACKD operated

their mid morning service to Munich

Tuesday 16 December 2008 - Monarch Boeing 757 G-MONJ with "The Captain's Choice Tour" titles

Monarch Boeing 757 G-MONJ operated a charter to take Aston Villa
to Hamburg for their UEFA Cup match on Wednesday evening - it

wears "The Captain's Choice Tour" titles, an Australian tour operator

that uses it for charters, and is currently in a 92 seat VIP configuration
.

Turkish Airlines Airbus A320 TC-JPD operated
their second service from Istanbul
.
RAF Tristar KC1 ZD950 operated a medivac flight before
positioning to Brize Norton
.
Doysa Air Challenger TC-SAB was a morning arrival
parking up on the Elmdon apron
.
Premier 1A F-HNCY was another visitor to the Elmdon apron

New Turkish Airlines service from Birmingham Airport to Istanbul takes off!!

Birmingham International Airport has today celebrated
the inaugural Turkish Airlines (TK) service to Istanbul.
The flight will operate five times a week from Birmingham
and provides Midlanders with the opportunity to fly
from their local airport direct to Istanbul for the first time

.

The inaugural flight, which left Birmingham at 1130 with 167

passengers on board, offers 140 worldwide onward connections

from Istanbul to major business and leisure centres, including

Bangkok, Cape Town, Johannesburg, Delhi, Bombay and

Singapore. The arrival of Turkish Airlines at Birmingham adds

a further 20 new destinations to the airport’s global connections

which has now reached 422 direct and one stop destinations
.
Joining the celebrations at today’s Inaugural launch, Paul Kehoe,

Chief Executive Officer of Birmingham International Airport, said:
.
"We are delighted to welcome the national flag carrier of Turkey

to Birmingham and proud to have such a well established carrier

in our growing schedule. It is excellent news for the region as it

now provides even more connections throughout Turkey, the

Middle East and Asia from the Midlands"
.
"Turkish Airlines is joining Birmingham at an exciting time
and demonstrates that the airport, as well as the region, is
becoming a more attractive option for new airlines. We
look forward to working with the Turkish Airways team
and making the route a success"
.
Flights on Mondays and Thursday will arrive in Birmingham

at 1030 hours and depart to Istanbul at 1130 hours. The

remaining flights, on Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays, will

arrive in Birmingham at 1215 hours and depart at 1315 hours.

The timings are to allow the shortest possible connection
times to the banks of worldwide departures from
Turkish Airlines’ Istanbul hub

.

Candan Karlitekin, Chairman of Turkish Airlines, Paul Kehoe, CEO of

Birmingham International Airport, Captain Koksal Koktuna, Turkish

Airlines and the Mayor of Solihull, Councillor David Bell celebrate the

inaugural Turkish Airlines’ service

.

The event attracted massive media coverage!

.

Monday 15 December 2008

Monday 15 December 2008 - Maldivian Air Taxi Twin Otter C-FBBW spends day parked up

Maldivian Air Taxi/Kenn Borek Air Twin Otter C-FBBW which

had arrived from Keflavik in the early hours of Monday morning

spent the day parked up on the Elmdon apron
.

Twinjet Airbus A319CJ G-NMAK which had arrived on Sunday

evening spent the day parked on the Elmdon apron

Sunday 14 December 2008 - Netjets Boeing BBJ N127QS departs to Geneva

Netjets Boeing 737-7BC BBJ N127QS departed to Geneva
.
Atlantic Airways used Avro RJ 100 OY-FJE on the morning
SAS service from Copenhagen in place of the usual BAe 146
- its third visit to BHX. The aircraft retains the basic scheme
of now defunct carrier Faroe Jet
.
Thomas Cook Airbus A321-211 G-DHJH operated a
"Santa flight" to Rovaniemi in Finnish Lapland

Saturday 13 December 2008 - Air Slovakia Boeing 737 OM-ASC flying with Bellview titles

Air Slovakia Boeing 737-300 OM-ASC operated their weekly

service from Bratislava - the aircraft wore the titles and tail

scheme of Nigerian airline Bellview

.

Blue Line M83 F-GLMU positioned in from Paris CDG to

operate a charter to Perpignan taking Leicester there for

their Heineken Cup Rugby match on Sunday

Friday 12 December 2008 - RAF Agusta A109 ZR321 visits the Elmdon apron

RAF Agusta A109 ZR321 was an afternoon visitor
to the Elmdon apron

November 2008 passenger figures

Ryanair have added two more based Boeing 737-800's

Birmingham International Airport is celebrating its busiest

ever November after figures released today confirmed that

the Midlands' premier airport is continuing to defy the

current economic uncertainty. During the month the Airport

handled 620,283 passengers, including 527,727 scheduled

passengers and 92,556 charter passengers spread across

the two passenger terminals; an increase of 1.6% over the

previous year

.

Paul Kehoe, Birmingham Airport's Chief Executive Officer,

said, "To be celebrating a record November is great news,

particularly given the current economic conditions. The

Airport continues to perform above the national average,

with figures once again looking likely to be considerably

down across the majority of other UK airports. However,

the outlook for the coming months looks challenging for

the entire industry and we cannot expect Birmingham to

be immune to the economic slowdown"

.

"Nevertheless, it is an extremely exciting time for

everyone involved with the Airport as we await a

decision on the proposed runway extension on the

15th, a day which will also see the launch of

Turkish Airlines' 5 times weekly service to Istanbul,

which is a brand new route for the Airport"

.

"In addition, we are looking forward to the launch of

Ryanair's new ski routes to Grenoble and Cuneo as

well as Thomson's service to La Romana, all launching

before Christmas"

.

In November, growth was achieved on EU routes of

8.3%, non-EU routes of 3.9% while the Irish Republic

saw an increase of 2.1%

.

Scheduled routes that experienced growth in November

include: Shannon (+62.2%), Inverness (+57.6%),

Alicante (+54.9%), Prague (+52.3%), Tenerife (+48.7%),

Malaga (+47.9%), Bratislava (+20.7%), Dusseldorf (+17.7%),

Dubai (+12.6%), Zurich (+8.5%), Paphos (+3.1%),

Munich (+2.6%), Milan (+2.1%) and Dundee (+1.1%)

.

Charter traffic which experienced growth were:

Turkey (+748.1%), Egypt (+68.1%), Mexico (+9.1%),

Barbados (+3.2%) and Portugal (+1.7%)

.

Scheduled traffic accounted for 85.1% of the total

passenger traffic in November whilst charter passengers

made up the remaining 14.9%

.

Friday 12 December 2008

Thursday 11 December 2008 - Air Portugal Airbus A319 CS-TTB diverts in from Gatwick

Air Portugal Airbus A319 CS-TTB diverted in from Gatwick where
the runway was closed due to icing. It was operating flight "TP344"
from Lisbon and after refueling it continued onto Gatwick

.

NetJets Boeing BBJ N127QS arrived from Newark via Paris
Le Bourget and parked up on the Elmdon apron

.

Euro Continental Metro EC-GPS which arrived from Inverness

was one of three day stopping charters connected with a business
conference at the NEC....

.

. .... the other two flights where operated by Jet2 - Boeing 737-300
G-CELF arrived from Glasgow....
.

.... while Boeing 737-300 G-CELI - which wears "Manchester"

titles arrived from Edinburgh
.

bmi Airbus A321 G-MIDC was an early morning departure
operating a "Santa" flight to Rovaniemi in Finnish Lapland