Humberside Nostalgia

[Silvercity]

I
I remember Air Anglia using DC3s too when they first started operations into LBA.

When i worked in travel in London in the 80s an airline began flying Heathrow- Norwich using a DC3. They were called Eastern Airways , nothing to do with the current one. However to use a DC3 then seemed a very old aircraft. There was another DC3 operator which went Heathrow Carlisle Dundee, but the name escapes me !

Just remembered I think it was Euroair

 

[Seasider]

The Eastern A/W that operated HUY - NWI - LHR is the same Eastern A/W that is operating today

 

[Sherburnflyer92]

Summer 2006 Holiday Guide

View attachment 26832

This isn't half a flash back to the days of traditional change over days in resorts. Wednesday is Rhodes/Cyprus day clearly.

 

[Seasider]

What happened to all those flights? Oh, DSA opened, will they get some of them back?

 

[pug]

What happened to all those flights? Oh, DSA opened, will they get some of them back?

Doubt it. After DSA opened, HUY finally abandoned its application for Class D, lost a fair chunk of its core passenger business due to consolidation in the market and the largest operator decamping to DSA. Then MAG offloaded it, initially to Eastern Group who offloaded the whole lot to Bristow who subsequently offloaded the airline back to Richard Lake. Seems there is no intention to pick up any business on the back of this, or spend the necessary capital on infrastructure to make it attractive. Could be far wrong, but I don’t even know if they have anyone tasked with attracting new business any more!

Things have changed on site in recent years. Two hotels, the BAe Systems academy and an improved access road from A18… So it would make sense to maximise the facility - to me anyway… Who knows,

 

[Danny]

Various different flight guides across the years:

Humberside Timetables

 

[Aviador]

Various different flight guides across the years:

Humberside Timetables

Thanks Danny.

 

[pug]

Thanks Danny.

Sad to see what was and what could or indeed would have been had Peel decided to not bother with the one down the road!

 

[Silvercity]

Interesting seeing the charter flights that were available.

 

[Seasider]

I agree with you @pug,I used HUY in 1990/00's and it was a very pleasant experience. Another advantage is that is, geographically, the nearest airport to me.

 

[Danny]

I still use Humberside frequently via Amsterdam with KLM which is great but it is a real shame there are not more direct destinations anymore.

 

[pug]

The airport are trying to fix that, but I understand with very limited resources or knowledge/contacts. In this day and age it’s all about speculate to accumulate which means things like CAS and staffing. This will not happen whilst HUY is being run on a shoestring, whilst the management are handed autonomy to do what they want, and the airport is making a tiny loss that in the grand scheme of things constitutes nothing more than a rounding error for its parent company.

North Lincolnshire council have sunk the DSA Kool Aid, they aren’t interested in asking the questions that need to be asked, let alone looking for pragmatic solutions to increase the airports profile and re-engage with the local population. Scalability is a problem, but I’m 100% convinced that if the will was there the airport could reach 500,000-1mppa comfortably and profitably. But for will isn’t there, and if DSA succeeds in reopening it probably never will be.

 

[jason1-11]

When I was based in Castleford back in the 90’s, most of our European colleagues / suppliers would fly into Humberside from Amsterdam on an Air UK F27 / F50. I would then volunteer to either collect or drop off using one of the pool Ford Mondeos, Sierra etc. A nice drive being 95% motorway and listing to Radio Aire and then Viking on the way.

I’m glad the route has stood the test of time, and still offers an invaluable link to the rest of the world.

 

[pug]

When I was based in Castleford back in the 90’s, most of our European colleagues / suppliers would fly into Humberside from Amsterdam on an Air UK F27 / F50. I would then volunteer to either collect or drop off using one of the pool Ford Mondeos, Sierra etc. A nice drive being 95% motorway and listing to Radio Aire and then Viking on the way.

I’m glad the route has stood the test of time, and still offers an invaluable link to the rest of the world.

Tou raise a good point about the motorway. When I’ve had to commute to LBA it takes longer to get from Castleford/Ferrybridge area to LBA than it does to HUY due to HUY being less than 3 miles from the M180. I know DSA like to talk up their motorway link but even that takes longer from M18 to the terminal than it does from M180 to the terminal at HUY. DSA obviously being a lot closer to Ferrybridge but ultimately trying to take the same market that LBA offers.

My point is snd always has been that HUY can be profitable on a very small passenger throughput but ultimately offer the people in the wider 60 minute drive time that ‘local’ factor that just isn’t needed to have tens of aircraft based there to make it work. It’s just a shame that DSA with its ‘long runway’ muddied the waters to the point nobody will ever take HUY seriously. It’s got a distinct market remote from other airports too, a perfect small base for TUI like at NWI and EXT.. Alas never to be.