Leeds Bradford: General Airport Discussion & Updates

[Finger66]

Also supply and demand. It's a bit like the Jet2 scenario at LBA. If pax are prepared to pay the higher price then why reduce them. There is a reason we have a separate thread for how the media portray LBA........

 

[pug]

Airports are the same as other environments where you have a captive audience with no competitions

Football grounds, gigs, service stations, all charge extortionate prices
It’s not just airports, let alone just Leeds Bradford airport

As has been pointed out - if you fancy that pre flight pint (one of the best pints going, along with the first one after you’ve got ready for your evening out on holiday), you’re not going to give it a miss because it’s £3 more than Spoons or 50p more than Manchester Airport

I definitely do not get ready for my night out at 11am by the pool. I’ve definitely managed several by the time I’m going on my evening out 😬 it’s ok right? It’s holiday etc..

 

[Statto]

This seems to be the source of the research that led to the flurry of articles about the cost of things at the airport. It's not clear to me that LBA is an exception really. Airports are expensive because they are expensive things to run really.

Idealo

Whilst I agree that it’s important to outline what was entered into AI to prompt a response, for want of a better word it’s the only scientific way to do it, to call things you personally don’t agree with as ‘AI slop’ is a bit rich in my view.

I've just got the free for version of Chat GPT to write a 300 word argument explaining that LBA should be subject to a compulsory purchase order, closed down and all activity centralised at DSA. I then got it to immediately contradict itself and argue that complete opposite. Both responses were 'AI slop' in my opinion. But I could easily have gone onto one of the social media sites that discuss LBA vs DSA and posted just one response depending on what side of the argument I was on. "This is what AI says about LBA" I could say and try and give e.g the crazy CPO idea a badge of credibility. That's not scientific at all. So my point stands, which is they are seriously impressive tools, but anytime you see "This is what AI says about x", treat it with some caution unless you know what was asked of it.

 

[pug]

This seems to be the source of the research that led to the flurry of articles about the cost of things at the airport. It's not clear to me that LBA is an exception really. Airports are expensive because they are expensive things to run really.

Idealo

I've just got the free for version of Chat GPT to write a 300 word argument explaining that LBA should be subject to a compulsory purchase order, closed down and all activity centralised at DSA. I then got it to immediately contradict itself and argue that complete opposite. Both responses were 'AI slop' in my opinion. But I could easily have gone onto one of the social media sites that discuss LBA vs DSA and posted just one response depending on what side of the argument I was on. "This is what AI says about LBA" I could say and try and give e.g the crazy CPO idea a badge of credibility. That's not scientific at all. So my point stands, which is they are seriously impressive tools, but anytime you see "This is what AI says about x", treat it with some caution unless you know what was asked of it.

I’m not disagreeing as such, but I would suggest it’s very easy to spot when AI has been asked to write a specific ‘opinion’ piece that’s been subject to suggestion. As you’ll be aware I’ve done this on the DSA subforum when I’ve fed into it certain ‘fact checks’ and got it to ‘fact check the fact check’. I’ve also been able to get it to call me out by purposefully feeding it duff information, it duly did. I think in the case of this thread a couple of pages back it was quite clear it was being asked leading questions and it did what was asked of it. In that sense then yes, it really does matter what you ask it to do. @Eusebius used Claude for a pretty decent write up by asking, as things stand, whether there is sufficient funding allocated to ensure DSA can reopen. I recommend anyone with interest to read its output on that.

I’m not sure what social media sites you’re referencing. Where I find it useful is by asking it to explain things that I don’t understand. I.e explain to me the role and responsibilities of a Section 151 officer at a local authority. I’d suggest that when using AI it’s important to form personal opinions by getting it to explain things to you, rather than to tell it to write you an opinion. There’s a nuance to it. But like I say, it should be very easy to determine what’s been asked of it when you read its output.

 

[LBAYORKIE]

Its a steal,or maybe stolen?

https://ebay.io/m/hJQkBy

 

[Sputnik1]

Terminal evacuated again 🙄 happening 3-4 times a week now

 

[White Heather]

Terminal evacuated again 🙄 happening 3-4 times a week now

No doubt the result of yet another sly fag in the loo. The sooner they get a designated smoking area the sooner these evacuations will end. Of course, contractor works can also set off the alarms and have in the past but an entire terminal and tower being evacuated because someone can't survive without their ciggies is ridiculous.

 

[EX9]

At least three of the activations are not a result of people smoking.

 

[quik123]

Travelled from LBA to TFS this morning (why do I have to travel at 6AM and get to Tenerife before the hotels are ready, why can't I travel at, say, 10AM. Much more civilised!). Security was a breeze at 4AM I think there were 2 lanes open but even so I passed through in less than 15 minutes. I had to have my bag examined again because of carrying camera equipment but the young lady was super friendly. Top marks here. The new building is still in carbuncle territory for me. It looms over you as you walk up from the free drop off zone. A huge rather featurelss exterior. 3 out 5 from me. Though the landscaping around the outside is good, still not mature but nice enough. Inside I went straight to the new part to take a look. I find the direction signs using the word 'love' rather condescending and not professional. I don't recall seeing this attempt at local humour at any other airport. The new hall is certainly a vast improvement on what went before but much smaller than I expected. I didn't venture into the bar area and as the coffee cabin thing wasn't open(why?, lots of people about) I went back to Starbucks. £5.35 for a latte is a rip off. Absolutely no need. I sat next to the InMotion shop and amused myself watching Romanians (I presume) queue to board their flight from the gate next to the shop. They all stood in a large group completely blocking the doorway that leads to the new extension. No attempt to organise it from the ground staff, who just stood at the doorway. My flight was from Gate 7, off in time. The info boards said it was delayed 15 minutes, yet the Jet2 app and the LBA website said on time. Don't they get their info from the same source? Coming back with Ryanair as it suited me. So, carbuncle, rip off, but still better than before. Oh and I did try those wooden seats, awful, uncomfortable things, hence my going back the gate 3 area to sit on the old type!

 

[Len Fish]

Apparently a Starbucks coffee will cost you £8.00 at Antalya Airport!

 

[Finger66]

Apparently a Starbucks coffee will cost you £8.00 at Antalya Airport!

Turkey Moses - that's expensive!

 

[Pudseylad]

Whilst watching the footy last night (France v Spain), it brought back memories of the Euro 96 game at Elland Road between the 2 teams and the fantastic and extremely busy day at LBA.
It had me thinking that given the scale of the operations we currently have, would the airport have the capacity to carry that off now?

 

[Aviador]

Highly unlikely as there just isn't the space.

 

[YorkshireLad]

With all the current doom and gloom surrounding LBA, I've attempted to find all the positive news that we can look forward to, mostly for my own sanity

Aer Lingus: Earlier this month Dublin went 19X weekly for a couple of weeks, both routes seem to be performing well
Aurigny: Still actually here
easyJet: Belfast goes 5X weekly in December and February-March this winter with an extra Tuesday flight
Jet2: New routes to Preveza, Tivat, Enfidha, Hurghada, Sharm-el-Sheikh, 'new' route to Santorini, with possibly some more frequency increases on other routes (guess who hasn't had a look yet). In 2 years time 7 of our aircraft get a 30% capacity increase with hopefully the A321s showing up in the next few years. Also, we're still the 4th largest base
KLM: Continued use of the E295s, improved route performance reflected in CAA stats (still averaging about 80% full with increased average capacity, monthly pax increased from 10-12k to 15-17k)
Ryanair: I don't think the scale of their operation gets enough recognition - we have almost double what we had 10 years ago with no extra aircraft and the base nearly closed 6 years ago
TUI: We're still up 1X weekly flight to Dubrovnik over what we had pre-pandemic
Wizz Air: We still maintain our current routes which they *seem* to be happy with, unlike some other airports (*cough*Birmingham*cough*)

Mostly small positives, but I don't know about you, but the doom and gloom is driving me crazy and making me fearful as to what will follow, so it's worth sometimes remembering what we do have

 

[White Heather]

With all the current doom and gloom surrounding LBA, I've attempted to find all the positive news that we can look forward to, mostly for my own sanity

Aer Lingus: Earlier this month Dublin went 19X weekly for a couple of weeks, both routes seem to be performing well
Aurigny: Still actually here
easyJet: Belfast goes 5X weekly in December and February-March this winter with an extra Tuesday flight
Jet2: New routes to Preveza, Tivat, Enfidha, Hurghada, Sharm-el-Sheikh, 'new' route to Santorini, with possibly some more frequency increases on other routes (guess who hasn't had a look yet). In 2 years time 7 of our aircraft get a 30% capacity increase with hopefully the A321s showing up in the next few years. Also, we're still the 4th largest base
KLM: Continued use of the E295s, improved route performance reflected in CAA stats (still averaging about 80% full with increased average capacity, monthly pax increased from 10-12k to 15-17k)
Ryanair: I don't think the scale of their operation gets enough recognition - we have almost double what we had 10 years ago with no extra aircraft and the base nearly closed 6 years ago
TUI: We're still up 1X weekly flight to Dubrovnik over what we had pre-pandemic
Wizz Air: We still maintain our current routes which they *seem* to be happy with, unlike some other airports (*cough*Birmingham*cough*)

Mostly small positives, but I don't know about you, but the doom and gloom is driving me crazy and making me fearful as to what will follow, so it's worth sometimes remembering what we do have

You and me both. Thank you.

 

[752]

Comparing us to EMA/LPL, LPL have had a flutter of new routes, but EMA seems quite. Neither airport has announced any significant expansion or new airlines, like LBA.

 

[Statto]

According to the CAA, the airport was 8% busier in May 2026 vs May 2025. An increase of about 40,000 passengers. UK airports overall grew by just 1%.

This was all known about at the start of the summer season when the start of season ACL report was issued. It was well reported here - although a few people seemed highly sceptical. If I remember, some members were focused on the fact other airports were announcing’new routes’ and so it had to be the case the LBA was ‘falling behind’ Even when presented with the data from the ACL report about the growth in seats from LBA the accusation was that it was wrong. Never let the facts get in the way of a good story as they say

So I agree, what goes on with the likes of Jet2, Ryanair etc gets overlooked. Which is odd, because every month we get a report from the CAA that tells us how the airport is performing and Scottie Dog does a good job summing it all up, so there’s no excuse really not to see the big picture.

None of which changes my view that until there is stability in the Middle East and the oil markets it will be difficult for LBA to do much beyond Jet2 and Ryanair. At the last consultatitive committee, Declan McGuire said it would be a challenging winter and so dont be surprised if there are bumps in the road

 

[Speedbird1]

It’s not really a question of whether LBA has grown over the past year. The CAA figures clearly show that it has. The debate is about whether that growth is sustainable and where future growth comes from.

No one is questioning what Jet2 and Ryanair deliver for the airport. They have been instrumental in driving passenger growth for many years now at LBA.

The concern is that at the same time, easyJet has reduced its network, SunExpress has withdrawn, and Wizz Air has significantly scaled back. Those are big losses that increase reliance on two airlines. As I’ve said before, there’s no way LBA reaches 7m with just those two airlines.

Airline’s leaving or reducing don’t just reduce the current network at LBA but they fundamentally make winning new airlines harder. Every lose or reduction will raise questions from potential new airlines about why others couldn’t make it work.

People are (rightly) allowed to be worried when airlines reduce or leave airports.

 

[Len Fish]

But the losses and service reductions by SunExpress and Wizz Air are not solely at LBA so I doubt the airport will suffer any reputational damage amongst other airlines. SunExpress has blamed a ‘highly volatile environment’ and increased costs for the decision which affects all airlines. Wizz have well publicised difficulties and a history of chopping and changing routes which again is not confined to LBA.

 

[White Heather]

The reductions by Wizz are not recent and have been a gradual process ever since they arrived, but they have cut routes at LPL, GLA and BHX too. They are an airline that is increasingly looking at expansion in Europe rather than the UK and they have already said why, so maintaining what we have now, combined with all flights now being operated by A321NEOs (an increase in seat capacity) is not to be sniffed at. Ignore Wizz UK which is operated as a seperate entity, and is focused entirely on the South East.

Easyjet, according to reports, have seen profits plunge by 70%. They have been badly impacted by the increase in fuel costs, having not hedged as far in advance. They are also in the process of offloading A319 equipment, and a takeover with a future that is currently not so much in doubt, but subject to change. Airlines in this situation often cut back routes to non base airports and clearly that has happened with Easyjet Europe. It does not necessarily mean the route was losing money nor does it mean that Easyjet and LBA have had a fall out as someone suggested. As I reported after the last ACC, when these route losses were already known by LBA management, they did say that there is a longer term future for Easyjet at LBA, which most took as a hint that in the future, a base remained possible.

Sun Express, like Easyjet, was badly hit by rising fuel costs, and a reduction in bookings due to the inflation in Turkey. They dropped EMA without even starting their program and dropped GLA, concentrating on EDI. It is clearly a cost cutting measure that impacts multiple airports.

I keep reading that we have no new routes, but it seems that Jet2 and Ryanair new routes don't count, which is weird. We actually have 6 new routes next year. Only yesterday someone complained a Jet2 poster facing the drop off carpark was outdated as it didn't show all the routes they will operate.

Again, I reported that at the ACC, the Aviation Director stated that whilst the situation is as it is now, any growth will come from increased capacity and additional routes by Jet2 and Ryanair. This should not therefore be a surprise.

Finally, several references have been made to LBA having no chance of hitting 7m passengers. Firstly that was a target by 2030, 4 years away. Secondly, it isn't absolutely vital that is achieved by that year and it is clearly dependent too on resolving matters relating to night movements, which currently restrict further base growth AND the prospect of A321NEOs based any time soon. As stated above, aviation always has bumps in the road and we have one now, but we shouldn't dismiss the fact despite that bump, and the night movement restrictions, and the fact the terminal is a building site, passenger figures at LBA have grown significantly so far in comparison to last years' record.

With a completed terminal, and (hopefully) revisions to the night restrictions, the future of LBA looks bright, and it might even look orange further down the line, provided something else that's orange stops messing with the world economy.