Although I think it really low likelihood as well that Sergeant gets replaced mid-season, if you are Vowles you also to have to be thinking about your position in the constructers championship. Who would have a higher likelihood of scoring points? Sergeant or Antonelli? Success in lower/other formu...
Jump to postMost of the correspondents referred to the Merc position as being a seat warmer for Kimi, and as above there's not a lot of confidence that Merc is going to turn things around any time soon. Meanwhile we see a clear path to a F1 seat for a guy who hasn't even won a F2 race yet. It's strange how luc...
Jump to postTucked away in the annual report (as a footnote!) was the decision to not proceed with the Manchester Clubhouse (some nice commitment to MAN being shown!) with them taking a near £4 million hit from that decision. Also in an interview, Shai Weiss hasn't completely ruled out MAN-India as they will r...
Jump to postAnd there seems to be some persistent rumours that Virgin aren't too happy how the move to EDI has gone and would love to move back to GLA, especially for the Florida flights. Interesting, care to elaborate? Are they locked into a deal with EDI that means they must continue to serve there for a cer...
Jump to postI'm not a financial expert but looking at the annual report the airline is carrying a lot of debt. A lot the debt is probably from the COVID lockdown period when they were in survival mode. That will probably take some time to fully pay off, though new aircraft deliveries have continued. A very fla...
Jump to postA quick search on the flights proves these routes are not daily. LAX stopped well before COVID was a thing in the second half of 2019. MAN-LAX was summer seasonal and ended as planned. It didn't return the next summer for obvious reasons. If you are saying Virgin dropped MAN-LAX pre COVID due to pe...
Jump to postAs I say, I think the most logical expansion plan for MAN with an extra based unit would be: Summer - 3x LAX, 2x TPA Winter - 2x LAX, 3x DEL Tampa is a low risk gamble, it's already proven to work from LHR, MAN is the second largest European market to Florida IIRC, MAN-MCO is 12 weekly, instead of ...
Jump to postI guess in the absence of regular in-season testing like 20+ years ago, we’ll never know how Ricciardo properly compares to Verstappen in a Red Bull when we take the RB’s limitations and inferiority into consideration. I don’t think Ricciardo really wants to know it. He left RBR because he knew he ...
Jump to postWell, many of you will be just waking up, but 3rd weekend in and I really do think Danny is past his prime (and I say that as an Australian). All the hype the the buildup of quals etc, the many interviews he gave (keep in mind the time difference) , it all just did not at all work out. RBR 2nd seat...
Jump to postThe minimal amount of responses from a.net members is concerning. It was indeed concerning to see how many people seemed to think that a wheel coming off a 777 is no big deal. Planes break all the time, but such situations are neither routine nor acceptable. I also find the notion that the media sh...
Jump to postApologies for being late to the party in response to some of these posts... Likewise people in the London area also go to Tenerife, they just don't do so in anything like the kind of number they do from MAN and only a handful of them will fly there from Heathrow.. What you would also need to conside...
Jump to postI can only imagine the mess that this abdication can create. Some places could abolish the monarchy; if republican sentiment is strong -- the abdication could be the last straw. I can think of a number of Prime Ministers in a few Caribbean nations that have Charles as the King who, going by some of...
Jump to postPersuasive arguments and big bag of money have been there in the past, in the end Newey preferred riskier and less rewarding options… Right, the past is always prologue, circumstances don't change, people's outlooks don't change... It is until it isn’t, that is true. But the teams will stand in lin...
Jump to postI would love the whole Verstappen, Newey, Lambiasi and Smitz going to Sauber to build up a winning team with Audi. Would be one of the greatest stories ever in F1. Don’t see it happening as Newey mentioned he doesn’t want to leave England… That would kill dead any fantasies of Newey ever moving to ...
Jump to postHorner is more replaceable than Verstappen. Every other team on the grid would open a seat for Verstappen. Not every team on the grid would turn their enterprise over to Horny Horner. Horner was able to take a shambolic team that had manufacturer backing (from Ford, no less) and shape it into a wor...
Jump to postI know it is the most exciting thing happening in F1 since 2021, but I am still surprised that people are so jumped up over the Red Bull stories. F1 history is riddled with power moves and controversies far bigger than these and those were mostly ignored and waived at. It used to be part of the app...
Jump to postGiven the amount of gaffes Helmut Marko has come out with in recent times, he would have been long gone from any other organisation and it wouldn't surprise me if he is on thin ice already. I also seem to recall Marko admitting last year he's not finding the role fun since Mateschitz died, so I gues...
Jump to postI only think Verstappen would be bothered if his team mate is likely to pose a direct threat to his championship aspirations. Now, whether RBR go and employ a driver with the words “number two driver” specifically written into their contract like Barrichello and possibly Irvine at Ferrari is another...
Jump to postMalaysia Airlines is considering a Manchester service, using 350s. Malaysia Airlines MD Izham Ismail: we can deploy the 350 to beyond and more destinations in Europe. And possibly Manchester ... https://aviationweek.com/podcasts/window-seat-podcast/podcast-exclusive-interview-malaysia-airlines-md-i...
Jump to postMohmamed Ben Sulayem being in the news over alleged interference at last year's Saudi Arabian Grand Prix might take some of the heat off Horner for a while: - https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/formula1/68465516 Sponsors might not take kindly to ongoing negative publicity either. We saw this with ING termi...
Jump to postNothing to do with confidence in HR, but everything to do with viewing it as a matter that appears to be an internal matter being dragged out in to the open as though somebody does wants to bring Horner down. I agree that whatever happened must not have been serious enough to suspend or dismiss Horn...
Jump to postAll that said re. Horner, having read this about Jos Verstappen’s comments… https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2024/mar/03/jos-verstappen-max-f1-christian-horner-red-bull-formula-one-bahrain I think he has a point and I do wonder whether it might be in the team’s best interests if Horner resigned if ...
Jump to postAlso, it seems someone wasn't happy that Christian Horner was cleared of any wrongdoing. An anonymous email have distributed a Google Drive consisting of alleged screenshots of Horner's messages. Things are getting dirtier by the minute. That was an interesting gambit, but perhaps not well thought ...
Jump to postThe next A35K, G-VNVR, has just had her maiden test flight at TLS. Is this a 16J or a 44J config frame? https://aviation.flights/aib/A350/647 As I understand the next 2 A35K are in the 16J leisure config. Florida traffic? The higher density A350s are/were intended to operate the routes that were in...
Jump to postThe point I understand lavia is making is that the MAN-ATL service is not held back by lack of frequencies. How many flights per week does Dubai have? On which aircraft? That’s a ridiculous comparison. 20 years ago DXB already had more capacity than ATL, the markets have almost nothing in common. F...
Jump to postA slightly different take on the annual statistics for 2023: Top 27 destinations by passenger numbers. https://i.ibb.co/n0Dc54N/Screenshot-1988.png For comparison purposes, do you have the overall 2019 stats for MCO and JFK (as well as EWR for that year)? I’m curious to see whether passenger number...
Jump to postI also think Toronto is an important network destination for any London airline but this was an early casulty of the Delta merger. Adding this may also canibalise traffic currenty going through the Delta network but may increase traffic overall, particularly as VS now have a number of routes to Ind...
Jump to postEWR also surprises me given that UA have launched various other new routes to European destinations on 757s in recent years (e.g. TFS) and in the month prior to the COVID lockdowns were openly talking about growth opportunities at MAN: https://www.business-live.co.uk/economic-development/it-would-ta...
Jump to postWhat I don’t understand is why Horner hasn’t been suspended yet if, whatever it is he is being accused of, is that serious. Seeing as the RB20 car launch is next week, somebody somewhere will probably have to make a decision whether Horner will lead that launch if this isn’t resolved by then. Seems ...
Jump to postBecause it's a cheap-a** car BMW is scraping at the bottom of the barrel to get entry-level customers they made it for. Similar to the Mercedes-Benz CLA that was introduced in 2013. Part of why they introduced these cars to the US market especially is due to CAFE standards regulation. The CLA is a ...
Jump to postI think the problem BMW now has in the eyes of some is how they've always marketed their cars as "The Ultimate Driving Machine" and all that comes with it. I don't have the brochure anymore from when I bought my first F20 in late-2012, but I recall a page or two being devoted to their RWD ...
Jump to postRe. the contract length reportedly being a bone of contention. In a way, I can understand Mercedes' reluctance to offer him what he wanted. I seem to recall after the 2020 season, they agreed on a one year contract for 2021 instead of a longer-term deal, with a two year deal to cover 2022 and 2023 o...
Jump to postWhat baloney. If that was the case, then no customer should ever be allowed to switch partners, because clearly the customer is going to tell the new partner everything that was wrong about the old partner's engine. It's just a piss-ass weak excuse, IMO. Straw-clutching at its finest. Have they nev...
Jump to postI've not visited Airliners.net for a very long time and, it would appear from the lack of posts that nobody else posts on the Manchester forum. Is it worthwhile my starting to do fresh posts, or will I be wasting my time? I miss your posts from the past as I was always interested to see how routes ...
Jump to postI’m not surprised Lewis Hamilton has signed for Ferrari. They are the one team that’s difficult to say no to if they come calling and no doubt Mercedes’ lack of competitiveness under the current regs cycle led him to ponder what life might be like outside of the Silver Arrows and whether it would ev...
Jump to postUnsurprisingly, F1 have rejected Andretti's bid to join the grid, at least for 2025 or 2026: - https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/full-statement-f1s-decision-to-reject-andrettis-entry-bid-for-2025/10571076/ However, I'm not fully convinced by the arguments which I'll dissect one-by-one: - 9. Any 11t...
Jump to postAll seems to me that Scott Kirby wasn’t bluffing when he said they would start to look at future fleet options that doesn’t involve the MAX 10. Given the lack of clear pathway to certification, the groundings from 5 years ago and then the recent incident involving AS, it’s prudent for UA to look at ...
Jump to postThe worst offenders at this are found in Germany, with BMW and Mercedes (and probably Audi but I've not interest in that brand) offering cars with steel wheels, anemic engines, cheap plastic interiors... Yep. I owned a couple of F20s, which is the second gen 1 Series for those who don’t speak BMWes...
Jump to postYep. Self-interest is alive and kicking. On the point about prize money, the Brawn documentary on Disney+ was a good reminder of how attitudes and goodwill towards certain teams change as soon as they start winning. I don't think anyone will easily take a 9% pay cut with no significant increase in ...
Jump to postTherefore, I’m at a loss as to why they are resistant to the Andretti entry but are content with Haas appearing to make up the numbers? A backmarker team like Haas doesn't disturb the prize money revenues of the top 5 teams (and to a lesser extent, the other 4 teams). Whereas an 11th team makes the...
Jump to postYeah Spain can be always a safe bet. There's one place that I have my eye on for no particular reason that's called Granada. Think it's an hour or so from Malaga. Looks very nice in photos. I went to Granada on a day trip many years ago, specifically to visit the Alhambra and is a must-do. Don’t re...
Jump to postI’m more surprised Steiner lasted as long as he did. The team has been getting worse year-on-year and I feel that they have offered nothing to the sport except for a few soundbites for Netflix and dubious sponsors. That said, I think Steiner has a point with his recent comment about their model (HQ ...
Jump to postI would have thought MAN - MIA is worth a shot especially in winter for cruise ship business . What with AUS going and TLV suspended for the rest of the winter if not beyond, VS should have a spare frame of two. MAN-MIA has been tried twice within the last 20 years by AA and Thomas Cook, both didn’...
Jump to postSOU comes to mind outside of the Channel Islands and Isle of Mann, quite a few in the UK with shorter runways, but seems to not be *too* restricting, bar LCY BHD (Belfast City)? IIRC, there are issues/payload restrictions with some aircraft types flying to the holiday destinations in the likes of S...
Jump to postSurinam Airways has an interesting A340 history. They flew one untill it practically broke down due to old age, they tried replacing with an 777-200 but struggled getting it ETOPS certified. Now they bought an old Air Belgium A340 to get back and it still in service to this day https://www.airliner...
Jump to postI agree that Perez had a lackluster year but I don't know who you replace him with. We don't know if Riccardo will be much better. It's interesting that not much was made about TSU doing better than RIC in both quali and on race day this weekend. TSU brought home some points for the team, RIC broug...
Jump to post⋅ As for Alfa Romeo-Sauber & Haas, the less is said, the better. I suppose for Sauber they now have the Audi partnership to look forward to, although that looks a bit shaky it seems. As for Haas, not sure what their direction is. Are they better off selling to Andretti? There's 90+ da...
Jump to postIt's rare to see a tatty Ryanair aircraft externally, aame with easyJet. TUI travelshops look just as cheap and nasty as the rebranded fleet. They've gone through so many rebrands it's ridiculous. Some of those travel shops were there when they were called Lunn Poly and others are ex-First Choice s...
Jump to postIn the case of TUI, I wonder if it’s the pigment/type of paint used for the light blue parts of the livery that doesn’t stand the test of time well as the years go by? Back when they still operated 757s, there were a few in the early-2000s era base livery during the last decade that looked very fade...
Jump to postThing is, next year's RB is likely to continue to improve since they haven't had to put much additional work into this year's car. Don't they still have a wind tunnel penalty potentially limiting their development? They are of course seconds ahead of the rest, but the other teams will likely catch ...
Jump to post