What Is The Current Status Of PIK?

DTWPurserBoy · Thu Jul 10, 2014 3:22 pm

Prestwick was always one of my favorite airports to work. I was curious if there was any scheduled service there now or international charters that still use the facility or does everything pretty much use GLA?

SCQ83 · Thu Jul 10, 2014 3:41 pm

Ryanair is the only airline to fly regularly from it http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glasgow_Prestwick_Airport but they are opening a base at GLA this winter so Prestwick's fate is quite dubious, even if Ryanair is keeping the "sun" destinations at PIK.

I flew from PIK last summer and it looked quite deserted, like stuck in the 80s. Interestingly, you get a 50% discount in your train ticket Glasgow - Prestwick Airport if you show your Ryanair ticket at any Glasgow train ticket counter.

DTWPurserBoy · Thu Jul 10, 2014 3:48 pm

That really is a shame. PIK is one of the few airports left in the world where you can pull your car right up to the front door of the terminal and walk in or park easily right at the terminal.

I recall that BAE used the facility for a number of years. One of my favorite memories was seeing an abandoned Ghana Airlines VC-10 that sat parked across the tarmac for years before it was finally broken up.

We used to be able to walk down the airstairs at PIK, walk across the ramp and our the door by the ticket counter to get our crew bus to our hotel in Ayr. LOVED Ayr and its friendly people.

Viscount724 · Thu Jul 10, 2014 9:12 pm

Dozens of Prestwick photos here from the days when the airport was at its peak, and before GLA and EDI had airports that could handle longhaul flights. It was also a common fuel stop on transatlantic flights in those days. Also a lot of military traffic.
http://www.dhc-2.com/Prestwick%20Portraits.html

[Edited 2014-07-10 14:49:03]

SOBHI51 · Thu Jul 10, 2014 9:27 pm

Quoting Viscount724 (Reply 3):
http://www.dhc-2.com/Prestwick%20Portraits.html

Beautiful pictures. Thank you for posting.

sandyb123 · Thu Jul 10, 2014 9:43 pm

Prestwivk was purchased by the Scottish government at the end of last year. It was available for £1 and is quite telling that there was no commercial interest.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-25055531

With FR moving to GLA I think the PIK can't sustain even the operating cost for long, even with the public purse holding it up.

It's in a fairly depressed area of the country with a major international airport up the road. GLA and EDI serve the population of Scotland.

PIK is dead as a regular commercial airport.

Sandyb123

by738 · Fri Jul 11, 2014 2:19 pm

Quoting sandyb123 (Reply 5):
It's in a fairly depressed area of the country

It is ... ?

DTWPurserBoy · Fri Jul 11, 2014 2:23 pm

What great photos! Thanks for sharing them. I was very surprised to see an old friend--MATS C-135 62-4138. From 1971-73 I worked aboard her out of DNA (Kadena, Japan) when she was then designated an RC-135M. Hard to believe she is still in service but she has been re-engined.

http://www.dhc-2.com/52-4138_C-135_USAF_EGPK_1280_final.jpg

DTWPurserBoy · Fri Jul 11, 2014 3:30 pm

Quoting by738 (Reply 6):
Quoting sandyb123 (Reply 5):It's in a fairly depressed area of the country

The airport provided a lot of employment. For people living around PIK there is not much in the way of really good jobs except in the hospitality industry (hotels, restaurants, etc.) or as merchants. Most of my friends have to travel to Glasgow or its suburbs for meaningful work every day. It is a shame--the government should declare it a tax-free zone and actively encourage manufacturing and other industries to establish businesses there. They would surely find a highly motivated and loyal workforce.

bjorn14 · Fri Jul 11, 2014 7:44 pm

Glaswegians have the lowest life expectancy in Europe 58.3 or something.

bennett123 · Fri Jul 11, 2014 8:09 pm

Probably true, but not sure of the relevance.

prosa · Fri Jul 11, 2014 8:32 pm

Allegedly, the only place in Great Britain where Elvis ever set foot, when his flight made an extended refueling stop on the way back from his Army service in Germany. I added the "allegedly" because there is some reason to believe that he made a day trip to London on a day off.

SCQ83 · Fri Jul 11, 2014 8:45 pm

Quoting bjorn14 (Reply 9):
Glaswegians have the lowest life expectancy in Europe 58.3 or something.

It is 72.6 according to this link.

http://www.theguardian.com/news/data...-glasgow-lowest-life-expectancy-uk

Still ten years lower than the average for wealthy areas in or around London. 58 would be the life expectancy of a typical sub-Saharan country.

sandyb123 · Fri Jul 11, 2014 10:41 pm

Quoting by738 (Reply 6):
It is ... ?

Yes it is. It's an area with some fairly deep (relatively) poverty and high unemployment. Ayrshire doesn't really have much in the way of skilled labour force and most aspirational people will commute to Glasgow or leave for a better life.

Quoting SCQ83 (Reply 12):
Still ten years lower than the average for wealthy areas in or around London. 58 would be the life expectancy of a typical sub-Saharan country.

This is getting off-topic but actually this statistic is slightly misleading. The health divide is polar. You're either fairly healthy or very sick, which is associated to wealth, society and other factors, but that's a topic for a healthcare website.

Bottom line is that PIK can't compete as it doesn't really have much catchment and the FR passengers mostly came from GLA & EDI hunting for low fares.

Sandyb123

DTWPurserBoy · Sat Jul 12, 2014 12:47 am

Northwest kept a ground staff at PIK up until the merger, years after service had stopped. Every Airbus that NW purchased transited via PIK on its way to the US and the NW staff did the paperwork. IIRC sometimes NW actually took possession of the new aircraft at PIK for tax reasons or some such thing.

One day I left FRA enroute to DTW and we had to land at PIK for some reason--medical or mechanical, I don't recall now. But much to my surprise up the airstairs bounded our station manager and his assistant--I had not seen them in probably 20 years but they were still there.

e195 · Sat Jul 12, 2014 2:39 am

PIK used to be my home stomping ground, but lack of jobs and prospect there made me move.

Now LHR is my home turf

DTWPurserBoy · Sat Jul 12, 2014 2:11 pm

IIRC someone told me that if the new Airbii were flown from Toulouse to PIK it was considered a "used" aircraft and was taxed at a much lower rate than a "new" airplane would have been.

Anyone have any knowledge of this?

UALWN · Sat Jul 12, 2014 4:26 pm

I have been only once at PIK, flying from GRO with FR in 2009. And, yes, I was very (pleasantly) surprised when our rental car turned out to be parked about 10 meters away from the terminal door!

What Is The Current Status Of PIK?

What Is The Current Status Of PIK?

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