Airlines when fleets are grounded

[LAX54]

Mod Note: Posts #1 - #8 originally in this thread.

The red tape that you quote as farcical is there for safety reason, which no doubt if something went wrong due to red tape been cut to reintroduce HSTs back to London you would be jumping on here to moan.

If you have such fantastic ideas of how gwr can improve there service, head to Swindon and join there very experienced senior managers and offer your services and ideas, as you obviously believe they are not doing enough.

wonder if the aircraft forums have the same trouble ? like when the 787's were grounded for months, creating problems for customers around the World, not just part of England !

 

[nlogax]

wonder if the aircraft forums have the same trouble ? like when the 787's were grounded for months, creating problems for customers around the World, not just part of England !

Yes and no. When 787s were grounded there were still a lot of 747s flying so capacity not really so much of an issue.

 

[AdamWW]

wonder if the aircraft forums have the same trouble ? like when the 787's were grounded for months, creating problems for customers around the World, not just part of England !

And a bit of Wales too.

The only aircraft forum I've looked at when there have been incidents like that is one aimed at professionals, but which does permit anyone with an interest to post so is not immune to armchair experts.

 

[Killingworth]

wonder if the aircraft forums have the same trouble ? like when the 787's were grounded for months, creating problems for customers around the World, not just part of England !

Back in August 1977 British Airways found cracks in the wings of 17 of its 25 Tridents causing te fleet to be grounded. They threw everything they could into key routes but there were a lot of cancellations in the first few days. It was brilliant marketing to send out a Concorde on the Heathrow - Newcastle route between New York trips.

Aren't there about 3 HSTs like the Blue Pullman set made up for touring purposes? We've a tour booked on that and would be disappointed if it were commandeered in the emergency but would fully understand why.

The thought of restoring many/any more worn out HST units to service is fanciful. Wabtec took ages to restore all the Scotrail units and they must have had the best to work with. Most that are now left must be in a very poor state for immediate return to service. However, if repairing the 800s to full service becomes a 5 year project we're into another ball game.

 

[MatJarosz]

wonder if the aircraft forums have the same trouble ? like when the 787's were grounded for months, creating problems for customers around the World, not just part of England !

Most airlines fly various aircraft types, even the low cost airlines like Ryanair use multiple types of the 737 or EasyJet have a319s, a320s and a321s in both current and new engine options. On top of that, the airlines have a duty of care and they have to book you on another carrier or pay for your accommodation until they can get you to your destination… unlike our TOCs are doing at the moment.

 

[Ianno87]

Most airlines fly various aircraft types, even the low cost airlines like Ryanair use multiple types of the 737 or EasyJet have a319s, a320s and a321s in both current and new engine options. On top of that, the airlines have a duty of care and they have to book you on another carrier or pay for your accommodation until they can get you to your destination… unlike our TOCs are doing at the moment.

Ever tried getting a straight refund out of an airline....?

 

[TheLastMinute]

Most airlines fly various aircraft types, even the low cost airlines like Ryanair use multiple types of the 737 or EasyJet have a319s, a320s and a321s in both current and new engine options.

At the risk of going off-topic, the Ryanair 737 fleet (and I think Easykey) is actually covered by the same type approval for aircrew regardless of specific model. This is so a Ryanair pilot can fly any aircraft in the fleet without spending weeks going through a new type approval. In fact, that was the root cause for the 737-MAX issue and the infamous MCAS system. MCAS wasn't there to make the MAX more stable (as reported in some media), but rather to give the plane the same handling characteristic as the original 737-100 from the 60s thus retaining the type approval. This made the aircraft more appealing for airlines as it kept training costs significantly lower for the airlines as they didn't need to take pilots away from flying. In some airlines, the training for the 737-MAX consisted of a few hours understanding the differences in the new model.

On top of that, the airlines have a duty of care and they have to book you on another carrier or pay for your accommodation until they can get you to your destination… unlike our TOCs are doing at the moment.

While it goes without saying that the current situation is far from ideal, I'm not aware of any situations where passengers are being abandoned without forward connections. The only station I'm aware of that doesn't have a service is Pewsey and I believe there is rail replacement in operation there.

Travelling from Tiverton Parkway to Paddington and having to change at Bristol Temple Meads and Swindon isn't great, nor is going from Castle Cary to Taunton via Bristol. Hence the standard advise to not travel. Clearly, some people have to travel and these people can still get to where they have to get to.

 

[AdamWW]

Most airlines fly various aircraft types, even the low cost airlines like Ryanair use multiple types of the 737 or EasyJet have a319s, a320s and a321s in both current and new engine options. On top of that, the airlines have a duty of care and they have to book you on another carrier or pay for your accommodation until they can get you to your destination… unlike our TOCs are doing at the moment.

Ryanair flies 737-800s, with 737 MAX's on order.

I don't imagine you can buy a new 737-800 any more and I have read (somewhere I have every reason to trust) that the conversion course from an 800 to a MAX consists of reading a powerpoint presentation.

 

[Ted633]

Big difference with the 787 grounding (compared to the IET's) was they were only just entering service. Airlines still had the aircraft they were replacing within their fleets and delaying their retirement wasn't a huge inconvenience. Although if it happened now (or should that be post Covid times), it would be a bit more tricky. However, it wouldn't be as much as a problem though compared to what GWR are dealing with, as airlines can wet-lease* other aircraft of different types in (as Norwegian have done due to 787 issues). Obviously, there isn't a comparable deal on the railways due to route knowledge and clearance for traction on the routes.

*Wet lease - the leasing company provides the aircraft, crew and (usually) maintenance, so it would be immaterial if it was an aircraft type the airline is not familiar with.