Birmingham Airport Blog

Body scanners at Birmingham by end of February

Fri, 19 Feb 2010 15:28:09 UTC

Birmingham Airport is next in line to receive the new ‘naked’ scanners that have been causing such a fuss in the media recently. Reports state that the airport will see the new scanners arrive by the end of the month, and this is already causing controversy.

The scanners are electromagnetic and can see beneath a person’s clothes to show if they are carrying any weapons or bombs. It sounds like a sensible solution, and it has been in the news a lot lately following the failed Detroit bomb attempt on Christmas Day. Calls for extra security measures following the event saw the scanners become the most obvious choice to stop such an atrocity occurring in the future.

The controversy has been increased even more by the fact that the government has now decided that under 18s should also be scanned, whereas before this was not allowed due to child protection issues.

Heathrow and Manchester airports already have the scanners in use, and Birmingham is now next in line to follow suit. Airport security services have said that there is nothing to worry about because the image is deleted straight away. However, many passengers understandably do not like the idea of having a naked image of themselves produced, and many have said that it is not the right way to go about security.

What’s more, passengers who are selected for the scans will be obliged to undergo them – if they refuse, they will not be able to board their flights. Over the next few months the scanners will arrive at other airports across the country, until eventually they are in place at all airports. There are also suggestions that the scans could become a compulsory part of the security procedure in the future for all passengers.

Terminal merger plan at Birmingham

Fri, 29 Jan 2010 15:42:02 UTC

Birmingham Airport is planning to merge its two terminals, following a reduction in passenger numbers over the past year. The move is set to improve the customer experience and attract more people to the airport.

Passenger numbers fell by 5.5% in 2009 compared to 2008. Although last year was particularly tough for the airline industry, this was a blow to the airport and it is hoping this new move will be able to help turn things around. £13 million is to be invested in the new facility which will improve efficiency for passengers.

The work on the terminals will have many benefits for customers. It will result in a much bigger security search area, as well as a larger arrivals area for meeting and greeting. There will also be improved shopping facilities and better catering services for travellers.

This new project comes at the same time that another project is nearing completion. The authorities are in the middle of a £1.5 million project to merge the four control rooms, which should be up and running by March.

The CEO of Birmingham Airport, Paul Kehoe, said that the goal for 2010 was to “improve the passenger experience” and create a smoother journey through improving the overall efficiency of the airport. He also confirmed that £200 million would be spent over the coming decade on improving the facilities of the airport to help it double the number of passengers it can process by 2018.

Having said that, he confirmed that 2010 was likely to be another difficult year for the airline industry.

Brum goes to France

Thu, 07 Jan 2010 14:15:20 UTC

Flybe has modified its Birmingham Airport roster to include four new routes to France, due to take off from summer 2010.

Despite a pessimistic forecast for the winter season, Flybe continues to go from strength to strength. The carrier now operates close to 4,000 different routes.

Flybe has also added brand new flights at six other UK airports, including Gatwick and Manchester. A further 35 connections at 11 airports have been reinstated, many of which are short haul routes to the Channel Islands, France, and Scotland.

Mike Rutter, chief officer at Flybe, applauded his airline's new summer schedule – “In an environment in which other airlines are withdrawing services, we’re delighted to be offering brand new routes.”

Flights from Birmingham to Avignon, Limoges and Rennes will operate three times a week from 28th March 2010. Four weekly flights to Bordeaux, a city famed for its fine wines, will also begin next year. Birmingham’s new routes are available for booking immediately, and cost in the region of £22.99 for a one-way trip.

Routes to Bergerac, Brest, La Rochelle and Toulouse have also been resumed, following a brief cancellation over the summer. Flybe is currently rescuing Flyglobespan customers from Switzerland, Spain and France – for a price, of course. A £59.99 rescue fare has been offered to customers wanting to fly back to Scotland for Christmas.

The airline’s Gatwick to Jersey service has also been modified to help ease festive pressure, and a further six flights have been added over the Christmas weekend. For a full list of Flybe's new routes, please see the airline's official website.

Iraq for Christmas

Fri, 18 Dec 2009 15:56:58 UTC

Iraqis and Kurds living in the Midlands have been handed a nifty Christmas present by Birmingham Airport – a route home. The new flight departs every Tuesday morning, and travels to the cities of Erbil and Sulaymaniyah in Kurdistan, Iraq.

Kurdistan is a mountainous plateau that crosses the border of four different countries – Turkey, where the majority of the Kurds live, Iraq and Syria, and Iran. There are around thirty million Kurds in the world.

Aer Olympic, a Swedish airline, will be in charge of the trip. The carrier joins fellow Scandinavian, Viking Airlines, as the most important Western airline in Erbil, a truly ancient metropolis.

Birmingham boss, Paul Kehoe, noted “encouraging loads” on the first few flights – “The route will offer a direct link to Kurdistan for the first time. We wish the service every success.” Aer Olympic were equally optimistic.

Iraq is still considered a dangerous country by UK and US governments, due to recent military action, but Erbil and Sulaymaniyah are safer by degrees.

Erbil is full of archaeological remains, boasting one of the most impressive citadels in Eurasia, whilst Sulaymaniyah has become an important symbol of Iraqi freedom. Azadi Park, a green oasis within urban Sulaymaniyah, was once an execution site favoured by toppled dictator, Saddam Hussein.

Aer Olympic’s Birmingham – Iraq flight makes a short stop in Stockholm before jetting off to the Middle East. The two cities of Erbil and Sulaymaniyah are visited on alternate weeks.

Unfortunately, the route is difficult to book, and does not feature on Birmingham’s official website. The official Aer Olympic website is the only reliable resource for flights to Kurdistan, and should be your first port of call.

Please consult the Foreign Office website before departing for Iraq.

New flights from Birmingham Airport

Fri, 04 Dec 2009 15:15:27 UTC

Birmingham Airport has just announced the launch of new flights to Palma de Mallorca in Spain. The flights have been launched by MSC Cruises in order to connect customers easily with the start of the cruises that it operates, and it is hoping that this will help to increase passenger numbers.

The flights will only run between May and October 2010 during the height of the cruise season. Cruising continues to grow in popularity in the UK, and MSC Cruises decided to organise the flights to make the process of joining a cruise easier for its customers.

The flights will cost £249 for a return, which includes all transfers to and from the port. They will be run by Monarch Airlines and will depart each Saturday for the six-month period mentioned above.

Customers will fly direct to Palma de Mallorca, where they will then join up with their cruise and go on a seven-day journey that will take them to Toulon, Genoa, Portofino, Ajaccio, Salerno and Tunis before finishing up back in Mallorca.

The company currently runs a special deal whereby any children under the age of 18 who are sharing a cabin with two adults get to go free. They only have to pay for their flights, transfers and port taxes.

The managing director of MSC Cruises in the UK and Ireland, Giulio Libutti, said that the company had seen a growth of 50% between 2008 and 2009 and expects this growth to continue each year. It has expanded its service offering to “open up MSC fly/cruise holidays to a wider UK audience”.

Birmingham rues funding shortfall

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:23:20 UTC

Birmingham Airport cannot afford to expand and resurface its runway, according to resident executive Paul Kehoe.

Despite the continued support of local councillors, the airport has been unable to raise the £120m required for the expansion. The Solihull site is struggling to offset the effects of the recent recession.

Whilst bank loans are available, officials fear abominable interest rates, which could throw the airport’s long-term future into jeopardy. Mr. Kehoe does not believe that the £400m extension is worth the risk.

November has not been kind to airports in the Midlands. Yesterday, East Midlands Airport conflicted with local infrastructure, finding the A453 insufficient to support continued growth at the site.

A £25m rehash of the A45, a road that travels east of Birmingham, is also under review, as government funding begins to look unlikely. The European Council could be persuaded to step up to the plate.

With money so scarce, Paul Kehoe fears that Birmingham’s runway expansion is not necessary, stating “we haven’t got the money" and that "airlines are going south rather than north.”

Visitors to the Birmingham Post website have added their two cents to the runway saga, with many believing that larger planes and new routes would be a cost-effective way of improving airport connections.

A high-speed rail link between Heathrow and Birmingham could help both airports solve their troubles, easing congestion at the former and filling Birmingham’s planes with passengers, thereby justifying all the money spent on the International Pier.

If all goes to plan, the runway expansion should be completed by 2012, but any delay in funding could set the planning process back seven years. Experts predict that 16,000 jobs will be created by the project.