Cardiff Airport, on the up.

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08-05-25, 20:40
uncle bob

Re: Cardiff Airport, on the up.

I use it 5 times a year on my jollies to benidorm and Tenerife. Save a fortune parking up for free outside the airport on the roundabout before you go into the airport
08-05-25, 22:02
NYCBlue

Re: Cardiff Airport, on the up.

Quote:

Originally Posted by goats

A New York flight would be good save going to london

I've been wishing for a New York to Cardiff flight for over 30 years.
08-05-25, 22:07
NYCBlue

Re: Cardiff Airport, on the up.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rock_Flock_of_Five

You flew into Cardiff for the convenience, I presume?
If you arrived safely, and on time, is the outside appearance an issue?

I flew in for the convenience, but the lack of flights means you lose out in other ways. I had a 4 1/2 layover in Dublin on the way back.
The outside is an issue because having to get off the and walk across the tarmac into the terminal does not exactly give a great first impression of Wales. I want the airport to look nice. Is that OK with you?
08-05-25, 22:10
az city

Re: Cardiff Airport, on the up.

Quote:

Originally Posted by NYCBlue

I've been wishing for a New York to Cardiff flight for over 30 years.

There was Newark to Bristol route I used to use a lot.

TBF, CWL is a bit tired and shit. Departures is miniscule, dowdy and full of people intent on downing lager at 5am. I don't think I've ever used a jet bridge there either. Don't get me started on the ridiculous drop off charges outside the terminal and non-existent transport links (a minibus to a train station with hourly trains through the Vale is unacceptable for even a tiny regional airport).
08-05-25, 22:21
Rjk

Re: Cardiff Airport, on the up.

Quote:

Originally Posted by NYCBlue

I flew in for the convenience, but the lack of flights means you lose out in other ways. I had a 4 1/2 layover in Dublin on the way back.
The outside is an issue because having to get off the and walk across the tarmac into the terminal does not exactly give a great first impression of Wales. I want the airport to look nice. Is that OK with you?

yeah the connecting flights to Dublin used to be better for the flights to the US, but they don't seem as regular now.
I like going via Dublin as you go through US immigration during the layover anyway.

there was talk of having a us immigration in 5 UK airports as well, I'm not sure which they would be, seems unlikely it would be Cardiff, but would be a bit of a coup of they could get that.
09-05-25, 03:28
Rock_Flock_of_Five

Re: Cardiff Airport, on the up.

Quote:

Originally Posted by NYCBlue

I flew in for the convenience, but the lack of flights means you lose out in other ways. I had a 4 1/2 layover in Dublin on the way back.
The outside is an issue because having to get off the and walk across the tarmac into the terminal does not exactly give a great first impression of Wales. I want the airport to look nice. Is that OK with you?

When you said...."Inside is not too bad. But from the outside, it's embarrassingly shoddy." people could be forgiven for thinking you were talking about the aesthetics and not functionality. There was no mention of a lack of a jetway in your post.
09-05-25, 05:40
goats

Re: Cardiff Airport, on the up.

Quote:

Originally Posted by NYCBlue

I've been wishing for a New York to Cardiff flight for over 30 years.

Big enough run way, take 20/30 mins off the flight…..winner…Will it ever happen
09-05-25, 05:43
goats

Re: Cardiff Airport, on the up.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Forest Green Bluebird

A few year's back Qatar Airways were considering using Cardiff.

If they renew their interest, maybe we could have a new shirt / stadium sponsor.

Then Drakeford got involved with it and guess what……
09-05-25, 06:53
Rjk

1 Attachment(s)

Re: Cardiff Airport, on the up.

Attachment 6538

passenger numbers peaked in 2007 at over 2 million, then the owners of the airport didn't invest in the airport, lost carriers and were basically allowing it to fail.
If the Welsh government hadn't stepped in in 2013 it would probably have closed already.
between 2013 and 2020 the Welsh government actually achieved impressive growth, and if it wasn't for COVID it would probably be over 2 million passengers by now.
unfortunately COVID happened and the industry was badly affected, smaller airports disproportionately so.
so now they need to try to grow passe get numbers gradually until they can get it back up to 2 million or so and then they will be able to attract more carriers and it would make further investment easier to justify etc.
09-05-25, 08:08
North Cardiff Blue

Re: Cardiff Airport, on the up.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rjk

Attachment 6538

passenger numbers peaked in 2007 at over 2 million, then the owners of the airport didn't invest in the airport, lost carriers and were basically allowing it to fail.
If the Welsh government hadn't stepped in in 2013 it would probably have closed already.
between 2013 and 2020 the Welsh government actually achieved impressive growth, and if it wasn't for COVID it would probably be over 2 million passengers by now.
unfortunately COVID happened and the industry was badly affected, smaller airports disproportionately so.
so now they need to try to grow passe get numbers gradually until they can get it back up to 2 million or so and then they will be able to attract more carriers and it would make further investment easier to justify etc.

I get what you are saying, but they allowed it to fail after Covid. Bristol seems to have grown; and recoverd more quickly it looks to me that they took their eye off the ball. Drakeford's lot were too petrified during Covid, banning visitors, and all they did was remain in lockdown for longer than England.
09-05-25, 08:18
Rjk

Re: Cardiff Airport, on the up.

Quote:

Originally Posted by North Cardiff Blue

I get what you are saying, but they allowed it to fail after Covid. Bristol seems to have grown; and recoverd more quickly it looks to me that they took their eye off the ball. Drakeford's lot were too petrified during Covid, banning visitors, and all they did was remain in lockdown for longer than England.

I get that you'd like to blame everything on Mark Drakeford, but no, Wales remaining in lockdown for 1 additional week in 2020 is not the reason that Bristol has bounced back more quickly than Cardiff airport post Covid.

Bristol had 10 million passengers last year - it is incomparable with Cardiff airport these days, and economies of scale are an enormous factor in enticing airlines to fly from there, which in turn attract more passengers.
09-05-25, 09:04
North Cardiff Blue

Re: Cardiff Airport, on the up.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rjk

I get that you'd like to blame everything on Mark Drakeford, but no, Wales remaining in lockdown for 1 additional week in 2020 is not the reason that Bristol has bounced back more quickly than Cardiff airport post Covid.

Bristol had 10 million passengers last year - it is incomparable with Cardiff airport these days, and economies of scale are an enormous factor in enticing airlines to fly from there, which in turn attract more passengers.

Exactly they pushed ahead while Cardiff was basically mothballed due to the Welsh Plague that was going to kill everyone.

Anyway, moving on they seem to be making a better go of it now, and ultimately we will all benefit if Cardiff has a half-decent Airport.
09-05-25, 09:14
Bluebirds over Galway

Re: Cardiff Airport, on the up.

I was home last weekend, flew in to Bristol and out of Cardiff on Sunday at 11am, no bus or train to get to the airport, what a joke
09-05-25, 09:23
Dorcus

Re: Cardiff Airport, on the up.

This is great news in my opinion. Well done the Senedd 👍
09-05-25, 09:25
Dorcus

Re: Cardiff Airport, on the up.

Quote:

Originally Posted by North Cardiff Blue

Exactly they pushed ahead while Cardiff was basically mothballed due to the Welsh Plague that was going to kill everyone.

Anyway, moving on they seem to be making a better go of it now, and ultimately we will all benefit if Cardiff has a half-decent Airport.

And there's me thinking it was called COVID-19 and that it was a worldwide pathogen.
09-05-25, 09:33
North Cardiff Blue

Re: Cardiff Airport, on the up.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dorcus

And there's me thinking it was called COVID-19 and that it was a worldwide pathogen.

Many, felt that Wales and Scotland went overboard with their COVID-19 restrictions, enforcing rules that at times seemed unnecessarily heavy-handed and out of step with the broader situation.

Anyway, it's all gone now, it's history.
09-05-25, 11:01
PontBlue

Re: Cardiff Airport, on the up.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rjk

Attachment 6538

passenger numbers peaked in 2007 at over 2 million, then the owners of the airport didn't invest in the airport, lost carriers and were basically allowing it to fail.
If the Welsh government hadn't stepped in in 2013 it would probably have closed already.
between 2013 and 2020 the Welsh government actually achieved impressive growth, and if it wasn't for COVID it would probably be over 2 million passengers by now.
unfortunately COVID happened and the industry was badly affected, smaller airports disproportionately so.
so now they need to try to grow passe get numbers gradually until they can get it back up to 2 million or so and then they will be able to attract more carriers and it would make further investment easier to justify etc.

It's possible there were also other factors at play that started the late noughties slump. Didn't some airlines go bust around that time?
09-05-25, 11:12
blue matt

Re: Cardiff Airport, on the up.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rjk

there was talk of having a us immigration in 5 UK airports as well, I'm not sure which they would be, seems unlikely it would be Cardiff, but would be a bit of a coup of they could get that.

I read Edinburgh airport were very close last year, but nothing happened
09-05-25, 11:17
Rjk

Re: Cardiff Airport, on the up.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PontBlue

It's possible there were also other factors at play that started the late noughties slump. Didn't some airlines go bust around that time?

looks like due to the global financial crisis at that time there was a minor slowing down for a year or two in the UK as a whole. but cardiff suffered a much deeper decline over a much longer period.

Possibly because it was a small airport to begin with and small airports always find it harder to compete.

The largest airports are now almost back to where they were pre-covid, but that certainly isn't the case for Cardiff or others of that size
09-05-25, 11:34
PontBlue

Re: Cardiff Airport, on the up.

The pre and post COVID differences are a concern as it looked like government intervention was starting to work.

The slump in 2012 and subsequent years would have been partly due to the collapse of BMI baby
09-05-25, 12:12
JamesWales

Re: Cardiff Airport, on the up.

Quote:

Originally Posted by North Cardiff Blue

Is this a good use of money?

https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/n...ammed-31550605

£205m investment for Cardiff Airport slammed by Bristol but 'brilliant news for Wales'
Bristol Airport has issued a stinging criticism of Welsh Government plans to invest a further £205m into Cardiff Airport

Feck Bristol, we need a good airport and should try and use it over Bristol where commercially viable.

https://nation.cymru/news/cardiff-ai...ght-programme/

I'm all for investing in our public transport infrastructure, but with the airport it does run a real risk of throwing good money after bad.

Cardiff airport will never compete with Bristol now. That ship (no pub intended) has sailed and Bristols catchment area is so much larger and the airport now carries more than ten times more passengers

But Cardiff is still punching way below our weight. The links to the city centre are truly shocking. A bus that could easily serve north Barry and Ely and the city centre is desperately needed. It's not unviable to create a loop on the VoG line either. Investment is also needed from a low cost carrier, as currently we just have a spattering of Ryanair flights, with pretty poor load factors (how full the plane is) too.

I am no fan of the WG these days and we have to ask ourselves why people won't invest. They have to bear some responsibility.

But I do support this as a use of public money. Need to see what the hell it goes on of course. The place is depressing at the moment. Anyone landing there to invest in Wales would just get on the first plane back out
09-05-25, 13:39
Rock_Flock_of_Five

Re: Cardiff Airport, on the up.

Quote:

Originally Posted by NYCBlue

I just flew into Cardiff. It was dismal. Inside is not too bad. But from the outside, it's embarrassingly shoddy.

Quote:

Originally Posted by JamesWales

I'm all for investing in our public transport infrastructure, but with the airport it does run a real risk of throwing good money after bad.

Cardiff airport will never compete with Bristol now. That ship (no pub intended) has sailed and Bristols catchment area is so much larger and the airport now carries more than ten times more passengers

But Cardiff is still punching way below our weight. The links to the city centre are truly shocking. A bus that could easily serve north Barry and Ely and the city centre is desperately needed. It's not unviable to create a loop on the VoG line either. Investment is also needed from a low cost carrier, as currently we just have a spattering of Ryanair flights, with pretty poor load factors (how full the plane is) too.

I am no fan of the WG these days and we have to ask ourselves why people won't invest. They have to bear some responsibility.

But I do support this as a use of public money. Need to see what the hell it goes on of course. The place is depressing at the moment. Anyone landing there to invest in Wales would just get on the first plane back out

I'll get in before either BLUETIT or Splotty.....
... which pub, the Ship & Anchor? :hehe:
09-05-25, 13:53
Blue Dwr

Re: Cardiff Airport, on the up.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DJ-Q

I fly from Cardiff last month, the uber driver dropped me off at the bottom of the road with my case because he’d have to pay to drop me off closer to the terminal. This is ridiculous on so many levels but even more so considering how “busy” the airport is

You can drop off for free at CWL. The driver was taking the piss.
09-05-25, 20:42
goats

Re: Cardiff Airport, on the up.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dorcus

This is great news in my opinion. Well done the Senedd ��

What did they do?

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