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Pilot

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Everything posted by Pilot

  1. Since when did airlines, especially the low costs, care about what passengers like? The fact is that rear-facing seats are incomparably safer as studies have shown again and again, in collision accidents. (It makes no difference if the plane blows up mid-air though.)
  2. Holiday Autos usually gets my vote and they include extras that the hire companies charge for when you check in, so you know when you book what you will pay. Always cheaper than booking direct with the company you get the car from, often considerably cheaper, and extremely helpful if things go wrong. I've checked they do cover Beziers airport. See http://www.holidayautos.co.uk/
  3. [quote user="Audois"]Apparently Beziers are having a hard time touting for business; not sure who will take them up on their new runway but it certainly seems it won't be Ryanair.  [/quote] Wrong.
  4. Beziers airport http://www.beziers.cci.fr/2-13026-Accueil.php The Bristol route starts next May, three times a week. Details of the flights were in Midi Libre today, but no mention anywhere of the other destinations that Beziers (and I) was hoping for.
  5. The Beziers-Bristol route is mentioned is mentioned in the print version of Midi Libre today as well, but not on their website. Three times a week from May 2008. The Beziers airport website has the news at http://www.beziers.cci.fr/2-13225-Commerciaux.php but no mention of any other destinations they will serve. It has been reported in the past that Beziers was looking at two routes to the UK and another to Germany or elsewhere in northern Europe. 
  6. A result at last Following my e-mail to SpeedFerries on 26 April, I sent a real letter on 15 May, enclosing copies of their original e-mail about the cancellation and my replies.  Lo and behold! An e-mail apologising "for the inconvienience caused" and with details of the free compensation ticket, received 23 May. A little late, but a result. 
  7. Interesting! Not having received the e-mail promised "within 2 weeks" I phoned today - needed to rebook the cancelled crossings which I did. Then I asked about the compensation crossing. The operator knew nothing about free compensation tickets and suggested I write to customer services, which I have just done by e-mail. Like Barter, my original ticket was the November 2-for-1 freebie, but when I booked to use it I did point out that my intention had been to use it during the revised dry dock period. "No problem, the validity is extended to May 31," they said. Now, my e-mail cancelling the March 29th crossing did specifically say "As you have been negatively influenced by the dry docking period for the second time", so perhaps that's it. But seeing as I did not get the e-mail promised within 2 weeks perhaps they have back tracked. I'll await with interest a reply to the message I sent them this afternoon. 
  8. Or check on the airport's own web page http://www.beziers.cci.fr/2-13026-Accueil.php, which, incidentally, has some pictures of what are clearly Ryanair aircraft. Latest news is that the airport has received a licence from the French civil aviation authorities to operate international flights and has the necessary infrastructure (presumably meaning a booth for a passport checker and customs official).
  9. Got back yesterday on the 9.50 from Boulogne. On time and smooth in every way - checking in, loading, unloading and the sea as well! No customs checks at all at Dover, drove straight out without sight of anyone in uniform.
  10. Alan Zoff wrote: "When you say "extra" free return trip, do you mean in addition to a replacement for the one that was due to go Thursday or instead of? They have offered me a replacement ticket (or return ticket if I do not use the return part now) valid for an extra year in place of the cancelled booking. Not sure if your post indicates that you are getting a 2 for 1 deal as compensation. " Sorry to reply so late - only just got back from France. Speedferries e-mail says: "As you have been negatively influenced by the dry docking period for the second time, SpeedFerries would like to offer you a free return FLEX Ticket for a standard car and up to 5 passengers as compensation. The ticket is valid for 1 year and can be activated free of charge online. You will receive a booking number and security code for your free ticket by e-mail within the next two weeks. With regards to your 29th March booking, please chose an option below." and goes on to  list the options. So, it's an extra free ticket.
  11. I knew it was taking a chance to book for the first day after a refit, so I was not too surprised to get the e-mail about the cancellation. However, to Speedferries' credit, they have given an extra free return trip as compensation, which considering the ticket I was going to use was free anyway from their November offer, which itself was extended because of the dry docking, Ii think they've been quite generous in their treatment of passengers. Compared with some others I could mention by air and sea!
  12. There used to be and still may be a ferry service from Sete to the Balearics and North Africa. I know the African services still run. so it could be worth checking. No other details I'm afraid, but a web search may bring something to light.
  13. According to the sign on the A71 I saw recently, it doesn't reach Tours yet. This is confirmed by the Viamichelin website which says there is 65km of motorway on the 124km route.
  14. It's possible, but Easyjet doesn't seem to have been too interested in the Languedoc so far. Ryanair obviously has Carcassonne, Perpignan, Montpellier, Nimes and Rodez, all within an hour or so of Beziers, so that could be overkill, or it could make good business sense to keep the region for themselves.  The rumours from Beziers always refer to flights to/from UK and Germany, which of course would suggest Ryanair. Another possibility is Air Berlin
  15. Just so you know what a real heavy landing is like in a Boeing 737, take a look at this picture from Indonesia taken just over a week ago! [http://foto.detik.com/index.php/home.readfoto/tahun/2007/bulan/02/tgl/21/time/194233/idnews/745338/idkanal/157/id/1]
  16. From the CCI's airport website: ( http://www.beziers.cci.fr/3-13462-Detail-of-news.php?idactualite=94&titre_page=R%E9ouverture+de+l%27a%E9roport+de+B%E9ziers ) "La CCI de Béziers poursuit activement sa prospection d’opérateurs débutée il y a un an, en vue de l’élargissement de son offre de destinations à l’échelle européenne et de l’ouverture d’une première liaison vers la Grande-Bretagne en 2007. Son objectif demeure la création de 3 destinations internationales d’ici 2009, générant près de 150 000 passagers complémentaires et 150 millions d’euros de retombées économiques locales." So, a link to GB this year and 3 international links by 2009, but no mention of which airline.  
  17. Speedferries ran an offer last November of a free midweek ticket for all crossings made. Unusually, when the offer was announced, they said it would also apply to people who had already booked, not just to new bookings - I don't think I've heard of any other company in any field doing this.  We had intended to use the ticket in March, but they changed the dry-dock period from February to Mar 1 - 28, leaving only Mar 29 as a possibility.  No problem I thought, use just the outward part and come back three weeks later by whatever's cheapest.  Being unable for some reason to activate the free ticket online I phoned Speedferries and was given the good news that, because of the dry-docking change, the validity had been extended until the end of May.  I thought I'd seen a posting on here about that, but couldn't find it. Anyway, well done Speedferries. That's two plus points, for giving the offer to existing customers in the first place and for extending into a higher season when they didn't have to. Anyone still holding one of these free offer certificates - get it used.
  18. Just to clarify a few points: The "500 feet rule" does not actually say that an aircraft may not fly below 500', just that it may not fly within 500' of any person, building or structure. So, you could legally fly at 300' above ground level so long as you are 400' horizontally from said person, structure or building (see Pythagoras!). Of course, any airliner flying at this height when not landing or taking off would be risking it. The Pilots' instructions issued by Boeing are quite clear that 737s must be landed firmly and pilots will normally fly them right onto the runway. A 'soft' landing in a B737 could see you leaving the far end of the runway! I've flown a lot with Ryanair and their landings are no harder than other airlines using 737s. In certain conditions (e.g. strong side wind) this may seems to passengers to be extremely firm, but never in my experience as hard as a BA flight I once made to Jersey, in a Tristar I think, when after the first officer had landed the pilot came on the PA and said "Welcome to Jersey. Five feet lower than when we left this morning."
  19. The A380 was at Perpignan on Monday afternoon (18 Dec) and very impressive it was too.  Saw it land as I was driving up to the airport, and for the next two hours it performed a series of circuits, sometimes landing, sometimes just doing a touch-and-go.  It managed to take off using about half the runway, though it was a very windy day, and it was noticeably quieter than Ryanair's Boeing 737 whether landing, taxiing or taking off - much quieter.  I suspect it was the first visit to Perpignan, because everyone from ground staff to gendarmes were out with their cameras.  I presume they were using Perpignan for trials because it's close to Toulouse but much less busy.  I would guess that if the previous report about Carcassonne is correct the same reasoning applied.
  20. The runway extensions are planned to take part early in 2007 - the airport will be closed for three weeks in January/February for major works.  Negotiations are in process with a low-cost airline to provide flights to the UK or Germany from next summer. This information is from official Chamber of Commerce publications that I picked up at the airport last week.  Reading between the lines, I would guess that it's Ryanair (bases in UK and Germany), so watch for announcements.
  21. Think about it....... 1.  The car hire companies know that they can only rent cars to arriving passengers if the departing passengers return them. 2.  They know the flight arrival times and departure times. 3.  They know about the need to check in. 4.  They cannot rent a car to a customer without the keys. If there is not someone physically at the desk to receive keys from departing passengers, they always have some arrangement for keys to be dropped off, whether it's a box or a letterbox. (I used to worry that if my flight was late I might arrive after the car hire desk closed.  Getting to Nimes more than two hours late one night I was pleased to see all the hire companies still open well past their closing time. Obvious why:- with almost 200 passengers arriving on the only flight of the day, business depended on getting the customers sorted.)
  22. We got the parking fee waived by the restaurant, and only bought 2 coffees!!  The restaurant/snack bar at Carcassonne is excellent and good value, but can be busy is flights are full or delayed.  We dropped off our son to check in for the morning flight to East Midlands at 8.30 and the snack bar was open then and serving hot food; the chef was in the restaurant planning the day's menu.
  23. I've only visited Montsegur - the view from the castle is fantastic, but getting up there on an average August day is not to be attempted if you can't stand a combination of steep paths and hot sun.  Do it as early in the day as you can, and then have lunch in the village after.  There's an excellent restaurant we tried attached to a hotel as you come into the village.
  24. Stick with it - the route via Paris and Massif Central is infinitely less stressful and more interesting than the alternatives, PROVIDING that you can navigate Paris.  Unlike most people who post here, I have always used the Boulevard Peripherique and it usually takes less than the 10 minutes viamichelin say it should need from the A3 to the A6.  It will depend always on the time of day, but I typically go south on a Saturday evening, around 6pm and come north on a Sunday morning, getting to the BP around 10am.  This is at Easter and in the summer. Worst ever was something like 35 minutes, but on that occasion the whole of the Paris region was snarled up and people using non-bp routes were also delayed.
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