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Subscribe to RSS FeedGo Ahead, Ask Away, part 2
Keep the questions coming—I’ll keep answering them!
Like I mentioned in an earlier post, I enjoy reading all your comments. I’ve decided to make answering your questions a regular feature on the blog, so if you haven’t gotten around to leaving a comment, now’s the time.
Keith and Henry start us off with a couple great questions that touch on the same topic. “How is OpenSkies coping with the global downturn in air travel?” Keith asks. “Are you buoyant and will my bookings for the future be a safe investment?”
You’re right, Keith. Economic turbulence has slowed the industry. But let me assure you that your booking made on OpenSkies is a safe investment, and dare I say the best investment at this time. As you may know, we have the full backing and support of one of the world’s finest airlines, British Airways. With BA behind us, we are in a great position for success even in tough economic times. And I want to make a point that PREM+ is, in my opinion, the best value flying, with absolutely no compromise on comfort. Of course you’d expect me to say that. But it’s also is the opinion of the critics. I like how Joe Brancatelli of Portfolio.com puts it. PREM+, he says, is an “entirely new class of international airline service.” Value and business class comfort—now those are two terms not often associated with each other!
In the post on our in flight entertainment systems, Lee commented on how great the Archos 705 portable media player is (I agree!). He asks, “How often is your AVOD [entertainment system] updated?”
We update half of our movies every month and rotate in new TV shows every other month. In January, we have some great films like RocknRolla and the thriller Eagle Eye. And being international, we offer international entertainment, next month features movies like the French drama Le Premier jour du reste de ta vie and the Dutch drama Het Zusje van Katia. Whenever possible, we’ll have French and Dutch soundtracks and subtitles on the movies and TV shows.
A couple of you had questions about whether we were going to extend out routes to new cities. Hadassah asks, “How big does the vision go for other US cities to be included, namely where I’m at in Los Angeles?” Isadora had a similar question, “When are you flying from Stockholm (Sweden)?”
We put a lot of thought into our routes by considering the business opportunity and the aircraft flying range. As of right now, neither L.A. nor Stockholm are in our plans. Future expansion opportunities are always being considered and as soon as I have any news about upcoming routes I’ll be sure to let you know right here.
Stephen also had a question about routes. He says, “Why don’t you add [London] STANSTED as your next OpenSkies base.”
Stansted may be a unique opportunity, though we have no plans to operate out of the UK. Our parent company, British Airways, has those flights covered. I’ll definitely pass on the suggestion to them.
And we had a question from Orlan asking about in flight reading. He asks, “Are you planning any inflight magazines specific to OpenSkies?”
We’ve decided not to have an in flight magazine. But we do offer local and international newspapers and publications that you can pick up as you board the plane. Depending on your route, you’ll find Dutch titles like Telegraph or Elsevier, French titles such as Le Figaro or Paris Match, or English titles like The Wall Street Journal or Golf Digest.
That’s all for now. I check the blog a lot to read the new comments. Keep leaving them. I promise to do my best to answer them. And let me know what you think about our airline, our routes, our blog— anything, really.
Here’s to a great 2009, Happy New Year!
Dale
January 3rd, 2009 at 6:39 pm
I love that there is a value added business only airline. Although you haven’t stated possible other locations, I feel that the South Florida area (which has so many European visitors) should be one to take into consideration. Let me know your thoughts
January 4th, 2009 at 10:16 am
cool
itll be great to get some answers
1. will openskies become part of oneworld or another airline alliance
2.how many B757s are BA going to transfere to you (sorry about the spelling)
thats it.Im loving the airline,website and everything aout openskes your doing a great job.
George
January 7th, 2009 at 5:22 pm
I flew on OpenSkies months ago and one of the things that bothered me a bit is the lack of inseat personal entertainment. The Archos personal player is a great add-on, but its batteries barely make the seven hour flight. Have you considered installing inseat entertainment into the seats in all classes?
January 9th, 2009 at 6:43 pm
Dale,
Tried to provide some suggestions to your crew who did encourage me to provide it on your blog.
Your concept is great, however it did fail in the past, the point to point structure did not work previously and might not work going forward.
Only few passengers will fly to JFK and will arrange their connection flights seperatly (I am one of them), as a BA subsidiary you will do far better by offering flights to/from at least major US destinations, by offering connection flight from/to JFK using BA code sharing flights with US carriers.
Another suggestion is to cut agreements with airlines outside the EU who will fly in/out passngers to Amsterdam/Paris and you perform the continuations flights to/from JFK (TLV is one great example).
I am mentioning it as I will hate seeing you stop flying from/to Amsterdam, knowing the low occupancy up to date.
Wishing OpenSkies great success, some additional moves are needed (improvement of the food/beverage service as well) but from my prospective you can be my airline of choice (definitly if connections to/from RDU will be offered).
With Kind Regards,
Doron
January 10th, 2009 at 10:42 pm
I know you said you have the support of BA for the future but..
I need to book a trip for the summer for a study abroad program. The prices and offerings make Openskies look very attractive. However, it terrifies me to think the airline I departed on might go out of business and leave me stuck in Europe on a student budget.
Does the support of BA mean that if the unthinkable happens that BA will get me home?
January 14th, 2009 at 3:48 am
Dale,
Thanks for responding back to my earlier post in this one. I pulled the trigger back in December and booked a flight for May from NYC to Paris. So I look forward to that flight.
As I stated in the earlier post, I had not planned on a visit to NYC, but OpenSkies offer was appealing so I worked in a stop in NYC from Seattle. I’m a fan and early adopter of “brand experiences”, which is much more important than price alone. At some point something simply becomes a commodity and you’re just another people mover.
I understand the point-to-point nature of OpenSkies makes it difficult for some, but I’ve seen this in the EU with the value airlines there. It’s a trade-off that’s not for some. I booked my flight to NYC on JetBlue, another trendsetter in the industry (My first flight with them as well!).
I’ll post on my personal blog the experiences of both airlines after my trip. Until then keep flying!
January 16th, 2009 at 3:11 pm
Dale- My friends and I are very interested in OpenSkies at our small business, and we were curious to see what the chances are of you adding Frankfurt to your route map at this point in time. If not, what new destination has the most probability of being added?
Thanks.
January 27th, 2009 at 2:09 pm
BA News report that their remaining B757 will be sold to an unnamed airline. Does that mean we might enjoy a shiny widebody in OpenSkies livery for futher expansion?
February 24th, 2009 at 4:28 am
I am sorry if thi has been asked but I am short of time and cannot look at all of the posts. I realise that a recession is generally not the best time to be starting new routes but has anyone considered opening a route between NYC and Milan?
Even after AF/KLM came to the rescue, Alitalia is still having strikes and has lost the trust of the public, which has left a gaping hole on a busy route. Lufthansa has realised this and started Lufthansa Italia, which at this stage is still an European based venture. As of yet, no one has yet picked up on NYC-Milan route.
Can the 757 fly this far without any restrictions? If so, would it not be the right sized aircraft?