Last update: 02.05.2002

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BASEL 2002 (World Watch & Jewelry Fair) produced larger volumes and aircraft capacities. More seats per flight were reported by LUFTHANSA from Frankfurt (4x daily) with Boeing B-737-300, Airbus A-320 and from Munich (3x daily) with Dash 8-400Q at peak times - by SWISS to Geneva with AvroJet 100 and to London LHR with Airbus A-321 also at peak times.
Special charters by TRANSAVIA HOLLAND to Amsterdam (Boeing B-737-700), TIROLEAN JET SERVICES to Innsbruck (Do- 328 Jet) Numerous business jets, most prominently QATAR Airbus A-319 CJ with high-level Qataris on board.

CHARTER FLIGHTS - UPDATE

AERIS INTERNATIONAL CHANGED ITS WEEKLY LA ROMANA CHARTER (LRM) TO THURSDAY and MONARCH AIRLINES IS OPERATING INTO PUERTO PLATA (POP) WITH AIRBUS 330-200 until the end of April. Both charters are flown on behalf of Avione Travel. A switch to Aeris Boeing B-767-300 to POP is set for May. Day of departure will be Wednesday.

IZMIR & ANTALYA ARE ENJOYING SOLID TOURIST NUMBERS generated in Switzerland, Germany and France.
Weekly charters are presently offered by OnurAir (5), Sun Exprese (2), SWISS (2) and adhoc by Pegasus. 15 TO's are holding seat allotments on the airlines' B-737-400/800, Airbus 320/321 and MD-83/88 fleets.

VARADERO CHARTERS WILL BE SUSPENDED at least until the start of the winter season 2002/2003.

SCHEDULED FLIGHTS - UPDATE

AN AIRCRAFT UPGRADE IS IN FOR THE TWO DAILY FLIGHTS to Rennes. Air France Régional will start to operate 30-seater Embraer 120 Brasilia beginning on May 6, replacing the smaller Beech 1900D turboprop.

CABO VERDE AIRLINES (TCAV) HAS SWITCHED SERVICES TO SATURDAY. The weekly flight continues to be a nonstop service between the EAP and Sal. When returning from Sal, the Boeing B-757-200ER is making a commercial stop at Milan Malpensa. 

LUFTHANSA IS TEMPORARILY DEPLOYING ATR-72 AND BAE 146-300 on the Frankfurt route until May 27. The change of aircraft was made necessary due to technical problems with the Canadair 700 jet. 

OTHER NEWS

FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL released a survey on simulator training sites worldwide. CROSSCAT based at the EAP offers full flight simulator training (level D) on ERJ-145 and Saab 2000 turboprops. Two CAE ERJ-145 units have been ordered. Training slots are offered to airlines based in Europe, the Middle East and Africa with a demand for full range instruction. Flight Safety supplied a Saab 2000 simulator in 1995 equipped with Concurrent Micro 5 computer ware. CAE delivered a first unit in Summer 2001 with a second one expected to arrive this Summer. Both units are IBM based.

SWISSPORT's HANDLING SERVICES RENDERED TO SWISS may be up for change. The new flag carrier is contemplating full control over all services which are directly connected with its passengers at BSL, GVA and ZRH. Check-in, boarding at the gate, passenger assistance in the terminal areas, and flight information at the transfer desk may be handled by SWISS. A decision is expected soon. Under such a new regime Swissport's responsibilities would be limited to loading, unloading and paperwork (loadsheet filings, slot requests, fueling etc.) for each LX-flight. Eventually, crew shuttle services could also be reorganized, presently managed by Customer Ground Services (CGS) on behalf of Swissport and SWISS as well as passenger transports (handicapped travellers and unacompanied minors) by vehicle to and from remote parking positions. To this date it is unclear if Swissport personnel will be taken over and if this is strictly confined to SWISS flights only (about 60% of Swissport's handling volume). If applied to SWISS only, Swissport would still need check-in, transfer and special assistance personnel for the other scheduled and charter traffic.

TRAIN TO THE SKY VIA EUROAIRPORT - The effort to connect the EAP with the networks of French, Swiss and German Railways has received some additional urgency. Baden-Württemberg's decision to grant Swiss Railways (SBB) access to German trunk lines is a boost to the trinational rapid transit system initiative. When completed, the network will include the airport. Presently, tracks connecting Basel with Brussels and Paris are within a 800 meters distance to the passenger terminal. 
Reporting about its fiscal year 2001, SBB was very explicite regarding her strategy to invest in train projects in close proximity to its own national rail system. 
SBB and SNCF are maintaining rapid transit services Basel - Mulhouse. New connections to Germany (Basel - Schopfheim) will be offered in 2004 and Deutsche Bahn (DB) has started hourly services Basel - Freiburg in January 2002. The emergence of a train system serving all airport partners (Basel, Mulhouse, Freiburg) should become reality within the next six to seven years. 
A taskforce under the leadership of the French "Direction Régional de l'Equipement" is at work since December 2001. Its prime focus is to establish the basis for technical and commercial feasibilities which ought to be presented in early 2003. The Swiss Agency of Transportation (BAV), SBB, SNCF, the State of Basel are also on board.

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SWISS NOURISHES SPECULATION ON EUROCROSS FUTURE

A closer look at the new SWISS Summer timetable 2002 gives way to considerable astonishment. The prime cause for such a state of mind is highly publicized departure data for both nonstop and train to the sky links to final destination via Zürich in close (time)proximity to each other. The chart below is pointing out all connections concerned.
Destinations like Amsterdam, Brussels, Hamburg, London LCY and LHR and Munich are being excluded. It is interesting to note that all destinations considered for train links via ZRH are served three times or less a day. Also, the quality of train to air connections in terms of travel time is clearly inferior to all nonstop services offered. If called up in computer reservation systems (Amadeus) the train to the sky services do not show up.

Sofar, it was not possible to get any explanation of sense from busy SWISS managers concerned.

It is no secret that SWISS has shifted some focus away from the EAP operations to Zürich where it has to maintain a intercontinental hub. For ex-Crossair staff, customers in the trinational area of Basel, political leaders and consumer advocates the future stakes of the EuroCross is a touchy issue. After all, former Crossair under the leadership of Moritz Suter was instrumental in building this concept for European travels as an alternative to congested mega-hubs with their delay-strikken operations. The success cannot be ignored despite of experts talking otherwise. 
Speculations and rumors go wild about SWISS' new corporate mentality. Statements of reassurance to maintain the vitality of the EuroCross since December 6, 2001 have been repeated many times. The new board of directors and ex-SR staff are to be convinced first. SWISS's train to the sky offer which can be recalled via the airline's website may reduce any pro-statement to zero value. If in-house competition (train vs. nonstop) is to be a strategy, the lifeline of the EuroCross is going to dry up as a consequence of the first.

A CLASSIC SOUND OF THE FIFTIES WILL MAKE A DEBUT ON EUROPE's AIRWAYS AGAIN.

Such a splendid outlook was presented at a membership meeting of the Super Constellation Supporters Club (SCSC) on April 13. 
People from all walks of life have joined the ranks who are determined to make this wonder possible together with the Super Constellation Flyers Association (SCFA) and its many helpers. SCFA members have laid the ground for this enterprise by pledging substantial funds to initiate the restoration process of the aging Super Constellation L-1049H N105CF. The aircraft was first built as US Navy transporter. Later in life it served as freighter for Aerochago in the Dominican Republic.
Ferrying the Connie from Santo Domingo to Avra Valley (Arizona) was the first step in a series of efforts to rebuild the plane as passenger liner making Trans-Atlantic crossings a different (nonstop) game in commercial aviation in the Fifties. At Avra Valley the Super Connie is receiving the professional care it needs from a team of experts on this aircraft who will put it back into flying condition. A Trans Atlantic flight is scheduled for Spring 2003 with final destination Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg airport.
Here, a big crowd of club and association members will welcome the L-1049H with a standing ovation. When the engine sound is slowly swelling up as the plane approaches the airfield, a feeling of accomplishment is well served. After some low-passes and circlings the Connie will finally touch down on RWY 16. 
The Super Connie's arrival is going to mark a new era of classic flights for all members. Flight operation will be secured by membership contributions of 80'000 Euro's annually and by a set of main sponsors. Those piloting the Connie have to pay a flat fee of $ 5'000, of whom there is no shortage lincensed to fly this beauty, as told. 
The aircraft is set to show up at airshows in Europe, first. As operating experience is being accumulated the radius of action will be expanded. Both organizations (SCSC & SCFA) are clearly multi-national, reflecting the spreading enthusiasm for this propliner of the past.
All expect the N105CF era to last many years to come until the airplane may finally retire from active duty for a static display somewhere (?). Till that date many hours of roaring Curtiss-Wright R-3350 driven take-offs have taken place with club members seated royally and piloted by crews for whom this will be the moment in their lifetime. An event manager will help to make each flight a special gala.

AIRTRAFFIC PROMOTION GROUP, WANDERSTRASSE 77, 4054 BASEL - TEL./FAX. ++41 61 302 5775 / E-MAIL. EAPNEWS@HOTMAIL.COM

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