News & Discussion: Adelaide Airport & Airlines

[how good is he]

Have been told an airport hotel won't work/be profitable mainly because our CBD (and Glenelg) hotels are only 15 mins away (with more things to do there being stuck in an airport hotel). My experience are airport hotels suit an early or inter connecting flight where time is of the essence but also because the airport takes a lot longer to get to than from our CBD.

[ml69]

Have been told an airport hotel won't work/be profitable mainly because our CBD (and Glenelg) hotels are only 15 mins away (with more things to do there being stuck in an airport hotel). My experience are airport hotels suit an early or inter connecting flight where time is of the essence but also because the airport takes a lot longer to get to than from our CBD.

That's my opinion too, airport hotel won't work because our airport is too convenient from Glenelg and CBD!

Airport hotels also work well if your city is a transit hub, but Adelaide is not a hub.

[Ho Really]

Have been told an airport hotel won't work/be profitable...

There's the Adelaide Airport Motel on Sir Donald Bradman Drive. They've been there a long time and seem not to have any issues. Of course they are smaller. When the Airport Hotel will be completed they'll lose some (if not most) of their clientele.

Let's say one of the Emirates flights is delayed and it's not allowed to fly out because of the curfew or if there are delays or emergencies with other flights the Airport Hotel could be booked. Country travellers could stay there overnight especially those flying from Dubai on the Emirates flights or the late afternoon SIngapore Airlines flights. The hotel could also hold business conventions. Staying at the airport and hiring a car to go to Glenelg or the city is not that bad. The hire car comes back to the airport in most cases. Of course as you said how good is he the city has much more, but I think the Airport Hotel will be perfect for the short business stays.

Cheers

[Ho Really]

[...]

Airport hotels also work well if your city is a transit hub, but Adelaide is not a hub.

Well, for now it isn't. By building an Airport Hotel and expanding the terminal the management at the Airport may well be looking at this. If they can get a few more international airlines to fly here (see my earlier post about the new air services agreement with China) and in particular the second string Chinese airlines anything is possible.

Cheers

[rev]

[...]

Airport hotels also work well if your city is a transit hub, but Adelaide is not a hub.

Well, for now it isn't. By building an Airport Hotel and expanding the terminal the management at the Airport may well be looking at this. If they can get a few more international airlines to fly here (see my earlier post about the new air services agreement with China) and in particular the second string Chinese airlines anything is possible.

Cheers

Under the new trade agreement with China, isn't there now an unlimited number of seats into Adelaide from China possible? I think I read that here or somewhere else.
If so, why cant our airport become a small hub for a Chinese airline? We are an hour from Melb, a couple from Sydney and Perth..
We supposedly are seeing more Chinese tourists now. I wonder how many more would come if a Chinese airline serviced Adelaide and had connecting flights to other major cities?

It wasn't long ago we were begging for our tin shed airport to be redeveloped.
Now with the paint not even discolouring in the new terminal we are going to get another major expansion.
I say why not a hub for a Chinese airline. If nobody else in the state will have the balls to break the conservative cautious mould, hopefully AAL does it.

[ml69]

[...]

Airport hotels also work well if your city is a transit hub, but Adelaide is not a hub.

Well, for now it isn't. By building an Airport Hotel and expanding the terminal the management at the Airport may well be looking at this. If they can get a few more international airlines to fly here (see my earlier post about the new air services agreement with China) and in particular the second string Chinese airlines anything is possible.

Cheers

Under the new trade agreement with China, isn't there now an unlimited number of seats into Adelaide from China possible? I think I read that here or somewhere else.
If so, why cant our airport become a small hub for a Chinese airline? We are an hour from Melb, a couple from Sydney and Perth..
We supposedly are seeing more Chinese tourists now. I wonder how many more would come if a Chinese airline serviced Adelaide and had connecting flights to other major cities?

It wasn't long ago we were begging for our tin shed airport to be redeveloped.
Now with the paint not even discolouring in the new terminal we are going to get another major expansion.
I say why not a hub for a Chinese airline. If nobody else in the state will have the balls to break the conservative cautious mould, hopefully AAL does it.

Where is the business case for a Chinese airline to use Adelaide as a transport hub? We do not have a large population base, we are not strategically located. It's not the state government's decision, it's the airlines decision.

That's not to say we shouldn't push for direct flights. We should try our best, but I think it's wishful thinking that we would ever become a transport hub.

[rev]

Where is the business case for a Chinese airline to use Adelaide as a transport hub?

Did I say I have one?
It's just a discussion.

We do not have a large population base, we are not strategically located.

This past European summer Ryanair opened a new hub in Thessaloniki, Greece. Maybe look up Thessaloniki and tell me it's population.
Is Athens or Thessaloniki strategically located, at the end of the European continent in the south east?
Why doesn't Ryanair just fly out of Rome to Greece..?

The problem isn't our population size or our location. The problem is our small tourism industry with low numbers of international arrivals.

It's not the state government's decision, it's the airlines decision.

Did I say it was the state governments decision?

That's not to say we shouldn't push for direct flights. We should try our best, but I think it's wishful thinking that we would ever become a transport hub.

Nobody said we should become a transport hub.

[Ho Really]

Under the new trade agreement with China, isn't there now an unlimited number of seats into Adelaide from China possible? I think I read that here or somewhere else.
If so, why cant our airport become a small hub for a Chinese airline? We are an hour from Melb, a couple from Sydney and Perth..
We supposedly are seeing more Chinese tourists now. I wonder how many more would come if a Chinese airline serviced Adelaide and had connecting flights to other major cities?

It wasn't long ago we were begging for our tin shed airport to be redeveloped.
Now with the paint not even discolouring in the new terminal we are going to get another major expansion.
I say why not a hub for a Chinese airline. If nobody else in the state will have the balls to break the conservative cautious mould, hopefully AAL does it.

Where is the business case for a Chinese airline to use Adelaide as a transport hub? We do not have a large population base, we are not strategically located. It's not the state government's decision, it's the airlines decision.

That's not to say we shouldn't push for direct flights. We should try our best, but I think it's wishful thinking that we would ever become a transport hub.

Yes rev you may have read it on the previous page in my post. In my opinion there's no reason why Adelaide couldn't become a hub for a Chinese airline. Your example of Ryan Air and Thessaloniki poses a question. I think it boils down to what we can give the Chinese airlines that others can't. Besides passenger movements (maybe Melbourne, Canberra and Hobart, but also possibly Auckland and Christchurch) the obvious would be sweeteners, benefits and cost savings etc. The other issue is also partnerships. Who will the Chinese airlines partner with domestically? QANTAS already have a codeshare agreement with China Eastern. QANTAS also codeshares with China Southern. Virgin Australia, as far as I know, do not have any agreements with Chinese Airlines. I would expect without partnerships or agreements Chinese airline(s) would not use Adelaide as a hub. They would go direct. But then again, if they base themselves in Adelaide they could do the short hops to Melbourne, Canberra, Hobart and onto New Zealand (which would be a separate agreement with the Kiwis). As for which airlines could do this? If the right incentives were there my bet is with the secondary airlines like Hainan, Xiamen and Shenzhen Airlines. What's the value for Aussies if a Chinese airline hubs in Adelaide and uses QANTAS or Virgin Australia? Not sure, perhaps a cheaper fare.

Out of the three I quoted, Shenzhen is based in a major urban area. The city of Shenzhen is just outside of the Special Administrative Region (SAR) of Hong Kong. As a Star Alliance airline it could rival Cathay Pacific (oneworld) on the Adelaide route. Of course it's not in the same league as Cathay Pacific quality-wise...as yet. Its strength is in the domestic Chinese market. Hainan is based on the island of Hainan just off mainland China and east of Vietnam. It also has a hub in Beijing. Xiamen is based out of Xiamen. A city on the Taiwan Strait.

Cheers

P.S. The most likely of the Chinese carriers to start Adelaide flights would seem to be China Southern (SkyTeam), but it wouldn't be too far fetched if we got all three of the biggies in the next few years: Air China (Star Alliance) with hubs in Beijing, Chengdu and Shanghai, China Eastern (SkyTeam) with a hub in Shanghai and as already stated China Southern with hubs in Beijing and Guangzhou.

Mind you what I have said here is only my opinion based on speculation.

[ChillyPhilly]

Qantas 747 currently in - a rare sight for Adelaide!

[Brucetiki]

Qantas 747 currently in - a rare sight for Adelaide!

Was a Phil Hoffman Travel charter for one of their Antartica flyovers. Flying out of Adelaide today sometime. It's a relatively new plane by Qantas' standards at just 12 years old.

[ChillyPhilly]

Qantas 747 currently in - a rare sight for Adelaide!

Was a Phil Hoffman Travel charter for one of their Antartica flyovers. Flying out of Adelaide today sometime. It's a relatively new plane by Qantas' standards at just 12 years old.

Ahh, awesome.

You know you're a true South Aussie when one of the first things you do upon taxiing back into the terminal, is check Sensational Adelaide.

[Ho Really]

[...]

P.S. The most likely of the Chinese carriers to start Adelaide flights would seem to be China Southern (SkyTeam), but it wouldn't be too far fetched if we got all three of the biggies in the next few years: Air China (Star Alliance) with hubs in Beijing, Chengdu and Shanghai, China Eastern (SkyTeam) with a hub in Shanghai and as already stated China Southern with hubs in Beijing and Guangzhou.

Mind you what I have said here is only my opinion based on speculation.

Following on what I posted earlier about Chinese airlines and flights to Adelaide, it is interesting that at Flight Centre's (free admission) Travel Expo to be held at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre, Hindmarsh on the weekend of February 21-22, Air China will be present as an exhibitor. In the past China Southern has had a presence there. I guess Air China are putting out their feelers.

On a side note. Adelaide Airport was an exhibitor this last weekend at the Sunday Mail - Holiday Expo. Anyone have any interesting tidbits?

Cheers

[Brucetiki]

If you're over 50 and love old school rigid, no flexibility packages, the Travel Expo would've been great for you.

If you were just looking for general information beyond flights from Malaysia Airlines and Cathay Pacific, you would've wasted $10 if you didn't get a free ticket in.

[Ho Really]

If you're over 50 and love old school rigid, no flexibility packages, the Travel Expo would've been great for you.

If you were just looking for general information beyond flights from Malaysia Airlines and Cathay Pacific, you would've wasted $10 if you didn't get a free ticket in.

I agree on both counts Brucetiki, however I'd say if you're over 60...as those around 50 or so are very computer literate and will do their own research and bookings online. Besides Malaysia Airlines and Cathay Pacific include Emirates. They were there too. I'm not sure if these airlines had any specials during the expo as I wasn't there, but I guess they did. If you are a member of any of these or other airlines (like me with SIA) you will be kept informed via their newsletters. Mind you some specials at the expos are usually not available anywhere else and can be limited to one agent. A couple of years ago at the Flight Centre travel expo I came across some prices for Hong Kong on Cathay Pacific. I checked with my regular agent and she wasn't too impressed. So it's a matter of doing some research if price is important to you. As Brucetiki said: beyond flights it may not be worth it, unless of course...you are in free.

Cheers

[Ho Really]

Qantas 747 currently in - a rare sight for Adelaide!

Was a Phil Hoffman Travel charter for one of their Antartica flyovers. Flying out of Adelaide today sometime. It's a relatively new plane by Qantas' standards at just 12 years old.

Here's an image from the other night taken at 22:16 of the QANTAS B747 in front of Emirates EK441 (B777-300) in a near full house at Adelaide Airport.

Cheers