Europe: April 2009 Archives

Just when it seemed like all obvious ancillary revenue streams were nearing exhaustion, Spanish budget carrier Clickair has come up with a new cash-generating innovation. It has introduced a new Internet booking feature, giving passengers the option of paying a €2 ($2.70) fee to lock their chosen fare for 24 hours, or €5 to guarantee it for up to 72 hours.

Clickair is yet to formally announce the initiative (apparently that's planned for next week), but the airline's chief Alex Cruz referenced it during a session at the French Connect networking conference in Shannon,

Cruz said the 'lock your fare' service was turned on last week, giving passengers an opportunity to hold fares while researching accommodation or other elements of their trip. If the time lapses and the fare has not been confirmed, it is re-released for sale.

He adds: "It takes about 30 minutes to see [web initiatives like this] working. During the first two days we generated low five-digit numbers just from the fees, and we had a 60% conversion rate. It's another revenue stream."

You have to hand it to them; it's simple, logical and - judging by the response of some other airlines at the conference - is unlikely to remain isolated to Clickair for long.

In the world of newspapers and magazines, the debate on whether to sell advertising on the front cover is one that flares up from time to time.

For some it's the holy grail - a line never to be crossed. For others its standard practice. Flight International, the sister publication of Airline Business, use to sell the front cover all the time, but not now.

So, should airlines sell the equivalent of their front page - the website?

Ryanair of course has just started doing it. Not the whole thing, as you'd never be able to book a ticket, but today's ad - from a UK-based animal charity - is right in the middle of the site and the first thing you look at.

For Ryanair, with its five billion page impressions annually, the website is an extremely attractive property, and certain to raise a substantial sum. But is it worth disrupting the customer experience, if indeed it does, with ads like this?

For websites like Flightglobal.com, advertising is a critical part of how we do business. We have no choice. But airlines do.

What do you think? How would you feel about this trend spreading out among other airlines?

Many at British Airways and BAA probably still have nightmares about the opening of London Heathrow Terminal 5 at the end of March 2008 - one year on have they been replaced by sweet dreams as the airport starts delivering on its promise?

See what BA director Julia Simpson and BAA T5 operations manager Nick Cole have to say.

And hear from both the airline side and the environmental campaigner side about their views on whether further expansion of Heathrow is needed.