Flybe failure - an industry turning point?
I hate to see days like this. Over the years I’ve seen many come and go and now its Flybe. Like many, my heart goes out to colleagues affected. Kudos to organisations such as Loganair, Virgin Atlantic and others for rallying around attempting to backfill the void that these events leave. But whatever good work they can do, it’s never going to be enough. The damage is done.
It is possible that history may record that this event ultimately has a far wider ranging and more significant effect than Thomas Cook, Monarch and the others. Not only does it affect the staff of Flybe but also those of their supply chain and threatens the very existence of some regional UK airports. Previous failures were not quite like this one. It’s not just the industry, it’s the UK economy.
Ironically, Virgin Atlantic themselves are now in cost cutting mode partly as a result of Flybe’s demise. BBC news reported today that the Virgin Connect consortium were a collection of strange bedfellows, from my view of the industry, I can’t disagree. It appeared to be a strange decision at the time.
We will continue to live in uncertain times and can, of course blame, COVID-19, Brexit et al for the assistance in Flybe’s demise. But our industry, and particularly the UK industry, is increasingly being defined by failure. Words such as ‘underestimation’ and ‘overreaching’ come to mind along with numerous questionable decisions.
After Thomas Cook’s exit, I posted that the industry must take a long, hard look at itself. Of course, it’s easy to sit out here in the ether criticising and making assumptions about what some individuals could or should have done. But let’s be honest; whatever the reason, the result is decimation, losing three large UK carriers in as many years, leaves a very large airline shaped hole in our industry. Now more than ever, we live in a world where only the strong will survive.
With complete respect for those affected, we now need to focus on the future to prevent more damage, we need to find a way to rebuild. Against the current backdrop this will be no easy task.
As someone who works globally, I know that the UK aviation is very well respected by many overseas, but for how much longer? So, do we just look after ourselves or de we come together?
This is a time for calm heads and strong will. I urge significant and well-respected UK aviation business leaders to not only take a long hard look at their future decisions but to step forward and consider not only the potential effect on their own organisations but also that of the UK industry and the UK economy as a whole.