Report – WTM2005: Robert Dranitzke, Head of Business Development NetJets, Alan Burnett, Head of UK Sales and Marketing British Airways…
Report – WTM2005: Robert Dranitzke, Head of Business Development NetJets, Alan Burnett, Head of UK Sales and Marketing British Airways , Peter Hill, chief executive Sri Lankan Airlines and Brent Hoberman, chief executive of lastminute website made up a high-flying panel with CNN broadcaster Richard Quest at the controls as chairman.
Hoberman said: “One of the big changes and as very interesting trend is that with the cost of air coming down people are using that extra money from their budget to book a five-star hotel.”
But Burnett said, “All I can tell you is that our customers are voting with their feet. They are travelling in first and business, where pricing is sensible, to start their holiday well and there are statistics to prove it.”
More and more travellers wish to “turn left” when they climb the aircraft steps, according to Burnett and Hill.
First class is disappearing from some airlines but Burnett said, “No, I don’t believe that will happen with BA. The differentiation of the product is still something that customers seek. There are certain routes where we don’t have it but by and large the demand is still very high.
“And so far as the business class is concerned, we were the first to introduce flat beds in 2000. But it isn’t just that the customer seeks – he is looking for lounges, sleeper services which we now have between the Middle East and London and the United States, particularly the east coast.”
He retaliated to criticism of Club World as ‘tired’ with, “Our product has just been re-launched, again, this year and we think it is every bit as comfortable. We have made investment announcements today about the next generation of business product.More and more through the activities of the travel industry, we are seeing holidaymakers using the premium products so a new pricing regime is to try to encourage people to use Club World and first class. It is not just business people who turn left. The mix is much more pronounced now than it used to be.”
Hill said, “We have a fairly large leisure base because Sri Lanka is a popular tourist destination – we are also flying to the Maldives once again – and we found that the first class cabin wasn’t profitable. We focussed on the business product and that has proven to be popular. We are finding much greater demand for the front end of the bus than we would have been two to three years ago. We are also pricing to satisfy leisure business so that you travel to an exotic destination like the Maldives in the style you are used.”
“We are a full service airline and the package we have down the back is an impressive one. We are going into flat beds but our market isn’t really prepared to pay for a 180 degree one at the moment. It is developing. I think we will have them in the next 18 months.Competition from the low-cost airlines has been a slow starter in south Asia but it is happening. On our doorstep in India there has been a huge explosion of them. They haven’t affected us yet. But we are watching very carefully and we have also seen what BA has done – re-inventing themselves in short haul which is what we are doing already.”
“We are investing in technology, simplifying the fare base and making it more efficient and effective to fly Sri Lankan. It is going to take quite a bit of pressure to push us off our position.”
Only the well-heeled, aristocratic and corporate financed will settle into a NetJet flight starting at £79,000 for a 25-hour slot.
Dranitzke responded to that teasing: “I wouldn’t call that accurate. Clearly, we have a much more limited audience, less than one per cent of the population. There is either a business or a lifestyle usage. And 70 per cent is for business. If you’re an executive and it makes sense on a cross-benefit analysis to maximise your time then, like any other business tool, you can use it. If it doesn’t, then you shouldn’t. If it’s lifestyle … it’s your money and you decide. The advantage is control. Being able to move from where you want, when you want completely at your schedule.”
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
