Airport News
Newcastle Airport gains Channel Islands link
Sun, 31 Jan, 2010
Newcastle Airport is set to get a new route to the Channel Islands this summer.
Flybe has announced that it is to being flying two journeys a week from the north-east hub to Guernsey.
Flying on Tuesdays and Saturdays, the flights will commence on July 10th, departing Newcastle at 14:50 GMT.
The service will operate throughout the summer months, with the final one-and-a-half-hour trip back north leaving the islands at 10:30 GMT on August 31st.
Chris Sanders, head of aviation development at Newcastle International Airport, said: "It opens up new holiday opportunities from the north-east for short breaks and longer stays this summer."
He added that, as a tax-free destination, the Channel Islands offer a good value holiday for people who want to stay close to home.
This is the latest in a series of flights to be run by Flybe from regional airports across the country, with Exeter Airport recently benefitting from a new service to Hanover.
Newcastle International Airport to benefit from Jet2.com flights
Tue, 25 Aug, 2009
Jet2.com will launch five new flights from Newcastle International Airport next summer.
The routes to Dalaman, Crete, Gran Canaria, Paphos and Sharm el Sheikh will come into effect from the north-east airport in May next year.
It has been confirmed that the new routes will result in the creation of more than 450 jobs in the area.
Jet2.com boss Philip Meeson said that people in the north-west "love flying" with the airline.
"The new routes are in response to that demand and the new jobs will also hopefully show our renewed commitment to this great region," he commented.
"We will be working closely with the airport to deliver this enhanced service."
Mr Meeson went on to say that the new routes were an example of the airline giving passengers the destinations they want.
Last week, the carrier announced its intention to launch flights to Malaga, Alicante, Faro, Murcia, Majorca and Belfast from Blackpool Airport.
Newcastle Airport: Business as usual
Tue, 21 Jul, 2009
Newcastle Airport has reassured passengers that the current outbreak of swine flu will not affect travel.
The government has announced a special swine flu service will be set up to cope with the medical demands of the pandemic, but it is not set to effect air travel in Newcastle.
No additional systems or procedures will be instilled at the travel hub and it is assuring customers that it is "very much business as usual".
In a statement, the airport said: "Newcastle Airport has well- established port health procedures which would be activated if needed and we will continue to take advice and guidance from all relevant government agencies in regards to receiving suspected swine flu cases."
Newcastle International Airport recently welcomes its 250,000th Emirates passenger on the daily service which ruins between Newcastle and Dubai.
The travel hub in the northeast has been operating air travel since it was opened in 1935.
Developments to several of the main areas of the airport are planned between now and 2016 including improvements to the terminal building and car parks.
Newcastle Airport 'is the UK's most punctual'
Wed, 17 Jun, 2009
Newcastle Airport has been named as the most punctual in the UK.
According to figures from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), 82 per cent of flights from Newcastle Airport left on time in this year's first quarter.
This was higher than the national average, reported the Daily Mail.
Airport chief executive Dave Laws paid tribute to the "considerable efforts and team-working" of staff for the high performance.
Flights are deemed to be on time if they are early or late by less than 15 minutes.
Heathrow Airport was also found to have improved.
While 59 per cent of its flights were on time last year, the figure has now risen to 79 per cent.
Earlier this month, the CAA gave out advice to travellers about safe air travel.
It released a leaflet on the issue which can be downloaded without charge from its website or picked up from a holiday tour operator.
Manager of the CAA's dangerous goods office Geoff Leach explained that some everyday items which seem innocent may still pose a safety hazard when taken on to an aeroplane.
Airport head calls to axe tax
Wed, 10 Jun, 2009
An aviation chief has called on the government to abandon new airport taxes.
David Laws, chief executive of Newcastle International Airport, told the North East Chamber of Commerce's annual meeting that he feared the effect the new tax would have on the institution, which has a workforce of around 3,000 people.
According to nebusiness.co.uk, he identified new airport taxes as the greatest danger facing the sector's future.
Travellers on long-haul journeys could pay £20 more and all routes would become more expensive.
Mr Laws cited the Netherlands as an example where the tax had been abandoned once it was realised how detrimental an effect it would have on Schiphol Airport.
In March, Newcastle Airport reduced the prices of airport parking for stays of one week, though the deadline for booking has now expired.
At the time, business manager George Nesbitt said he hoped that the move would help people to take affordable breaks when flying from the airport.
Newcastle Airport gains Southampton link
Fri, 05 Jun, 2009
Those wishing to travel between Newcastle Airport and Southampton will soon have a number of new options.
An early morning flight will be launched from to the north-east facility to the Hampshire hub on July 6th, taking off at 07:00 BST.
Later in the afternoon, another route will be made available on the same date, leaving the tarmac at 16:05.
The services join the existing 19:05 weekday south-to-north departure.
Heading in the other direction, flights from Newcastle will leave at 08:50, 14:00 and 17:30.
Eastern Airways is running the trips.
Its chief operating officer Chris Holliday said: "Adjusting the timings allows our Southampton passengers to arrive in Newcastle city centre before 09:00 and helps maximise their time in the north-east."
The firm also offers flights to Leeds-Bradford and Aberdeen from the Southampton transport centre.
People wishing to take advantage of airport parking options can consult AA's route mapping service to work out their best options for driving.
Newcastle Airport passengers have more Greek options
Mon, 11 May, 2009
Newcastle Airport has gained new flights to Greece, giving its passengers more summer destination choices.
Thomas Cook Airlines is running the services, adding 70,000 seats to the Mediterranean country this summer.
Routes to Kefalonia and Skiathos are among the three new options available to customers, with the former departing every Sunday at 14:25 BST and the latter going at 09:30 BST every Friday.
From tomorrow (May 12th) there will also be a weekly trip to Santorini from the hub, taking off at 13:00 BST.
Chief executive officer at the firm Peter Constanti said the services offered "flexibility".
"We are very pleased to introduce a new aircraft and three new routes to our Newcastle programme," he commented.
Chief executive at the facility Dave Laws added passengers had "even more variety" for their summer holidays this year.
Those heading off on a well-earned break may decide to drive to the terminal.
They are advised it is located off the A1 – satnav owners can input the postcode NE13 8BZ into their devices to get a fast and easy route to airport parking.
Politician doubts north-east's capacity for two major airports
Tue, 10 Mar, 2009
The capacity for the north-east region to support two major airports has been questioned by a politician.
Lord Michael Bates, deputy chair of the Conservatives, expressed his doubts to Northern Decisionmakers, the online television programme of the Northern Echo.
Acknowledging rivalry between certain areas, he pointed to the existence of Manchester and Leeds Bradford Airports and said: "I just wonder whether we are large enough as a region to sustain two world-class airports."
Lord Bates also pointed out that the north-east is the smallest region in the country and drew attention to how close by other airports in Newcastle and Durham Tees Valley are.
Meanwhile, PropertyWeek.com reports the launch of a property programme by Manchester Airport.
The initiative, named Manchester City, centres on a business park and the airport's MAG Developments is buying a 30 acre site to combine with the Manchester Business Park, which is owned by the council.
Dubai flights popular from Newcastle Airport
Fri, 05 Sep, 2008
Flights to Dubai are proving popular from Newcastle Airport, it has been reported.
Emirates Airline introduced the service a year ago and has said that over 140,000 people have travelled on such flights so far, 20,000 more than the original forecast for the northern hub.
Around 25 per cent of these flights were due to people heading to the city for business purposes, the carrier said.
Vic Sheppard, vice president of Emirates in the UK and Ireland, commented: "Given that it has been a challenging time for the entire airline industry, we are delighted to have received such strong support from the north-east travelling public."
Newcastle Airport is located about six miles from Newcastle upon Tyne city centre and was the tenth-busiest UK airport in 2006.
Emirates was the first airline to offer long-haul flights from Newcastle, providing an alternative for passengers to other European transfer points such as London Heathrow Airport.
Newcastle Airport defends reduced parking times
Mon, 09 Jun, 2008
Newcastle Airport has defended its decision to reduce its pick up and drop off parking time from ten to five minutes.
A spokesman said the airport has invested £200,000 in extra entry/exit barriers and parking bays to alleviate congestion in the car park.
He told local paper the News Guardian that the car park, which is designed for the "rapid collection" and drop off of passengers, offers a better service than many other airports.
"These improvements now allow vehicles to flow much more freely through the area, thus taking less time," he said.
"Detailed research indicates that, of the 1.5 million customers who use the pick up and drop off facility each year, more than 1.2 million will be able to leave ... within the five-minute free period."
But the owner of a north-east taxi company told the BBC that five minutes is not enough time and will therefore affect the quality of service offered by vehicle hire firms.
Newcastle Airport reduces free parking time
Wed, 04 Jun, 2008
Newcastle Airport has reduced to five minutes the amount of free time motorists have to drop off or pick up passengers.
George Nesbitt, the car parking business manager at the airport, has defended the decision playing down concerns that have been raised by taxi firms angered by the change.
He told BBC One's Look North programme that in the last 18 months, the airport has invested around £200,000 to improve the pick up/drop off facility.
"That has resulted in a significant reduction in the time to process vehicles through the car park," he stated.
"As a result of having reviewed the times over the last few months, we are comfortable that we can reduce it to five minutes and still process 1.2 million vehicles annually through the car park."
The owner of a north-east taxi company told the same programme that five minutes parking time is "impossible" and will impact badly on customer services.
Newcastle Airport issues security statement
Thu, 08 May, 2008
Newcastle Airport wants to reduce the amount of hand luggage it has to confiscate this summer.
In a statement this week, the north-east hub indicated that its airport security teams have to seize 800 bottles of prohibited liquids every day.
The items taken by staff are reportedly worth around £1,000 in total, while the airport said too many man hours are being used when dealing with the disposal of the waste.
Peter Snell, Newcastle Airport's landside operations manager, said: "We clearly don't want passengers to have to part with valuable or personal items, and it also provides us with a waste management problem that we could well do without."
Travellers can help airport staff by ensuring they do not bring prohibited items in their hand luggage, he added.
Earlier this week, Newcastle Airport launched two new routes from its terminals. Passengers in the north-east can now fly to Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic and Cancun in Mexico.
Latest Newcastle services take off
Tue, 29 Apr, 2008
Air Southwest yesterday began operating new routes from Newcastle Airport to Newquay and Plymouth.
Both services will run on a daily basis all year round and the airline's deputy chief executive Mike Coombes predicted they would prove popular with a wide range of travellers.
"I am confident that the new services will benefit the local economy by increasing the number of business and leisure visitors to the city and wider north-east region," said Mr Coombes.
He added that the flights would also open up a range of short-break destinations in Devon and Cornwall to people living in the north-east.
A number of carriers have expanded their services from Newcastle Airport in recent months, including Eastern Airways and Cimber Air.
Eastern has launched a new direct service to Stavanger and increased the frequency of its flights to Cardiff, Aberdeen and Southampton, while Cimber has added extra flights to Copenhagen.
Direct Newcastle to Stavanger service announced
Tue, 15 Apr, 2008
Eastern Airways has announced plans to expand its operations from Newcastle Airport by launching a new direct service to Stavanger.
Passengers from the north-east can already fly to the Norwegian city via Aberdeen, but from May 12th 2008 Eastern Airways will be operating non-stop flights on weekdays.
Chris Holliday, the airline's chief operating officer, explained that the decision to launch the new service was a response to the high level of demand on the route.
"Business travellers will now be able to make significant time savings with our new, convenient non-stop flights from Newcastle," added Mr Holliday.
Figures compiled by the Civil Aviation Authority and published by Flightontime.info show that Eastern Airways was the second most punctual airline operating scheduled services from UK airports during 2007, behind bmi regional.
The statistics also revealed it was the most reliable airline flying from Newcastle Airport, ahead of Brussels Airlines and Winderoe.
Newcastle to Cardiff service expanded
Mon, 07 Apr, 2008
Eastern Airways has increased the frequency of its service between Newcastle Airport and Cardiff Airport.
On Monday April 7th it began to fly three times a day to the Welsh capital from the north-east, having previously operated just twice a day.
Chris Holliday, chief operating officer of Eastern Airways, explained that the change to the schedule was due to the popularity of the service with business passengers.
Travelling by air to meetings enables business people to avoid having to stay away from home overnight, he explained.
Mr Holliday added: "Our service to the Welsh capital is also significantly quicker and more convenient than the long cross-country road journey or rail alternatives."
The increase in the number of flights to Cardiff Airport comes just days after the service from Newcastle Airport to Copenhagen became more frequent.
Last week Cimber Air began operating an additional three flights to the Danish capital, meaning its service now runs ten times a week.
Extra Newcastle to Copenhagen flights announced
Thu, 03 Apr, 2008
Cimber Air has increased the frequency of its flights between Newcastle Airport and Copenhagen.
The airline was already flying to the Danish capital seven times a week from the north-east airport and has now opted to add an additional three flights to its schedule.
From now on Cimber Air will operate the route twice on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, as well as flying once on the other four days of the week.
Chris Sanders, head of airline relations and development for Newcastle Airport, said the extra flights would not only benefit business travellers and holidaymakers who plan to spend time in Copenhagen.
"This is a particularly beneficial route for passengers as it strengthens Newcastle's links into the extensive SAS network, providing customers with a greater choice of flights from Copenhagen to destinations across Europe and beyond," explained Mr Sanders.
News of the extra flights to Denmark comes just weeks after Eastern Airways announced plans to increase the frequency of its services from Newcastle Airport to Aberdeen, Southampton, Cardiff and Stavanger.
Newcastle Airport awarded prestigious business title
Tue, 04 Mar, 2008
Newcastle Airport has been awarded the title of Company of the Year at the Tyneside and Northumberland heat of the North East Business Awards 2007.
The airport beat a number of businesses including Merit Process Engineering and Northumbria University for the award.
Graeme Mason, head of planning and corporate affairs at Newcastle Airport, commented: "The aviation industry is an amazing industry to work in.
"It's extremely volatile, but generates passion among the people working there and I would like to dedicate the award to the team at Newcastle Airport."
Passenger figures for the airport rose to a record figure of 5.7 million last year.
The airport also boasts flights to 85 different destinations in four continents, with the company stating that there are now more flights every hour than there were per day in 1966.
With the announcement that Flybe will be setting up base at the airport, the airport is continuing to expand and looks well on its way to reaching its target of 9.5 million visitors by 2016.
Wind and rain delay weekend flights
Mon, 03 Mar, 2008
Severe weather conditions affected various different flights over the weekend causing delays and cancellations, it has been reported.
Driving wind and rain meant a number of arrivals and departures from Newcastle Airport were affected including a service between Aberdeen and Amsterdam which was cancelled.
One flight between Manchester Airport and Belfast Airport had to do a complete turnaround after failing to land safely twice.
The FlyBe service from Manchester to Belfast returned to the northern England city after winds of over 60 miles per hour meant landing at the Irish airport was impossible.
Other flights to Belfast Airport were also delayed by the heavy rain and strong winds.
In related airport news, a number of protests have been stages at government offices in Leeds, campaigning against proposed expansions to Leeds Bradford Airport.
Penny Eastwood, one of the protestors, explained that Yorkshire is "most at risk from climate change" and the possible increase in aviation emissions expansion would create a higher risk of flooding in the area.
Flybe continues air link between London and Newcastle Airport
Wed, 30 Jan, 2008
Flybe is to maintain a daily route between London Gatwick Airport and Newcastle Airport.
Following a decision by rival Jet2.com to pull off the route, travellers booked on its services can now transfer to a Flybe flight free of charge, the low-cost carrier has announced.
As of March 30th, the service will fly three times a day on weekdays, with Jet2.com ceasing the link as of March 29th.
Jet2.com recently announced 50 per cent off fares for the London to Newcastle route.
Chief commercial officer Mike Rutter commented: "We recognise the strategic importance of this key route to the capital and are pleased to be in a position to step in and maintain this lifeline service for the people of Newcastle and the north-east."
Mr Rutter claimed Flybe managed to get hold of the Gatwick flight spots "in the teeth of opposition" who intended to use the slots for European destinations.
Flybe is also to begin flying six days a week from Newcastle Airport to Aberdeen and also once a week to Rennes in France as of March 30th.
Budget airline goes Greek
Thu, 29 Nov, 2007
Budget airline easyJet has announced it is to launch a new service from London Gatwick Airport to the Greek city of Thessaloniki early next year.
The first flight on the three times a week service will take off from London Gatwick Airport on January 30th, with one-way fares available from £27.99 including taxes.
David Osborne, easyJet's UK general manager, predicted the flights to Thessaloniki, which is close to the tourist hotspot of Halkidiki, will prove popular with holidaymakers.
"Thessaloniki is the second Greek destination easyJet will offer from the UK and we expect to carry over 41,000 passengers on the route this summer," said Mr Osborne.
The low-cost carrier is also hoping to cash-in further on the Spanish holiday market by launching a new service from Newcastle Airport to Murcia next spring.
It will operate three times a week from May 17th and seats will be available from £23.99 one way including taxes.
Newcastle gets Norwegian link
Tue, 13 Nov, 2007
Eastern Airways today launched a new service linking Newcastle Airport with the Norwegian city of Stavanger.
The route will operate daily flights via Aberdeen, which are timed to suit the needs of business travellers, according to Chris Holliday, chief operating officer of Eastern Airways.
"Our new link to Stavanger will significantly benefit north-east travellers as they will be able to conduct a day's business in the Norwegian energy capital before returning to Newcastle in the evening," explained Mr Holland.
The airline also revealed it will be using the larger Saab 2000 aircraft on the route, meaning there will also be additional seats available on its existing Newcastle to Aberdeen service.
Newcastle Airport has recently announced a number of new routes, including twice-weekly services to Gran Canaria and Lanzarote operated by budget airline Jet2.
From next spring Canadian Affair will commence flights to Toronto, while holidaymakers who want to stay a little closer to home will be able to take advantage of Air Southwest's daily services to Newquay and Plymouth.
Canada and Cornwall from Newcastle
Wed, 31 Oct, 2007
Canadian Affair has announced it is to commence a direct service between Newcastle Airport and Toronto next year.
The weekly service will take off for the first time on May 21st, with fares for adults available from £99 one way including taxes, surcharges and meals. Children aged 12 or under will be eligible for discount tickets.
Geordie holidaymakers who want to stay closer to home may instead wish to take advantage of Air Southwest's new services from Newcastle Airport to Devon and Cornwall.
The flights to Newquay and Plymouth will run seven days a week from April 28th 2008 and fares will be available from £35 one way.
Chris Sanders, Newcastle Airport's head of aviation development, said the new routes would provide a wealth of holiday opportunities for local people.
"The south-west of England has so much to offer people in the north-east and today's announcement is a real boost to our services," said Mr Sanders.
Newcastle Airport to benefit from improved links
Mon, 24 Sep, 2007
Newcastle Airport is to benefit from a new and improved service to Germany from operator Lufthansa.
The north-east city will receive double the amount of daily flights from Dusseldorf from the beginning of November.
Lufthansa general manager for the UK and Ireland Marianne Sammann comments that passengers will benefit "enormously".
She remarks that the service "offers huge benefits for passengers travelling to and from Newcastle who want quick and easy onward connections to the main airports serving cities across Europe."
Ms Sammann adds that Dusseldorf is an attractive substitute for other major airports.
Some of the European destinations that connect from Dusseldorf which passengers may want to take advantage of are Budapest, Bucharest, Gothenburg, Marseille, Milan Malpensa, Katowice, Stockholm, Vienna, Warsaw and Zurich.
Lufthansa caters for 4.5 million passengers per month and flies to 192 destinations in 78 countries.
The airline boasts that it carries the most passengers around the world in international airline traffic.