Jet2.com Adds Sixth Aircraft at Newcastle

UK low-fare carrier Jet2.com is to introduce a sixth aircraft at its Newcastle International Airport base in North East England next summer enabling it to expand its network to 27 destinations with the addition of four new routes. The airline will offer flights to Bodrum, Rome, Reus and Venice from the end of May 2012, strengthening its position as offering the largest network of destinations from the airport six years after it first launched operations there.

This latest announcement will see Jet2.com introduce eight weekly flights on these four new routes from Newcastle International with a three times weekly services to Venice; two flights per week to Reus and Rome and a weekly rotation to Bodrum. All four destinations are already served by the airline from its other northern UK bases.

In October, Jet2.com also announced plans to launch flights to the Croatian city of Dubrovnik from Newcastle International with a weekly flight between June 9, 2012 and October 6, 2012 offering a mix of seat-only deals and package breaks through its sister company Jet2holidays. Alongside the new routes the carrier will boost frequencies to Cork, Dalaman, Faro, Krakow, Mahon, Malaga, Palma and Prague next summer.

Jet2.com currently accounts for 7.7 per cent of the weekly scheduled seat capacity from the airport, placing it as the fourth largest operator behind easyJet (25.6 per cent), British Airways (18.5 per cent) and Flybe (13.0 per cent), but this figure will grow notably following these new route announcements. It revised capacity introduces a further 80,000 passenger seats per annum on its new flights, taking its total seat availability at Newcastle International to over 600,000 per year.

“We have been closely monitoring the success of this airport over the past year and we believe there’s real potential for this region,” explained Ian Doubtfire, Managing Director, Jet2.com. “We see exciting horizons for our organisation right here. That’s why, contrary to many other operators at the moment, we have decided to invest for the coming year and really focus and plan for a strong future in the region”.

The airline has had a successful summer at Newcastle International carrying more than 500,000 passengers to its city and sunshine destinations, a 56 per cent increase on the previous year. It anticipates a similar rise in 2012 as a result of its investment into the airport.

“Civil Aviation Authority data has told us that over 200,000 people from the airport’s catchment area travel to other UK airports to reach Mediterranean destinations. We hope these brand new developments will encourage the travelling North East public to choose their local airport,” added David Laws, Chief Executive Officer, Newcastle International Airport.