NEWS ROUND-UP
COMMENT: “Sometimes, when a customer complains, it may well be that the issue in question is trivial. But it won’t be to the customer” Steve Dunne, page 36
Monarch hopes for speedy return to Sharm el-Sheikh
Juliet Dennis
juliet.dennis@
travelweekly.co.uk
Monarch Airlines hopes that flights to Sharm el-Sheikh will be resumed in the near future after talks between the British and Egyptian governments.
But it is already planning new
routes, with at least one to start next year, in case it decides to reinstate a smaller programme to Sharm or if the ban on flights is not lifted. Flights to the Red Sea resort
were suspended last month after a Russian aircraft was brought down by a bomb, killing all 224 on board. Monarch has cancelled all flights to Sharm until December 19. Adrian Tighe, the airline’s chief commercial officer, said: “We are waiting for the government to advise on when we can fly back to Sharm. Once the advice changes, we will react accordingly. A lot of people are due to go for Christmas.” But he admitted demand
was likely to be dampened by security and terrorism fears, and could result in a reduced flight programme to the resort. “Common sense says demand will not come back immediately,” added
Freedom and CoPTA expect 250 delegates at Cotswolds event
More than 250 delegates are expected to attend this week’s Freedom Travel Group and The Co-operative Personal Travel Advisors (CoPTA) conference. Such an attendance would be
30% higher than last year. The three-day event, which is
being held at the Cotswold Water Park Four Pillars Hotel, starts on
THRILLED: Kelly Cookes
November 29. The theme is ‘Be Part of Something Bigger’.
10
travelweekly.co.uk 26 November 2015 SHARM El-SHEIKH: Monarch has cancelled flights until December 19
“Common sense says demand will not come back immediately”
Tighe. “We will look at customer demand and then react. We may end up with a softer programme.” His comments came as Britain’s ambassador to Egypt vowed to get direct UK air links with Sharm el-Sheikh reinstated “as soon as possible”. A government delegation of senior aviation and counter-
terrorism experts has visited Cairo to discuss a joint plan with Egyptian authorities to allow British airlines to return to the Red Sea resort. Monarch is assessing the size
of its flying programme for the Red Sea resort in preparation for flights being resumed this winter. In peak season, it operates about
17 flights a week out of the UK, and about 13-14 in shoulder seasons. Depending on demand,
some capacity could be shifted to destinations including the Canaries, Morocco, Cyprus and
new destination Eilat, said Tighe. › Talk Back, page 15
Kelly Cookes, head of the
Freedom Travel Group and The Co-operative Personal Travel Advisors, said: “Our annual event has become a highlight of the year for many, and I am thrilled that so many of our members and homeworkers have decided to show their support this year. “There has been an incredible
amount of activity in 2015. We are in great shape as we enter 2016, and I am looking forward to sharing our plans with delegates.”
Hays appoints Tomlinson to head personal travel arm
Hays Travel has recruited Tina Tomlinson (pictured) from STA Travel as business development manager for its personal travel consultant division.
NEWS IN BRIEF
Jet2 parent posts 66% rise in half-year profits
An “exceptional” summer boosted profits for the owner of
Jet2.com and Jet2holidays. Dart Group posted a pre-tax profit of £146.8 million for the six months to September 30, a 66% rise on 2014. Revenue in its travel division rose 15% to £951.7 million, with Jet2holidays’ carryings up 22% to 940,000. Flight-only passenger numbers fell 13.7% to 2.65 million.
P&O signs up JLS and Westlife stars for TV show
P&O Cruises has revealed London 2012 gold medal winner Greg Rutherford, former JLS boyband star JB Gill and Boyzone’s Keith Duffy as among the stars to take part in new TV show Battlechefs. The show will air on channel Watch next year.
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