p6 news apr3 1/4/09 19:48 Page 6
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ttglive.com
Cruise Convention
unveils speakers
THE ASSOCIATION of
Cruise Experts has un-
veiled the senior industry
executives who will head-
line this year’s UK Cruise
Convention in Dover.
Celebrity Cruises pres-
ident and chief executive
Dan Hanrahan (pictured) will speak ahead of
Bucking the trend: KLM celebrates the launch of a Liverpool-Amsterdam service. Pictured are, from left: Michel Coumans, the line’s launch of new ship Equinox in
KLM Cityhopper chief executive; Warren Bradley, Liverpool City Council leader; Christine Ourmieres, UK general manager, Southampton on July 31.
Air France-KLM; and Neil Pakey, deputy chief executive of Peel Airports Group, which owns Liverpool airport. He will be joined by Rick Meadows, Holland
America Line’s executive vice-president for
Aviation ‘crisis’ as new
marketing, sales and guest programmes.
The line is one of four that will have ships in
port during the conference on June 17-19, when
500 agent delegates will be offered the chance
UK routes drop 69%
to view them.
This summer, HAL’s newest ship, Eurodam, will
sail a series of cruises out of Dover.
Completing a triumvirate of speakers will be
Chris Gray.
the total number of international flights from the David Selby, Tui UK’s director of cruising, who
THE NUMBER of new scheduled services being UK to 103,090 – the lowest since 2005 – with the oversees Thomson Cruises and Island Cruises.
started at UK airports for this summer’s season number of seats down 8.5% to 17.2 million. Over the past nine years Selby has seen the
will be two-thirds fewer compared with last year. David Beckerman, OAG’s market intelligence number of Thomson annual customers leap from
A total of 138 new routes will start in April – a vice-president, said it took about a year for an 60,000 to 175,000.
69% drop on 2008, according to figures supplied airline to build up a new route and demand was TV personality Mark Durden-Smith, son of
exclusively to TTG by aviation data business OAG. not there for carriers to justify the investment. Judith Chalmers, will moderate the conference,
The number of new international routes fell But he expected the number of new routes to rise for a second successive year.
64% to 122, while domestic dropped 84% to 16. again in April 2010.
The decline in new routes being added this The figures were released as the European ■ Register for the third Ace UK Cruise
summer illustrates how scheduled airlines have Regions Airline Association warned that carriers Convention at cruiseexperts.org
dramatically cut back growth plans in the wake were in crisis as passenger growth dropped to
of the financial crisis. The figures are in marked 0.4% last year compared with 7.5% in 2007 – and
contrast to the optimism of April last year, which demand was “worsening”. The association urged
was fuelled by the open-skies agreement and European regulators to reduce financial burdens.
continued no-frills expansion.
The last 12 months have also seen a 10% fall in ■ EasyJet boosts Glasgow-Palma flights, p20
Abta plans APD plea to Treasury
ABTA IS demanding a meeting with the Treasury using Schiphol as a hub rather than Heathrow.
minister responsible for Air Passenger Duty to He said he would be urging Eagle to either
press the case for changes to the tax before the drop, reduce or reform the tax to get rid of
budget later this month. anomalies hitting developing countries, premium
Andy Cooper, director of development, has economy passengers and passengers from UK
written to Angela Eagle asking for a meeting to regions transiting through London.
air the industry’s concerns about the tax. Cooper said he would draw Eagle’s attention EGGING AGENTS ON: Cosmos sales staff
Abta has called on the government to follow to TTG’s petition to reform APD, now signed by show off eggs they’ll give to 25 agents who
the Dutch government’s move to scrap APD to almost 2,500 people. book holidays (departing April 6-13). Email
support the economy. references to agencysales@cosmos.co.uk
Cooper said the Dutch move would encourage ■ Sign our APD Downing Street petition at: From left: Andy Hutchinson, Claire Whyte,
more airlines to move from the UK to Holland, petitions.number10.gov.uk/APDtax Orla Kern and Gordon McCreadie
06 03.04.2009
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