p12 news Sept4 2/9/09 15:26 Page 12
news regional air
ttglive.com
Expanding no-frills carrier Jet2 hints at plans for a ninth UK base as it rallies the trade in battle with
Ryanair. But agents say it has to make improvements of its own to ensure support. By Chris Gray
Jet2 to continue
AIRPORT REACTION.
East Midlands
expansion in 2010
eyes traffic boost
EAST MIDLANDS airport believes Jet2’s arrival
could bring it 130,000 passengers in 12 months
Chris Gray.
and help to return the airport to growth.
JET2.COM is planning to set up in a ninth UK base The airport had been one of the top two
following its move into East Midlands airport and fastest-growing in the country for two years
expansion at Newcastle and Manchester airports. running before it was hit by the collapses of XL
Managing director Ian Doubtfire said Jet2 and Sterling Airlines last autumn.
would be setting up another UK base next year. Chief executive Penny Coates said the airport
He would not divulge where, but ruled out and Jet2 would be doing joint marketing to the
airports in the south of England. trade to build awareness of the new routes.
The no-frills airline is stationing a Boeing 757 “It’s important for us to be the trade-friendly
at East Midlands from May next year to operate airport and we will be working hard to make sure
flights to Lanzarote, Tenerife, Dalaman, Corfu, that agents are aware of Jet2 and associate them
Heraklion, Paphos and Sharm el Sheikh. with East Midlands,” she said.
The move into East Midlands was revealed last
week following announcements of five new
routes at Newcastle and three at Manchester
CAPACITY.
– following Ryanair’s announcement that it was
setting up a base at Jet2’s headquarters in Leeds.
Leeds ‘needed’
Jet2 has been known as a northern airline,
with a heartland around its bases in Leeds, Ryanair’s flights
Newcastle and Manchester, and East Midlands is
its first venture south of Yorkshire. Newcastle airport chief executive Dave Laws (left) and THE BOSS of Leeds-Bradford airport has claimed
Doubtfire said it was a natural progression
Jet2.com chief executive Philip Meeson the region is so under-served by flights that local
as the Jet2 brand was known in cities such as demand will not be met even with Ryanair dupli-
Sheffield in the northern part of East Midlands’ East Midlands chief executive Penny Coates cating Jet2 services on popular short-haul routes.
catchment area. said Jet2’s routes would fill in gaps in the Chief executive John Parkin said there was
Doubtfire said a second aircraft could be airport’s portfolio because research showed the room for both Jet2 and Ryanair to grow at Leeds
placed at East Midlands within three years if routes would meet demand from local customers because it was “probably the most under-served
demand took off as expected. Placing the initial who were currently travelling outside the area to major catchment area in the UK.”
aircraft there will create 250 jobs. other airports farther away. Ryanair is duplicating eight of Jet2’s routes but
Parkin claimed there was enough demand for
both airlines to fly the routes profitably.
AGENTS’ REACTION.
“If we were at 100% of the marketplace
‘Carrier must improve support’
for Malaga and Palma I could understand the
argument that this is duplication, but we are not
even beginning to meet the demand. We have to
AGENTS have welcomed Jet2’s expansion and One agent, Mark Littlejohns of Complete Travel provide the flying the region wants,” he said.
fight back against Ryanair but said the airline Solutions, said Jet2 was the better airline and Parkin said Jet2’s use of Boeing 757s, with a
needs to improve its trade support to be sure of had better flight times but Ryanair was £100 longer range than Ryanair’s B737s, meant there
their backing. cheaper on one of the Leeds routes where the were many routes
They said they wanted to support an alterna- airlines were head to head. where Ryanair
tive to Ryanair but often had to put customers “For a family of four the savings are huge. I’m could not com-
on the Irish no-frills carrier because its fares not a Ryanair fan but if the price is right, brand pete with Jet2.
were cheaper. loyalty does not come into it,” he said. Parkin refused
Jet2 encourages agents to book its flights and Jet2 group trade sales manager Alan Cross to comment on
add a mark-up, and its sister tour operator said the company now offered a dedicated trade claims that Leeds
Jet2holidays pays commission on packages. after-sales support freephone number for a team had effectively al-
But agents complained on
ttglive.com that in Leeds, on 0800 408 5598. lowed Ryanair to
Jet2’s web pricing was as confusing as Ryanair’s He added that trade sales for Jet2holidays in Leeds/Bradford airport bosses celebrate operate from the
and its call centre in India was a “nightmare”. August were up year-on-year. Ryanair’s arrival with Michael O’Leary (right) airport for free.
12 04.09.2009
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