86 | TRADE NEWS


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Hays Travel Announces First Acquisition of New Financial Year


Peter Cookson, former Managing Director of Spear Travels said:


“Naturally selling the business that Libby, Derek and I have worked so hard to build over the past 30 years is a difficult decision. However, we are comforted knowing that our team has found a new work family in Hays Travel. All jobs are safe, and the team now have more opportunities for development and career progression – there will be little disruption to day-to-day activity.”


HAYS Travel has announced its first acquisition of the new financial year, which began 1 May 2025, as it takes over The Spears Travel Group. This comes almost a year to the day since the Group acquired Miles Morgan Travel and its 19


easyJet Holidays Appoints


New Head of Partnerships & Destination Policy


EASYJET holidays has appointed a new Head of Partnerships & Destination Policy to lead its commercial partnerships and destination policy division. Antonia Bouka has joined the business following her most recent leadership role as Global Head of Destination Policy & Government Relations at TUI Group. Prior to that, Antonia held the role of General Manager Tourist Board and Partnerships for TUI Northern Europe. Besides TUI Group, Antonia has also held other roles within the travel industry, working for Hilton International and American Express Travel Services. Antonia Bouka, easyJet holidays’ new Head of Partnerships and Destination Policy said: “I’m excited to be joining easyJet holidays at such a pivotal time for the business. I look forward to developing innovative partnerships and strengthening our network across our destinations,


supporting the company’s ambitious growth plans.”


THE government have announced plans which will enable the largest redesign of UK Airspace since it was first formed in the 1950s, when there were only around 200,000 flights per year, compared to the 2.7 million recorded in 2024. This change means that holiday-makers


will be able to enjoy quicker flights and fewer delays as part of new laws set out to open up new and more direct routes, propelling airport expansion and boosting growth. The new UK Airspace Design Service is set to be operational by the end of 2025.


on redesigning London’s airspace,


Initially, the UKADS’ focus will be with


expansion at Heathrow alone expected to create over 100,000 extra jobs and turbocharge economic growth.


These plans will offer increased capacity, driving growth and thousands of jobs in


the aviation and tourism sectors, as well as reducing delays and emissions per flight resulting from planes circling in the sky while waiting to land.


The measures will help secure the long- term future of the sector and make it more resilient to disruption. The plans come as global forecasts show a near doubling of passengers and cargo in the next 20 years. Steve Heapy, Chief Executive Officer of Jet2 & Jet2holidays, commented on the announcement stating that, “we have been calling for the modernisation of airspace for years, as it has been proven to be a key driver in achieving CO2 reductions.” Steve continued, “this announcement is excellent news and we are now calling for swift action so that the decarbonisation and passenger experience benefits can be realised as soon as possible.”


branches, which grew to 20 recently with the opening of Trowbridge. Hays Travel has said it has no plans to rebrand the 12 shops, the majority of which are located in communities without Hays Travel branches.


Dame Irene Hays said: “Spear Travels is an excellent fit for us – their product mix of land, cruise, and touring holidays aligns with our core objectives, and we have much to learn from each other. “I have enormous respect for Peter, Libby and Derek. They have built excellent, trusted brands in Spear Travels, Broads Travel, and Regent Travel. They have a loyal and growing customer base, cared for by great people with exceptional expertise and experience, who we are delighted to welcome into the Hays Travel family. I wish Peter, Libby, and Derek every happiness and success with the next chapter of their journey.”


Government Announces ‘Largest Redesign’ of UK Airspace


July/August 2025


Luke Smith Joins Crystal in the Newly Created Role of VP Sales UK & EMEA


CRYSTAL has announced the appointment of Luke Smith in the newly-created role of VP Sales UK & EMEA. Luke, who starts at Crystal on Monday 2nd June,


will be an


instrumental addition to the team,


bringing a


wealth of experience and expertise that will enable the company to further support its trade partners and achieve strategic growth in the UK and across Europe.


Luke joins from Carnival Cruise Line where he held a number of positions including, most recently, Director, UK & International Sales where he was responsible for managing the sales team function for all international markets outside of USA, Canada and Australia. With over 15 years’ experience in the cruise industry, Luke has an in-depth understanding of the industry and a proven track record of increasing market share and leading innovative sales initiatives.


Within his new role Luke will be responsible


for driving trade sales


distribution across the UK and EMEA as well as overseeing the performance of agency sales, managing inside sales functions and collaborating closely with the marketing team to ensure optimal exposure and results. Luke will report to Matias Lira, Crystal’s Senior Vice President, Trade Sales – Americas, UK & EMEA.


Matias Lira comments: “I am delighted to welcome Luke to the team and am confident that his knowledge, experience and impressive track record will prove invaluable as we continue to expand our sales presence within these important markets. Luke Smith adds: “I’m excited to be joining Crystal and working closely with the great team that we already have in place. Our trade partners are going to be pivotal to our success going forward and so my primary focus will be on them, how we can work together as a true partnership and what they need from us both commercially and in order to fully understand what makes Crystal exceptional compared with our competition. There is work to be done and I am open to feedback and honest conversation with trade partners across all markets to ensure that we build long- lasting and successful relationships.”


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