2008 Articles

EasyJet named best low-cost airline

EasyJet was named the world's best low-cost airline at the Official Airline Guide (OAG) Airline Industry Awards in London this week.

The airline beat off competition from jetBlue, Jetstar Airways, Ryanair and Southwest Airlines to take the award.

EasyJet offers flights to a number of destinations from its Gatwick Airport base, including Rome, Lisbon and Athens, as well as hotspots such as Malaga from Manchester Airport and Ibiza from Liverpool Airport.
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Emirates reaches milestone at Newcastle

Emirates recently reached the milestone of carrying the 100,000th passenger on its route between Newcastle Airport and Dubai.

The 100,000th traveller on the service was Michael Reay, a company director who uses the connection to travel to the United Arab Emirates for business reasons.

When checking in for his flight, Mr Reay was presented with a gift of two return economy class tickets from Newcastle to Dubai.
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BA's long-haul T5 transfer off to a good start

British Airways' transfer of the first of its long-haul services to Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport has gone smoothly, according to reports.

The first two long-haul flights into Heathrow, from the Nigerian city of Lagos and New York, landed on time at 05:55 and 06:25 on the morning of June 5th, the Press Association reports.

BA was particularly eager to ensure that the services were handled well, allocating extra staff to avoid a repeat of the shambolic opening of Terminal 5 in March.
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BAA secures funding for airport development

People flying from some of the UK's major airports should see a number of improved facilities and services over the coming years after operator BAA secured a new funding package.

BAA agreed a deal with banks for additional financing of £7.65 billion, which will allow it to redevelop large parts of Heathrow and Stansted, the Times reports.

One of the major changes that travellers will welcome is the creation of Heathrow East, a new complex that will replace the airport's existing first and second terminals.
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Sanjeev Bhaskar joins Spamalot

Sanjeev Bhaskar, the former star of popular TV sketch show Goodness Gracious Me, is set to join the cast of West End comedy musical Spamalot.

The actor will take over the role of King Arthur from June 23rd.

Spamalot, which is a theatre spin-off of the film Monty Python and the Holy Grail, will not represent Bhaskar's first appearance in the West End, as he previously starred in Art at the Whitehall Theatre.
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Non-euro countries 'to prove popular'

Travel company Cox and Kings has predicted that holidays outside the eurozone could be a popular option for Brits this year owing to the low value of the pound against the euro.

Current exchange rates mean that £1 is worth just over €1.25, meaning that Brits' spending power on the continent has been cut by around 20 per cent compared to last year.

Cox and Kings claims that its booking patterns show an interest in European countries that are yet to adopt the single currency.
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Stansted to remember shuttle visit

Travellers staying in airport hotels at London Stansted this week will have more than the usual aircraft movements to keep them entertained as the airport hosts an exhibition to mark a significant moment in its past.

In June 1983, Nasa's space shuttle Enterprise made a historic visit to Stansted Airport.

To mark the 25th anniversary of this occasion, the airport will host a special exhibition at Enterprise House, featuring footage of the shuttle landing, rare photographs and other memorabilia.
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KD Avia celebrates a year of UK flights

Russian airline KD Avia has celebrated the first anniversary of its inaugural flight into the UK by opening a new route to the city of Yekaterinburg.

The city is one of the main stops on the famous trans-Siberian railway.

KD Avia's first flight to the UK landed at Gatwick Airport on June 16th and the airline now operates a daily service to its hub at Kaliningrad, offering connections to 12 cities in Russia.
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Stansted to see new Germany connection

Stansted Airport will boast more access to Germany later this year when Ryanair launches a new service from its London base.

The low-fares airline will offer a new route from London Stansted to Zweibrucken, in western Germany close to the country's border with France, from October 28th.

Zweibrucken is reportedly known as Germany's 'city of roses and horses'.
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Heathrow to host more A380 services

Heathrow Airport is set to see more of the Airbus A380 after Singapore Airlines announced that it is to increase its services to London using the giant plane.

The carrier will offer an additional A380 service on its Singapore-London route on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays.

This change will increase the number of weekly flights that use the Airbus superjumbo from seven to 11.
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Bmibaby launches from Birmingham to Warsaw

Travellers in the West Midlands can now fly directly from Birmingham Airport to Warsaw, the capital of Poland, with bmibaby.

The airline opened the new connection on May 27th and expects to carry more than 700 people between the two cities in the route's first week.

Crawford Rix, managing director of the airline, said that the inaugural flight was 95 per cent full and described the number of forward bookings as "extremely encouraging".
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