2008 Articles

New capital connections for Stansted

Stansted Airport will host flight launches to two new capital cities in Europe this week.

Aegean Airlines will launch twice-daily flights to Athens in Greece, while Lithuanian Airlines will offer a direct connection to Vilnius, the European Capital of Culture for 2009.

Nick Barton, strategy and solutions director at Stansted, claimed that the airport offers more direct scheduled connections throughout Europe than any other hub.
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Leeds to host new connection to New York

Jet2.com has announced it will begin flights from Leeds/Bradford Airport to New York starting in November.

Travellers are urged to book early as the airline's first ever transatlantic trips from the Yorkshire airport are expected to sell out quickly.

Richard Bodin, managing director at Jet2holidays.com, said: "This is an important announcement for us.
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BA to move more flights to T5

British Airways (BA) is to move flights to eight long-haul destinations from their current Terminal 4 base at Heathrow Airport to Terminal 5.

The transfers, the most high-profile of which will involve the airline's connection to New York JFK, will take place on June 5th.

Abuja, Bangalore, Beijing, Cairo, Cape Town, Lagos and Phoenix will be the other destinations that will receive flights from Terminal 5.
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Tourism group wants more flights to Scotland

Edinburgh Airport, Glasgow Airport and other Scottish hubs could be handling more flights in the future after VisitScotland called on the government to enable more direct services to and from Scotland.

Speaking to members of the Scottish parliament, VisitScotland chief executive Philip Riddle called for the reinstatement of the Route Development Fund, which was operated by the previous executive but discontinued, the Press and Journal reports.

The fund was originally set up to encourage growth in the number of flights in and out of Scotland.
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Cardiff entertained by Fame Academy star

People passing through Cardiff Airport were treated to an unusual sight recently when Fame Academy star James Fox sang in the terminal.

The performance was in recognition of the fact that the airport raised more than £4,000 for the Velindre Cancer Centre.

Velindre is the largest cancer centre in Wales and was adopted as Cardiff Airport's charity of the year for 2007-08.
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Birmingham launches flights to Hamburg

Birmingham Airport was brought to life with a party atmosphere this week as it hosted the launch of a new service to Hamburg.

Lufthansa will offer six flights a week between the West Midlands and the German city.

Jennifer Dienst was one of the passengers on the inaugural flight and was given a bottle of champagne and tickets for flights to any destination on the Lufthansa network from Birmingham.
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Cast changes for Chicago

A number of cast changes will take place in the West End show Chicago from June 2nd, according to reports.

Anna Jane Casey will play Velma Kelly, one of the musical's lead roles, while Victor McGuire and Sue Kelvin will also return as Amos Hart and Mama Morton.

It has already been announced that Suzanne Shaw, former pop star and winner of TV show Dancing on Ice, will play the character of Roxie Hart from June 2nd.
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Annual holidays 'a necessity for many'

The annual holiday that used to be seen as a luxury is now considered a necessity for many British holidaymakers, according to a travel industry spokesman.

US research carried out by Kayak.com in April this year found that 79 per cent of travellers had altered holiday plans as a result of financial problems.

The troubles in the US economy have had knock-on effects in the UK and people are expected to cut back on spending over the coming months.
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New long-haul services take off from Newcastle

Newcastle Airport played host to the launch of two new long-haul routes from the north-east of England over the bank holiday weekend.

New flights to Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic and Cancun in Mexico took off for the first time on May 4th and 5th respectively.

According to Newcastle Airport, the launches marked the beginning of its summer season.
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Ryanair launches from Birmingham to Marseille

Budget airline Ryanair has launched a new service connecting England's West Midlands with the south of France.

The airline's service between Birmingham Airport and Marseille will operate three days a week and is expected to bring an additional 40,000 passengers through the hub in its first year.

Birmingham is Ryanair's 25th base and will host flights to 20 destinations provided by the carrier this year.
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'No doubt' that regional airports will thrive

One of the bosses of Leeds/Bradford Airport has claimed there is absolutely no doubt that regional hubs around the UK are set to continue to grow and rise in popularity.

Tony Hallwood, commercial and aviation development director at the airport, said that regional bases are beginning to offer competition to traditionally dominant London hubs such as Heathrow Airport and Gatwick Airport.

"As [regional] airports introduce more destinations and more choice with a wider number of scheduled airlines, there is now less need for people to trawl down to London to connect to flights worldwide," he said.
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