Once we get to a point to demonstrate there is enough demand to put a flight on, we have numerous airlines who would be happy to put a flight on, but we have to get to that balance right. What we can’t do is subsidise it with huge amounts of public money.”
Numerous airlines? Wonder who?
Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchenalso stressed that the numbers had to stack up. He said: “We don’t think it’s wise to subsidise routes that as soon as the subsidy is pulled then those routes fail.”
Thought he'd previously said routes weren't subsidised?
He added that Newcastle Airport and Leeds Bradford Airport had both recently cut flights to Heathrow. In December, it was announced that flights to Belfast and Dublin would be axed from Teesside Airport from March this year.
Airports don't cut flights, airlines do. Given the train times, all recent LBA-LHR flights have looked like slot sitters rather than commercially viable services. BA also regularly change NCL-LHR flights on a seasonal basis.
Latest NCL stats for LHR - 2022-11 = 40.4k, 2019-11 = 39k