Eastern fighting back??
I received the following email from Eastern today:
Thursday 31 January 2008
NORTH EAST TRAVELLERS BENEFIT FROM EXPANSION OF SERVICES
UK regional airline, Eastern Airways will provide north east business travellers with even greater choice of services and extra capacity as it significantly develops four city routes from Newcastle International Airport.
Increasing services to Aberdeen, Southampton, Cardiff and Stavanger in Norway is all part of Eastern Airways’ expansion plans at Newcastle where it has operated a comprehensive schedule to UK destinations since 2003 and is also the North East’s most punctual scheduled airline*.
From 3 March 2008, Eastern Airways will increase weekday services from 5 to 6 flights a day to Aberdeen, from 3 to 4 a day to Southampton and from 1 to 2 a day to Stavanger to meet demand. The Newcastle to Cardiff service will also increase from 2 to 3 flights each weekday from 7 April 2008.
The introduction of a larger 50 seat Saab 2000 aircraft will also increase seat capacity by 60% between Newcastle and Aberdeen and 55% between Newcastle and Southampton with the airline also offering good value day return options.
Aberdeen has strong connections with the north east as it is Europe’s energy capital with the buoyant offshore oil industry, while Norway is the third largest exporter of oil in the world with most energy companies located in Stavanger.
Southampton is steeped in maritime history with a world class port for cruise liners and has key business links with the north east, particularly in the petrochemical, pharmaceutical, finance, insurance, automotive, manufacturing and construction industries. Cardiff is one of the UK’s fastest growing cities with a variety of industry sectors.
Chris Holliday, Eastern Airways’ chief operating officer, said: “We’ve provided the business community with a comprehensive network of routes from Newcastle for many years and this latest expansion demonstrates our commitment to providing the best business schedules from the north east. Our high frequency services offer north east business travellers great flexibility to help them maximise their day visits. As well as further enhancing services, we will also introduce larger Saab aircraft on flights from Newcastle to Aberdeen and Southampton to meet demand.”
“We’re delighted to hear of Eastern Airways’ significant expansion at Newcastle,” said Dave Laws, Newcastle International Airport’s chief executive. “This will greatly increase flexibility and choice of departure on all four routes and should stimulate extra passenger demand.”
Stacy Hall, Director of Communications and Tourism for One NorthEast, said: “It is fantastic to see Eastern Airways demonstrating their confidence in the region with the launch of these new flights. Connectivity is a crucial element in stimulating business growth, improving our ability to attract investment and raising our profile nationally and internationally, which is why we work closely with the region’s airports in making the case for investment in the North East.”
Passengers flying with Eastern Airways from Newcastle also benefit from a dedicated fast track security channel to avoid any queues at the search area.
Eastern Airways also flies from Newcastle to Birmingham and the Isle of Man.