UK Airport Guide

Extension plan for Cardiff Airport approved

2010-03-11T15:09:00.001+01:00

The multi-million-pound extension to the terminal at Cardiff Airport has been approved with works scheduled to start later this year.

The £5M+ improvement will link the arrivals and departures halls into one large area and add new food and retail premises.

The new building will have a contemporary design and the first floor of the terminal will become “airside” as the security control point to access the departures lounge is relocated to the first floor. The approach area in front of the terminal building will also be redesigned.

Plans for a dedicated airport express bus have also been announced. It will be a limited-stop service between Cardiff Airport and Cardiff city centre. The start date has yet to be announced.

Jet2 Launches New Routes From East Midlands Airport

2010-03-11T15:05:00.002+01:00

Jet2.com has welcomed the first of its aircraft to East Midlands Airport has welcomed the first of Jet2’s aircraft as it launches new routes on May 19th with flights to Lanzarote, Corfu, Dalaman, Heraklion, Paphos, Tenerife and Sharm el Sheikh.

The airline will service the routes from Nottingham Airaport using Boeing 757s which offer greater comfort and range than the usual carriers.

Continental Airlines Passengers face charge for extra legroom in economy class

2010-03-05T13:07:00.002+01:00

Continental Airlines flies to the United States from seven UK Airports: Bristol Airport, Birmingham, Manchester, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Belfast and London Heathrow.

From the middle of April it is introducing a £130 levy on exit row seats which have an additional seven inches of legroom. This would add 33% to the airline's cheapest return ticket to Newark which is one of the airports serving New York.

In the past passengers have not been expected to pay extra for different seats in the same cabin. But gradually cash-strapped carriers have imposed additional charges. The price will vary according to the length of the flight and also demand on the day so passengers will only be told of the additional cost when they check in at the airport. A charge of £65 for a one-way flight across the Atlantic has been given a 'guide' price by Continental, but they have also said it would be based on 'market demand' and admitted it could go even higher.

Last year British Airways announced fees for passengers who wanted to choose their seat in advance. It put a £50 price tag on exit row seats, and £20 for anyone picking an aisle or window seat. However it does not push the price up when a plane is full. Given that airlines tend to follow one another, similar charges could be introduced by other carriers.

Continental introduce paperless boarding passes at Heathrow Airport

2010-02-26T11:42:00.002+01:00

Continental Airlines have launched a mobile boarding pass service to London’s Heathrow Airport, allowing customers to receive boarding passes electronically on their mobile phones or PDAs.

Continental will be the first to offer the service on direct flights from the UK to the USA. The passes work by displaying a bar code encrypting the passenger and flight information which are scanned. Through their mobiles customers can track their flight.

Continental was the first airline to offer paperless passes in the USA and currently offers the service in 42 airports. It is increasing its number of flights from Heathrow to New York and Houston, where the passes will be used.

New charter routes from Norwich Airport

2010-02-25T13:01:00.003+01:00

Despite a 30% drop in passengers travelling to and from Norwich Airport last year, Managing Director Elliott Summers predicts that an expansion in the number of charter flights this year will stimulate growth with 475,000 passengers forecast in the 2010/11 financial year.

Eight new charter routes from Norwich Airport have been confirmed: including Tenerife, Bulgaria, Madeira, Portugal, Tunisia and Guernsey. There is also the possibility of new domestic services from Norwich to Newcastle, Belfast, Dublin, Glasgow, Brussels and Dusseldorf.

Summers also said the airport had also seen about 10% growth in helicopter passengers on routes serving the offshore oil and gas industry. The controversial £5 airport development fee (ADF), charged to all departing passengers will remain in force this year but will not be increased.

Norwich Airport has had a difficult few years: in 2008 scheduled flights to three Spanish airports were axed just months after they started when airline LTE collapsed and Flybe cut its Glasgow and Paris routes.

50th Anniversary Celebrations of Elvis Arriving at Prestwick Airport

2010-02-24T12:46:00.003+01:00

Elvis Presley landed at Glasgow Prestwick Airport for his plane to refuel on his way home after two years’ military service in Germany fifty years ago on March 3rd 1960.

Prestwick Airport is now keen to celebrate perhaps the most famous stopover in Scottish history and passengers, fans and visitors will be treated to a show starting next Wednesday morning with “Elvis” landing in full sergeant’s uniform at the airport and being met by the paparazzi.

Throughout the day performers which include the MacDonald Brothers and students from Strathclyde University will take to the stage in the main terminal concourse to perform Elvis songs. The UK’s top “young Elvis impersonator”, Lee Jackson, will be flying in from his tour in Germany to perform many of his idol’s hits.

Amongst the highlights of the day will be a Best Dressed Elvis competition, with the winner receiving free flight tickets to a destination of their choice.The Elvis Cleaning Company will also be on hand to ensure the concourse is kept clean and tidy.

The free event is being sponsored by South Ayrshire Council, West FM and local companies. Parking will cost £1 on the day and all profits will go to the children’s charity Clic Sergent.

Gatwick shuttle to start operating again in July

2010-02-23T12:41:00.002+01:00

Work on London Gatwick Airport’s new inter-terminal shuttle is coming along with the new carriages now on the track. In an operation which took over two days six new cars, each weighing 14 tonnes, were lifted on to the track that runs between the North and South Terminals.

The cars will now be fully testes to ensure they are ready to carry passengers with the new shuttle service now scheduled to start operating in July which is a month ahead of schedule.

The £44 million project has involved refurbishing the track and the stations and will provide a state-of-the-art service as annual passenger numbers grow to around 40 million over the next few years. It replaces the original system which was installed in 1987 and removed from service last September. It completed more than two and a half million miles over 20 years, which is equivalent to 100 times around the earth or five return trips to the moon.

Virgin Offer Duty Free Vouchers During Summer

2009-07-02T17:19:00.002+02:00

Virgin Atlantic Airways has launched a shopping incentive to promote online check-in during the summer holidays. Passengers travelling from London Heathrow Airport, Manchester Airport or Glasgow Airport between July 1 and August 31 will receive vouchers worth £6 ($9.85) off any inflight duty-free purchases of £30 ($49) or more.

Glasgow Airport To Become Fashion Centre

2009-07-02T16:41:00.001+02:00

Glasgow Airport is set to literally become one of the most fashionable airports in the UK after the retail consortium McArthurGlen announced plans to open 11 stores as part of its multi-million pound revamp which is scheduled for autumn/winter 2009.

The company said the shops would feature young and directional fashion brands eager to capture an annual audience of 4 million departing passengers. The stores will be in Glasgow Airport’s £31m Skyhub terminal extension, which opened in October 2008 and provides state-of-the-art security screening and more space for travellers.

The new look departure lounge will be selling full price fashion labels through stores such as Collezioni that will be part of the stylish, curved avenue of stores. Glasgow is the first UK airport to welcome the collection which already occupies areas of Venice, Porto and Dublin airports.The centre's launch later this year is expected to further enhance the nearby city's reputation as the largest retailing city outside London and as a leading fashion centre.

No more flights to New York from Gatwick Airport

2009-06-23T15:15:00.007+02:00

British Airways is ceasing operation of its Gatwick-New York route in October this year. It will mean that following earlier withdrawals by Virgin Atlantic, Delta Air Lines and Continental this is the first time in 25 years that Gatwick Airport will not fly to the Big Apple.

The cancellation of the route is due to disappointing premium traffic, and BA is now planning to launch the first transatlantic service from the much smaller London City airport.

It is a business-class-only service on an Airbus 318 an requires a fuel stop at Ireland's Shannon Airport en route to New York, but the airline said that passengers would be able to do US customs clearance during the stop. Eastbound flights will be nonstop.

Gatwick Airport for Sale

2008-09-17T10:11:00.004+02:00

BAA has today announced its intention to sell Gatwick Airport, which is the UK's second busiest airport after Heathrow handling 35 million passengers last year.

They currently own Heathrow, Stansted and Scotland's three biggest airports and say that selling London Gatwick Airport would be of benefit to the business, customers and staff.

Their decision follows a report from the Competition Commission last month which identified significant competition problems because of BAA's dominant position and proposed that they stop running two of their three London airports.

BAA want to continue to operate their three other South East airports (which include Southampton) and its three Scottish hubs. However the Competition Commission may well order BAA to also sell Stansted Airport as well as either Glasgow or Edinburgh Airport.

Virgin Atlantic, owned by Sir Richard Branson, immediately stated that they are very interested in this proposal and want to join a bidding consortium for London Gatwick Airport.

Ryanair Launch New Ski Routes From Birmingham

2008-09-03T15:55:00.003+02:00

Ryanair has announced two new winter ski routes from Birmingham International Airport to France and Italy.

The new destinations are Grenoble, France and Cuneo, near Milan, Italy. The routes will run weekly from the 20th December until April. This brings Ryanair's route schedule for 2008/2009 to 101 routes - up 40% on last year.

Ryanair Fuel Rations

2008-09-01T13:20:00.002+02:00

Ryanair pilots have declared 'insane' new measures imposed to cap the amount of fuel reserves pilots can carry on flights. Pilots no longer have discretionary rights to request extra fuel.

According to The Times Online, a memo was sent to pilots in which it stated that they must now carry a maximum of 300kg of oxtra fuel, which equates to just 4 minutes of extra stacking time for a Boeing 737. Under European rules, planes must carry 5% of their load as extra contingency fuel, which should be enough to carry out an approach, divert to another airport, or hold for 30 minutes at another airport. The safety implications are obvious and very disturbing.

In the light of current oil prices, surely it's time for the airlines to re-visit their pricing strategy? Safety can not be compromised amid cost-cutting measures.

Emergency Landing After Fire On Gatwick Bound Flight

2008-08-29T11:39:00.001+02:00

A Thomsonfly holiday flight from Pula, Croatia to Gatwick Airport was forced to make an emergency landing following an on-board fire.

The Boeing 737-800 had reached 3000ft after take off when staff became aware of black smoke filling the cabin.

The captain returned the plane to Pula in an emergency landing, where the plane was greeted by a fleet of fire engines.

The pilot was praised for his quick reactions, and although passengers were shaken, nobody was injured.

UK Airport Strike Called Off

2008-08-21T12:45:00.003+02:00

Baggage handlers and cabin crew at Stansted, Gatwick and Manchester airports have called off a series of 24 hour strikes.

Strikes were due to take place on bank holiday Monday and 29th August at the london airports, and on the 27th August at Manchester airport. This weekend is one of the busiest holiday weekends of the year, so the strikes would have been sure to cause a great deal of disruption for travellers.

A separate strike is still going ahead at Stansted airport involving over 30 security scanner operators. This will take place on Monday, although Stansted airport have issued a statement stating that the strike would cause "minimal, if any" disruption.

BA Launches Ad Campaign To Promote Terminal 5

2008-08-06T11:14:00.003+02:00

Following the monumental fiasco that was the opening of the new terminal 5 building at Heathrow, BA have launched the 'T5 is working' campaign.

The campaign will be seen across all media channels, and will last for 38 days. It will feature real people using the terminal, and will focus on the customer experience, tracking their journey through the terminal.

Customer feedback suggests that things have improved greatly at the terminal, so hopefully the problems of the first few weeks are well and truly a thing of the past.

Mobile Use On Flights One Step Closer

2008-07-31T11:02:00.002+02:00

Communications watchdog, Ofcom, has given the green light to the use of mobile phones during flights.

Security concerns were raised, as mobile phones are capable of triggering a bomb explosion. There is also concern that the use of mobiles may annoy fellow passengers, leading to air-rage incidents.

Several bodies still have to approve the use of mobiles on flights, including the European Commission and Civil Aviation Authority.

Ryanair's Profits Fall

2008-07-30T10:25:00.003+02:00

The recent increases in oil prices are continuing to take their toll on the aviation industry, with Ryanair announcing that at best they hoped to break even this year.

Profit results for the first quarter of 2008 show a fall of 85% to €21m (£16.6m). However, chief executive Michael O'Leary announced that he expected flight prices to fall later in the year, as consumer confidence continues to wane.

Ryanair made a smart move recently, when oil prices dipped, hedging fuel prices for the rest of the year.

More Delays, Less Complaints!

2008-07-24T14:06:00.003+02:00

Flight delays from UK airports are becoming increasingly common, with average delays for charter flights being 25 minutes, and scheduled flights 17 minutes.

The worst offenders were Heathrow Airport, Gatwick Airport and Edinburgh Airport, with between 33 and 42% delayed flights.

The official airline consumer watchdog, the Air Transport Users Council, reported just over 11,000 complaints in the year 2007 / 2008. Nearly half of these complaints were about delayed or cancelled flights, although there were significantly less complaints than the previous year.

So why are we putting up with more delays? It could be that airports now have much better shopping, catering and leisure facilities to keep us occupied while we wait. It could also be that we are simply getting used to all the delays, especially since the introduction of higher level security checks which means more hanging around.

The more cynically inclined could be forgiven for thinking that airport delays were contrived to make us spend more money at the airport terminals!

New Restaurant At Bristol Airport

2008-07-14T14:19:00.002+02:00

Bristol Airport has announced the opening of its first table service restaurant, Dexter's Chargrill & Bar.

The new restaurant has been developed in partnership with the Clapham House Group, whose interests include The Real Greek, The Bombay Bicycle Club, Gourmet Burger Kitchen, Dexters and Tootsies brands.

Dexter's is located airside, and is an American-style family restaurant serving a health-conscious all-day menu. Dishes include a superfood salad and traditional burgers. The restaurant is child-friendly, and has a specially developed Junior menu, created by well known children's food and nutrition expert, Annabel Karmel.

Easyjet Announces New Manchester Routes

2008-07-14T12:50:00.002+02:00

Easyjet has announced the launch of two new routes from Manchester Airport, starting this December. The new destinations are Sofia, Bulgaria, and Geneva, Switzerland.

The new routes will be good news for people wanting to book winter ski holidays in the Alps, and also for those who have bought second homes in Bulgaria.

Faster Visa Processing Between UK And US

2008-07-07T12:48:00.003+02:00

UK and US governments have signed an agreement to develop a 'trusted traveller initiative', allowing pre-screened travellers fast-track processing when arriving in the other country.

Under the agreement, the two governments will work to create a special channel for these travellers and develop fingerprint, iris or facial recognition technology to speed up border controls whilst maintaining security.

The programme is aimed at those regular trusted travellers, such as those working in large international corporations, who frequently travel between the two countries. They will undergo an enrollment and pre-screening process.

Virgin Launches Glasgow - Orlando Route

2008-06-25T10:50:00.002+02:00

Virgin Atlantic celebrated the inaugural flight from Glasgow Airport to Orlando Airport on Saturday.

The new service will run every saturday throughout the summer, coinciding with the school holiday season. It will then restart in time for the October half term break, and again in April for the Easter holidays.

The service is being operated in conjunction with Virgin Holidays.

Manchester City Airport Wins Award

2008-06-25T10:42:00.002+02:00

Manchester Airport has been awarded the Best Airport Award 2008 by the Airports Council International Europe.

The airport was the winner of the 10-25 million passenger category, and was praised for 'its simple, innovative approach to attracting airlines'.

Luton Airport Introduce £1 Trolley Charge

2008-06-23T12:32:00.002+02:00

Luton Airport has announced that passengers will soon be charged £1 to use the airport luggage trolleys. New trolleys are expected to arrive at the airport on the 26th July.

The £1 charge will not be refunded after use, a move which has caused outrage amongst some passengers, who feel that airlines and airports are charging for every single service possible.

The scheme is already in place at Bristol Airport, and could be seen in more airports across the UK.