EuroManx moves terminals at Manchester Airport

Isle of Man airline EuroManx has announced that it has moved its operations at Manchester Airport, promising passengers a speedier journey through check-in.

The airline was based at Terminal 1, but from yesterday (March 30) passengers will be able to check-in at desk 15 in Terminal 3, a move that EuroManx believes will benefit its customers.

Manchester airport begins easyJet services

easyJet has begun services from Manchester, the low-cost carrier announced today (March 31).

The airline said that it would be operating six routes from the airport, including flights to Heraklion, Malaga, Malta, Paphos, and Tenerife - and in celebration of the launch it would be touring the city in an orange bus offering easyJet prices.

An estimated half a million passengers are expected to travel with easyJet from Manchester over the next 12 months, the airline added.

Monarch offers savings on getaway flights

Book by midnight April 1: Monarch is offering at least £20 off return flights as part of its £15 million sale.

Fares are for travel from various UK airports, including Gatwick and Luton, and travel must be between April 1 and July 14. Destinations include Alicante, Malaga and Ibiza.

The sale applies to online scheduled flight bookings only, with discounts varying according to travel date and route.

A selection of routes included in the offer is listed below.

Flybe launches new summer routes

Flybe has launched 34 new summer routes to destinations across the UK and Europe.

Flights include two new Loganair routes from Dundee to Birmingham and Belfast, as well as year round routes from Jersey to Paris Charles de Gaulle and Dublin to Glasgow.

Fares on summer routes start at £18.99, including taxes and charges, with seats available for booking throughout the summer at www.flybe.com.

Cancellations continue at Terminal 5

Passengers travelling through Terminal 5 could face another week of flight cancellations.

British Airways has cancelled 54 of the 394 in and outbound services that were planned for operation today (March 31), as well as 52 of the 392 services scheduled for tomorrow.

A total of 208 flights in and out of Heathrow Airport were cancelled during the first three days of Terminal 5's opening on Thursday (March 27).

Open Skies agreement comes into force

European airlines are set to benefit after a new agreement, which sees the lifting of 70-year-old restrictions on transatlantic travel, came into force yesterday (March 30).

The Open Skies agreement allows European and American airlines to operate services on any route between the US and Europe, meaning that many airlines will now be able to increase the number of flights and destinations that they offer.

Weekly news round-up

Another week of special offers and new routes has passed, with several airlines offering passengers the chance to escape this spring for less. Air Canada offered discounted getaways to Canada in April, May and June, while Ryanair extended its lowest fare guarantee into September. Flybe also offered flyers free tickets on flights to and from Dublin, in celebration of its two-year anniversary of the route from Norwich.

British Airways announced new services to Alicante, Gibraltar and Malta, among other destinations, and Bristol International revealed that preparations were underway for the launch of new daily services to Germany by airline Lufthansa, starting on March 31.

Special Offers
Ryanair extends lowest fare guarantee
Low-cost carrier Ryanair has extended its lowest fare guarantee to cover all bookings made up to and including September 30.

Air Canada offers discounted spring fares
Book by April 10: Air Canada is offering discounted fares to various destinations in Canada from London Heathrow.

BA issues new apology for Terminal 5 disruption

British Airways issued a new statement today (March 27) apologising for the chaos caused by baggage delays at Terminal 5 yesterday.

The airline's chief executive Willie Walsh said that he took "responsibility for what happened", adding "the buck stops with me".

"Yesterday was definitely not British Airways' finest hour. We disappointed many people and I apologise sincerely," he said.

Passengers prepare for a second day of disruption at Terminal 5

Terminal 5 is bracing itself for yet another day of chaos at the newly opened £4.3 billion facility, after 34 flights were cancelled yesterday (March 27).

British Airways, the sole occupier of the new terminal, blamed the problems on a lack of staff to properly process luggage using the building's new baggage system.

This was the result of delays in the staff car park and at security and log in, which meant that the baggage handlers had difficulty reporting for duty, leading to the operational problems throughout the day associated with processing customers' baggage, said the airline.

Free flights to Dublin with Flybe

In order to celebrate Flybe’s second anniversary of flying between Norwich and Dublin, the airline is offering 200 free return tickets for the route.

Passengers are being invited to email freedublinflights@flybe.com to claim their free flights, with tickets being offered on a first come first served basis. Potential flyers need to leave their email address, passenger names and a telephone contact number.

Outbound flights must be taken by March 31, while return trips must be taken by April 3.

Air Canada offers discounted spring fares

Book by April 10: Air Canada is offering discounted fares to various destinations in Canada from London Heathrow.

The offer applies to outbound travel in April, May and June, with fares shown including taxes. However, these may vary depending on destination and weekend surcharges also apply.

Minimum stay is one Saturday night, while the maximum stay is 12 months and changes or cancellations will incur fees.

Cabin baggage restrictions to be lifted at Gatwick

Gatwick Airport has announced that from March 31 passengers will be able to take more than one piece of hand luggage through security.

Airport operator BAA said Gatwick will now join its other airports, where restrictions were lifted in January, because new x-ray and archway technology has been installed in central search areas.

Ryanair extends lowest fare guarantee

Low-cost carrier Ryanair has extended its lowest fare guarantee to cover all bookings made up to and including September 30.

The Irish airline promises to guarantee passengers the lowest fares from five UK airports to any European destination, including City, Gatwick, Heathrow, Luton and Stansted.

Ryanair added that any customer who is able to claim otherwise will receive not only double the difference refund, but will also enter a draw to win £10,000 cash.

Terminal 5 flights cancelled amid baggage chaos

Terminal 5's first morning open to the public faced lengthy baggage delays and flight cancellations.

Passengers waiting in Heathrow's new building were unable to collect their bags after a sophisticated new system broke down, causing a backlog of luggage and the cancellation of at least 20 flights.

These included services departing to Munich, Frankfurt, Paris, Brussels, Glasgow and Aberdeen.

In a statement, British Airways described the problems as "minor".

Bristol International prepares for Lufthansa launch

Bristol International is preparing for the launch of new daily services by German airline Lufthansa, which start on March 31.

From the beginning of next week, the carrier will provide flights three times a day to Frankfurt, where passengers can then access onward European and international connections.

The airport said that it was getting ready for the arrival of the airline by conducting training checks on Lufthansa's systems, as well as ordering German newspapers for the business lounge.

bmi celebrates birthday with £6 flight sale

Book by midnight March 27: Low-cost carrier bmi is celebrating its sixth birthday by offering £6 fares between various UK and Irish airports.

The one way fares include taxes and charges and are for travel between June 1 and July 31.

Tickets booked by debit card will incur a charge of two per cent of the total amount payable, while those booked by credit card will incur a three per cent charge.

Fares are subject to availability and no refunds will be permitted. Availability will be limited during the school holidays.

A selection of routes included in the offer is listed below.

Terminal 5 opens its doors to the public

Heathrow's new Terminal 5 opens its doors to the public today (March 27), with more than 40,000 customers expected to pass through the building on its first day of service.

A total of 380 British Airways flights will depart and leave from the £4.3 billion terminal today, 350 of which will be short-haul flights and 30 long-haul services.

The first plane to land at the terminal at 0450 this morning was the BA026 from Hong Kong, carrying 283 passengers and flown by British Airways' first female pilot, Lynn Barton.

Mobile phones on aircraft a step closer

Plans to enable UK registered aircraft to offer passengers the chance to use their mobile phones during flights have been approved by Ofcom.

The regulator said it had worked closely with other bodies in the EU to enable mobile phone use in European airspace.

The system works by passengers’ own mobile phone handsets connecting to an on-board base station, but these will be switched off during take-off and landing to ensure they do not interfere with mobile networks on the ground.

East Midlands Airport first to install wind turbines

East Midlands Airport (EMA) has been granted permission to install four wind turbines on its site.

The decision, made by the North West Leicestershire District Council, will mean that the EMA is the first UK airport to install four 31.5 metre wind turbines, which are expected to be active from later this year.

An estimated 225kw is expected to be produced by each turbine, saving around 850 tonnes of carbon a year. The move is part of the EMA's commitment to becoming carbon neutral by 2012, with the turbines expected to generate around ten per cent of the airport's energy.

Green campaign group exaggerated airport opposition

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has ruled that green campaign groups issued a 'misleading' national press ad regarding the amount of opposition to airport expansion.

Complaints about a full page ad taken out by AirportWatch and enoughsenough have been upheld by the ASA, ruling that it breached the Code of Advertising Practice and should not be repeated.

The ads featured a picture of Prime Minister Gordon Brown and claimed that 60 per cent of people in an ICM Poll had said no to airport expansion anywhere in the UK.

Star Alliance prepares to move terminal

The first phase of the Star Alliance's 'Move under one Roof' project at London's Heathrow Airport will begin in June.

The move will be completed in two phases, with the network of airlines, which includes Air Canada, bmi, Lufthansa and US Airways, expected to complete its schedule in 2012.

Following work on the current Terminal 1 building, Air New Zealand and United will relocate from Terminal 3 to Terminal 1 from June 10. June will also see Star Alliance open its largest lounge for departing customers in Terminal 1.

'Most punctual' airline from Newcastle and Birmingham

Eastern Airways is the most punctual scheduled airline departing from Newcastle and Birmingham airports, according to new figures released by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).

The data, which was collected by on-line aviation analysts Flightontime.info, showed that the regional airline was for the second year running the most punctual airline from Newcastle. Eastern Airways has also previously been named number one on-time airline at Birmingham.

British Airways’ new summer routes to Europe

British Airways has announced that it will be launching several new routes from London Gatwick.

Destinations include Alicante, Antalya, Faro, Genoa, Gibraltar, Ibiza, Malaga, Malta, Palma, Paphos, Poznan and Tunis with all routes except a selection beginning operation on March 30.

Passengers rank Heathrow poorly

An international survey which asked passengers to rate airports has seen Heathrow come 103 out of 162.

Skytrax, an airport consultancy firm, asked 7.8 million flyers to rate airports on traveller concerns, including convenience, politeness of staff and cleanliness of bathrooms, reports The Times.

Ryanair offers £10 flights to Europe

Book by midnight March 27: Ryanair is offering flights from £10 to various destinations in Europe.

Fares include taxes, fees and charges and are applicable for travel between March 29 and June 30.

However, all holidays, school breaks and major sporting events are excluded from this offer, including all routes between May 1 and May 8, routes to and from Germany between May 8 and May 27, all routes between May 22 and May 27 and routes to and from Ireland between May 29 and June 3.

Jet2.com signs three year deal with Hertz

Low-cost carrier Jet2.com has signed up to a three-year contract with Hertz Europe that it expects to provide "fantastic rates" for passengers.

The airline and car rental service have announced that they will be working closely together, enabling Jet2.com flyers to take advantage of promotions.

Richard Bodin, business director at Jet2.com, welcomed the deal, adding that Hertz was a trusted brand.

"It is important for us as a brand, that when we are offering services to our customers provided by third parties, we have absolute trust in both their service delivery and their value for money," he said.

Weekly news round-up

It has been a good week for special offers, with major airlines offering cheap flights to Europe, Asia and Down Under. There were several new route announcements too, from the likes of bmi, Wizz Air, Ryanair and Flybe.

Special Offers
Aer Lingus launches April getaways to Europe
Irish national airline Aer Lingus has launched special fares to Europe as part of its "April getaways" deal.

Etihad Airways offers special fares to Beijing
Etihad Airways is offering discounted return fares to Beijing from London Heathrow and Manchester airports. Book online by Tuesday, March 25.

Flybe launches new Guernsey to Dublin route

A new direct service between Guernsey and Dublin is to be started by Flybe, with the first flight taking off on June 7.

The three-times-a-week service will operate on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. One-way tickets start from £29.99.

Mike Rutter, Chief Commercial Officer at Flybe, said: "This new route reflects our continued commitment to the island and to promoting the growth of regional air travel. Flybe is grateful for the support given by the States of Guernsey in relation to this new route - an indication of the strategic importance of this link for the island."

'Saga louts' advised to behave when on holiday

Older British travellers, so-called Saga louts, are being warned by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) to watch their drinking and ensure they are properly insured when overseas.

As part of its Know Before You Go campaign, the FCO is advising people to visit their GP at least six weeks before travelling, stressing this becomes more important if people feel unwell in the run-up to their trip.

Other tips include checking travel insurance policies to make sure cover extends to any planned experiences, being aware of local customs by reading up in advance and not to go for a swim after drinking or on a full stomach.

New route: Ryanair links Shannon to Berlin

Ryanair has announced the launch of a new service from Shannon to Berlin. Flights will operate twice a week, on Tuesday and Friday, and start on May 30,

Caroline Baldwin, of Ryanair, said: "This new connection to Germany’s exciting capital city is a great enhancement of our route network at Shannon. An ideal destination for both business and leisure breaks, Berlin has something for everyone.

"Ryanair will deliver over two million passengers through Shannon this year, generating a visitor spend of €350m (£274m) in the mid-west. Our recently increased London departures and our continued expansion to Europe are fundamental to the success of tourism in the Shannon region."

easyJet launches two new routes from Luton

easyJet has announced the launch of two new services to Pisa and Jersey from Luton Airport.

Flights on the new daily service to Jersey will cost from £21.99 one-way and £37.98 return, while the service to Pisa will cost from £23.99 one-way and £41.98 return. Fares include taxes.

Approximately 100,000 passengers are expected to use the new routes over the next 12 months, according to the airline.

European court dismisses Aer Lingus' injunction against Ryanair

Ryanair has welcomed the European Court of First Instance's (CFI's) dismissal of Aer Lingus' request for an injunction against the airline.

Aer Lingus had asked to have Ryanair removed from its shareholder register, preventing the airline, which holds a 29 per cent stake in its smaller rival, from exercising its voting rights.

In a statement released yesterday (Wednesday, March 19), Ryanair said that the injunction request was an effort by Aer Lingus to force it to sell its minority shareholding.

"The European Commission had already decided on this issue and found that Ryanair has no control over Aer Lingus and it therefore cannot force Ryanair to sell its minority stake," said Jim Callaghan, Ryanair's Head of Regulatory Affairs.

Qantas: special deals to Australia and New Zealand

Book by April 30: Qantas' "Dreamtime Special" deal offers discounted return fares on flights to seven Australian and four New Zealand destinations.

Flights depart from London Heathrow, Newcastle, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Manchester airports, with two stopovers permitted on flights via Asia (from a choice of Bangkok, Singapore, Hong Kong or Tokyo).

Destinations include Perth, Sydney, Christchurch and Wellington, with fares starting at £694, inclusive of taxes, fees and charges. Outbound travel must take place between April 16 and June 15, with a maximum stay of up to 12 months.

Virgin Atlantic offers sale fares to Nairobi

Book by 10pm on Monday, March 31: Virgin Atlantic is offering sale return fares from London Heathrow to Nairobi. Fares start at £390, including taxes, charges and surcharges.

Fly Economy from Heathrow to Nairobi:
From £390 (for travel by March 31)
From £394 (for travel between April 1 and May 31)

Fly Premium Economy from Heathrow to Nairobi:
From £730 (for travel by March 31)
From £734 (for travel between April 1 and May 31)

Jersey to Paris: daily flights from Flybe

Flybe is to start a year-round, six day-a-week service to Paris Charles de Gaulle from Jersey with the first flights taking off next month.

The airline will launch the service on April 28, operating every day except Saturday, and one-way fares will start from £29.99 inclusive of taxes and charges.

At the same time, Flybe has said it will start two new weekly summer routes from Jersey to Newquay and the Isle of Man, operating from May to September.

Easier transfers at Gatwick for Southwest flyers

Air Southwest has announced that it has made transfers easier for customers travelling from Newquay and Plymouth to London Gatwick Airport and onwards within the UK.

The low-cost regional airline has launched a new scheme that will allow passengers catching connecting domestic flights with British Airways, who are carrying just hand baggage, to avoid going through arrivals or re-clear security at the airport.

This will also apply for customers returning with British Airways and Air Southwest through London Gatwick, but is only available to those whose scheduled connection is not more than two hours after their arrival into the airport.

Ryanair launches domestic Germany and France flights

Ryanair is to start its first domestic flights in Germany and France, claiming it will save local people more than €26 million (£20 million) a year.

Starting in May, Ryanair will operate flights between Frankfurt and Berlin. In France, it will offer passengers a Marseille to Paris service.

Tickets go on sale at 10am tomorrow (Thursday, March 20) with the low-cost operator making 25,000 seats available on these routes starting at €10 (about £7), including taxes. The sale will end at midnight on Monday, March 24.

Air France KLM to build 'major global airline group'

Jean-Cyril Spinetta, Chairman and Chief Executive of Air France KLM has announced that the airline is committed to helping Alitalia to achieve long-term recovery.

Speaking at a meeting with national representatives from the main Italian trade unions at Alitalia's head office yesterday (Tuesday, March 18), Spinetta said that the group would be providing Altialia with investment capital of €1 billion (£784 million).

"The aim of the AF KL Group is not to take over Alitalia, but to see whether it is possible to build a major global airline group together with the entire Alitalia workforce.

Flyglobespan launches biggest ever summer sale

Flyglobespan, the Edinburgh-based airline, has launched its biggest summer sale ever with flight discounts of up to £158.

One-way fares include taxes and cover flights from Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen airports, as well as Belfast and Durham to popular European and international destinations.

Fly from Glasgow to:

Alicante for £94.99 - a saving of £40 (for travel on May 2)
Barcelona for £86.99 - a saving of £68 (for travel on April 18)
Cyprus PFO for £79.99 - a saving of £70 (for travel in April 11)
Gran Canaria for £79.99 - a saving of £90 (for travel on April 12)
Palma for £89.99 - a saving of £45 (for travel on May 9)

Check flight details ahead of T5 move - British Airways

© BAA Heathrow

Passengers should check which terminal they will be departing from ahead of British Airways' staggered move to Terminal 5 over the next few months.

The first flights to move on March 27 will include all of its domestic and European routes, except for journeys to Barcelona, Madrid, Lisbon, Nice and Helsinki.

Long-haul services to and from Johannesburg, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Vancouver, Tokyo, Hong Kong and Miami will also transfer to Terminal 5 on March 27, along with flights to and from Tripoli.

The majority of remaining intercontinental flights will move on April 30, except for routes to Singapore, Sydney and Bangkok.

Ryanair's sale ends tonight, fly from 1p ow with taxes

Book by midnight: Ryanair’s sale ends tonight (Wednesday, March 19), offering customers one-way fares from as little as 1p, including taxes, fees and charges.

The sale covers flights from several airports including Stansted, Edinburgh and London Gatwick, departing April 1-30. Travel Mondays to Thursdays and Saturdays, subject to availability. A selection of routes included in the offer is listed below.

Fly from Stansted to: Belfast, Stockholm and Turin from 1p; Alghero, Alicante, Dublin and Dusseldorf from £10; and Rome, Seville and Venice from £15.

Eastern Airways' low-cost one-way fares to Brussels

Eastern Airways today (Tuesday, March 18) announced that it has extended its new lower one-way fares from Southampton to now include flights to Brussels.

The regional airline has reduced the price of its three-times-a-day route to Brussels; fares now cost from £59, including taxes and charges. The move follows the launch earlier in the month of lower one-way £49 fares for flights from Southampton to Aberdeen, Newcastle and Leeds/Bradford.

Chris Holliday, Eastern Airways' Chief Operating Officer, said: "Due to the popularity of our lower fares on other Southampton routes where we have increased the number of flights, we have decided to introduce these great value one-way offerings onto our Brussels service, but do advise customers to book early.

XL Airways offers discounted flights to Grenada

XL Airways is offering special deals from London Gatwick to Grenada throughout April and May. Return adult fares have seen reductions of up to £26 on various economy flights, starting from £133.

Fly from London Gatwick to Grenada:

Outbound April 13 - return April 27 for £173 (saving of £26)

Outbound April 13 - return April 24 for £183 (saving of £26)

Outbound April 17 - return May 1 for £243 (saving of £16)

First passenger Airbus A380 to arrive today

© Airbus

The UK's first Airbus A380 used for passenger service is scheduled to fly into Heathrow Airport today (Tuesday, March 18).

The Singapore Airlines flight will be managed by British Airways, which is preparing for the delivery of its own fleet of 12 double-decker A380s from April 2012.

Virgin Atlantic has also ordered 13 A380s, to arrive in 2013.

Onboard Flight SQ308, due to arrive at Heathrow at 3.15pm, will be 470 passengers.

AA: last chance for US flight super sale

Book by midnight tonight (Tuesday, March 18): American Airlines is offering passengers a last chance to purchase discounted return flights to US cities.

Flights depart from London Heathrow and Manchester airports, for travel between April 1-30 and between May 1 and June 30.

Fares begin at £254, inclusive of taxes and fees, and are based on midweek travel (Monday to Thursday). Prices are higher for Friday to Sunday travel. The minimum stay is one Saturday night, and the maximum stay is 30 days.

'Secret plans' to charge Heathrow drivers

Plans are being drawn up by airport operator BAA to charge Heathrow-bound drivers new dropping off fees of £20.

According to the Evening Standard, which claims to have seen "secret plans", this charge will be on top of the daily parking fee of £20. Lorries that use the roads around the airport could also be in for a £3 congestion charge.

The newspaper adds that the new charges would help towards the cost of a sixth terminal and a third runway, and would come into force in 2015.

Alitalia agrees to Air France-KLM deal

© Air France-KLM

The Italian government has given the go-ahead to plans to sell Alitalia, the country's flag carrier, to Air France-KLM.

Alitalia, which has debts of €1.2bn (£921m), has been struggling for several years and despite intervention by the Italian government - it owns 49.9 per cent of the airline - it has been unable to turn things around and challenge low-cost competitors, rising fuel costs or employee unrest.

Now the Economy Minister, Tommaso Padoa-Schioppa, has said they will enter into discussions with Air France-KLM in an attempt to cut costs, although the threat of 1,600 job losses may spark union unrest.

Etihad Airways offers special fares to Beijing

Book online by Tuesday, March 25: Etihad Airways is offering discounted return fares to Beijing from London Heathrow and Manchester airports.

Flights from Heathrow cost from £430, while Manchester departures cost from £422, including taxes and fuel surcharges.

Outbound travel must take place between March 30 and June 30. The maximum stay is two months.

Monarch extends Yellow Cross Sale for April flights

Book by midnight on Wednesday, March 19: Monarch Scheduled has extended its Yellow Cross Sale, offering up to £30 off all return flights departing from April onwards.

The offer applies to flights from Gatwick, Manchester, Luton and Birmingham airports to popular holiday destinations such as Tenerife, Gran Canaria and Lanzarote.

The discount varies according to route and travel date and applies to online scheduled flight bookings only (not charter flights).

Wizz Air starts Coventry to Gdansk link

Wizz Air launched its new three-times-weekly service from Coventry Airport to Gdansk at the weekend.

The service - running on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays - offers a link between the Midlands and Poland's sixth-largest city.

Chris Orphanou, Chief Executive Officer of Coventry Airport, said: "We are delighted that Wizz Air is complementing its existing services to Katowice with the introduction of new flights to the important Polish commercial centre of Gdansk. The West Midlands region has strong historical links with Poland and these new flights are great news for the Polish community, business and leisure travellers."