SN – Virgin venture to offer cheaper business flights

Belgian airline SN Brussels is aiming to take on rivals such as Ryanair by offering budget-friendly flights, while also offering full-service travel for premium passengers.

The airline, which flies from London, Bristol, Birmingham, Manchester and Newcastle, will soon merge with Virgin Express and aims to provide two products inside with a single brand on the outside.

"One will be a basic no-frills brand, at the back of the plane," the company's president and chief executive, Neil Burrows, told Luchtzak Aviation. "The other will be a more 'plus' or 'premium' product, although not a replica of business class."

He believes that there is much in business class flights that travellers do not actually want, but that leads to more expensive tickets. "You know the concept: you pay for a lot of things that you don't actually use. We can cut these out and offer a more attractive price," he said.

Together, SN Brussels and Virgin Express carried more than five million passengers last year. The newly-merged company is due to receive a new name and brand identity, although this has not been made public yet.

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