Archive for the ‘East Midlands airport’ Category
The war of words over border control strike action continues in the press and it is unknown how badly affected airport passengers are going to be by the action – reports vary from minor disruption to significant. Border control will be affected from the evening of Tuesday 29 November until midnight on Wednesday 30 November – strike action start times will depend on shift patterns. Any delays will affect passengers arriving into the UK that need to pass through passport control – outgoing flights should not be affected. Tips to help avoid delays:
The UK Border Agency (UKBA) has said that it has robust arrangements in place to maintain the security of the border and that it has
Rob Whiteman, chief executive of the UK Border Agency, said: ‘Securing the border is our priority and over the last weeks and months we have considered all options to ensure we are prepared for union action. ‘We always aim to minimise any disruption caused by the decision of unions to strike, but travellers could see longer waiting times at some ports and airports.’ For up-to-date UKBA information visit http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/
Jet2.com and sister company Jet2holidays are celebrating with a trio of wins at two of the top award ceremonies in the travel industry calendar. Jet2holidays led the awards haul after being voted Best Tour Operator to the Iberian Peninsula and Islands at the prestigious British Travel Awards – the largest survey of public opinion on UK travel industry performance and the most anticipated awards in the travel industry calendar. The accolade recognises the package holiday specialists’ position as the leading British tour operator to that region. Jet2holidays was also named Best Mainstream Short Haul Operator at the 19th Annual Travel Awards of the Scottish Passenger Agents’ Association, where Jet2.com was declared Best Low Cost Airline and runner up in the Best European Airline category. Voted for by Scottish travel agents, the airline and package holiday specialist beat off tough competition from rival travel companies to win the coveted accolades at the biggest event in the Scottish travel calendar. Jet2 received further national praise from readers of The Telegraph newspaper in its annual travel awards. The airline was unveiled as runner up in the Favourite Short-Haul Airline category, second only to British Airways. Steve Heapy, Managing Director of Jet2holidays and Chief Commercial Officer of Jet2.com, said: “This latest flurry of awards is a reflection of our continued dedication to providing the best possible service to our customers who clearly enjoy our growing list of city, sun and ski destinations. The recognition from both customers and agents is hugely important to us and is a clear indication that we are getting it right across the board.” “Our friendly flight times from eight regional bases and generous 22kg baggage allowance as well as our ATOL protected holiday packages to suit all tastes and budgets are what set us apart from our competitors and help to keep us the airline and tour operator of choice for our loyal customers.”
For the year to date, London Oxford Airport increased the number of average daily business aviation departures by 12.2%, year-on-year up to September 2011 according to the latest statistics released by Eurocontrol. In the Eurocontrol report, London Oxford Airport ranks fifth in the UK with an average 7.8 daily business aviation departures, up from an average 6.9 last year, which represents a growth of 12.2% over the past year. Ahead of Oxford were London Luton (34.2 daily departures) Farnborough Airport (27.5) Biggin Hill (14.5) and London City Airport (8.9). A marked slide by London Stansted positioned it in 8th place behind East Midlands and Bournemouth airports. UK Business Aviation Activity – Year to Date to September 2011
* UK mainland airports excluding MOD (Military) airports “This buoyant business is great news, demonstrating the attraction of our airport to business and VIP travellers. August was surprisingly busy for a holiday month, total GA movements increased by 49% compared with last August. We hope this trend continues for some time as business aviation sees a welcome increase in activity,” said James Dillon-Godfray, Business Development Director at London Oxford Airport. If you’re travelling to East Midlands Airport this weekend, be aware that the British Superbike Championship is taking place from 9 to 11 September at Donington Park. A traffic management system will be in place on Saturday and Sunday as follows: Both days: At the junction of the A453 and Castle Donington Road (Hilltop) – there will be no right turn for traffic travelling from Castle Donington. Sunday 11 September 2011 Melbourne Lane At the end of racing (approx 2:30pm – 7:30pm), a one-way, eastbound road system will be in place from the junction of Slade Lane to the A453 Walton Hill. Westbound traffic will be diverted along the A453 to Breedon then left to Wilson to rejoin Melbourne Lane. According to local reports, the South Derbyshire District Council has deemed that the current noise levels of East Midlands Airport should be capped at the existing levels. The controversial noise levels of the airport have in the past been criticised, when back in 1996 levels reached 57 decibels, of which residents and council members deemed as ‘unacceptable’. There are now fears by Council members that unless the current levels are capped there is every chance that noise levels will increase back up by 2016, as the air traffic is expected to grow at the airport over the next four years. In a recent Council report, Planning Officer, Richard Groves said “the airport’s noise footprint should be limited to its current size.”
Eastern Airways is introducing more flights from Bristol Airport to Aberdeen and Leeds Bradford. The regional airline will increase Bristol flights from to two three each weekday to both Aberdeen and Leeds Bradford from 3 October 2011. Weekday flights to Leeds Bradford and Aberdeen will depart from Bristol at 6.45am, 12.05pm (Mon-Wed), 1.45pm (Thu-Fri), and 5.15pm (Mon-Wed) and 6pm (Thu-Fri). Flights from Aberdeen to Bristol depart at 6.50am, 11.30am (Mon-Wed), 3pm (Thu-Fri) and 5pm. Leeds Bradford flights to Bristol take off at 8.15am, 12.55pm (Mon-Wed), 4.20pm (Thu-Fri) and 6.35pm. A Sunday service will also continue to be offered to both Leeds Bradford and Aberdeen from Bristol. FlairJet has announced it is to open two new bases at East Midlands and Dublin Airports where it will position two Embraer Phenom 100 aircraft. The new East Midlands location will enable FlairJet to operate its Phenom 24/7, opening up great potential for freight and aero medical charters. Newly acquired Phenom 100 G-NUDD will be positioned there from the first week of September, complementing FlairJet’s Phenom 100 operations from its home base at Oxford. A second Phenom 100 will be positioned at Dublin, which has consistently been a popular destination for FlairJet clients travelling on business and for leisure breaks from the UK and mainland Europe. The business aviation operator continues to work closely with Embraer assisting with new aircraft deliveries. In August it delivered a privately owned Phenom 300 to Zurich and a 100 to Odessa in Russia. Meanwhile, the company is progressing with its plans to establish a centre of training excellence to carry out base and line training for Phenom pilots. Its third party training department is currently staffed by three Phenom 100 and two 300 examiners. Backed by three London based QCs, FlairJet pioneered Embraer Phenom 100 and 300 operations in Europe, obtaining its UK AOC and commencing revenue charter flights in December 2009 with an two initial Embraer Phenom 100s. The Air Travel Advisory Bureau (ATAB) is teaming up with law firm Barker Gillette to launch a coordinated legal claim against UK airlines that have not refunded Air Passenger Duty (APD) to passengers who have booked flights and not flown. Since the tax was introduced in 1994, ATAB estimates that consumers have lost out on millions of pounds in un-refunded APD. In fact, Which? Estimated that in 2003 alone Ryanair retained more than £5 million in un-refunded taxes. ATAB Chairman, Tony White said, “It is a scandal that some airlines hang on to this money. It never belonged to them. It’s a tax collected on the behalf of the Government. With a couple of exceptions, most of the UK airlines make it as difficult as possible to get your money back. If you don’t actually fly, for whatever reason, you are entitled to get the APD refunded. The airlines already have your credit card details, they should refund your card immediately. They make it difficult or expensive in the hope that you’ll go away – and most people do just that”. “It is truly shocking, we’ve found some airlines that will charge an “administration fee” greater than the value of the refund. This is a complete rip-off and it’s our intention to put an end to it. If you have booked an airline ticket out of the UK anytime since 1994, and not flown, then we want to hear from you” said White. For more information in reclaiming APD on unused flights visit www.atab.org.uk/action-now/reclaim-your-taxes/ A campaign to persuade the Chancellor to drop planned hikes in the tax levied on all flights leaving the UK was launched last Monday at airports across the country as a new poll is released showing 3 out of 4 people think that Air Passenger Duty (APD) should not go up in the next Budget. Of those saying APD should not go up 49 per cent said APD should be reduced. Only 6 per cent said APD should be increased. The Chancellor announced in this year’s Budget that APD will rise by double inflation in 2012. The ‘Hands off our Holiday’ campaign, backed by the Airport Operators Association (AOA), Board of Airline Representatives in the UK (BAR-UK), and the British Air Transport Association (BATA) is urging people to email their MP via the website www.handsoffourholiday.com and to tweet their support for the hikes to be abandoned using the hashtag #handsoffourhols. The poll, carried out by Opinium Research for the Hands off our Holiday campaign also shows that nearly 4 out of 5 people were unaware of the plans to further increase the tax by double inflation. Commenting on the campaign, Darren Caplan, Chief Executive of the AOA, said: “Our message to the Chancellor is that enough is enough. Air Passenger Duty has already gone up by 325% on long haul flights and 140% on short haul flights in the last five years. Family finances are under great pressure at the moment and most people save hard all year for their holiday. Working families deserve a break.” Mike Carrivick, Chief Executive of BAR-UK, added: “The UK already has the highest rate of flight tax in the world. Why should families be discriminated against for wanting to fly off on a hard-earned break once a year?” Simon Buck, Chief Executive of BATA said: “The government already takes nearly £3bn in tax from passengers. This is more than the tax on the banking industry. Most people simply aren’t aware how much flight tax they pay. The government should come clean about this stealth tax and drop the hikes planned for next year.”
A planned strike by UK Border Agency staff is likely to affect passengers arriving at some of the UK airports. The 24-hour strike is scheduled to start this evening, Wednesday 29 June 2011 – start times vary at different airports due to shift patterns. The Border Agency has issued the following advice to passengers arriving in the UK: Around 70% of Border Agency staff are members of the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS). |
