Manx2.com has announced it is to withdraw services from East Midlands Airport.

Flights to East Midlands Airport will cease from Sunday 4th July due to the current mismatch between capacity and demand on Isle of Man routes.

All passengers booked to travel after this date will be offered re-booking onto Manx2.com’s Gloucester, Leeds Bradford or Blackpool services or a full refund.

Chairman Noel Hayes said: “Our East Midlands route started in March 2008. Manx2.com staff worked hard and put a great deal of effort into route and saw passenger numbers increase from 5,641 that year to 6,593. However, this year despite us reducing fares on the route and a strong local marketing campaign with our partners at East Midlands Airport, our passenger numbers are down by 25 per cent year on year, with April down over 30 per cent.

“This decline has been partly caused by reduced transfer traffic following easyJet’s complete withdrawal from East Midlands Airport; also bad weather and ash disruptions, and significantly now, the impact of more seats flooding on to Isle of Man market at a time when passenger numbers are already down.

“Isle of Man Airport figures show total April year to date passenger numbers down 8 per cent with April down 23 per cent. Despite this downturn, FlyBe have added over 30,000 seats a year to the Isle of Man market and now easyJet have added a further 90,000 seats. Simple equation is that 17,000 less people have travelled to the Isle of Man in the first four months of 2010, but the market has been flooded with 120,000 extra seats on an annual basis so load factors are sharply down.

“At Manx2 we need to ensure we maintain a strong and healthy route network, so whereas we would normally preserve a loss making route through a bad patch, the amount of overcapacity coming into the Island means we have had to cut the route to ensure the rest of our network remains healthy.

“As I have said before, the Isle of Man’s route network is being largely determined by FlyBe and easyJet and what they want to do. This produces short term consumer benefit in lower prices, but long term instability and pain as capacity is inevitably cut back again. With significant cuts expected to impact on the UK economy this year, the current mismatch between capacity and demand on Isle of Man routes is not sustainable. Hence, Manx2.com’s decision to expand into Wales and Ireland, thereby reducing its dependence on an oversupplied market.”

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