Despite air transport liberalisation in the EU, it seems that only LCCs have embraced the idea of setting up ‘foreign’ bases. The latest example is Spain’s Vueling, which last week set up a base in Toulouse, France. Which routes has it selected and on which one will it face most competition? What hours will the single A320 have to work each day?
Although ‘only’ 38 new routes launched in the last week, we have witnessed an unusually busy week for cakes. It seems Easter gave a sweet tooth for the world’s route launch celebrations. But which airline launched a new international route last week with its single aircraft?
KLM-owned Transavia.com is focusing on Dutch regional growth this year after abandoning its Copenhagen base. Which new destinations has it added for 2011 and which routes have been moved from Amsterdam to Rotterdam? What competition will it face on its new Amsterdam routes?
Fresno may only just rank as one of the top 10 airports in California, but it still handles over one million passengers per annum and recently saw not one, but two carriers re-enter from the Mexican market after Mexicana’s collapse last year. But which domestic destinations are served by which airlines?
India’s domestic market growth shows no signs of slowing down, being up over 20% in the first quarter of 2011. But how are passenger numbers split between the seven domestic airlines? What is happening to international growth and which airline will soon be adding its 12th Indian destination?
Half of this week’s new routes were launched by the low-cost carrier Ryanair, which among others added routes to Kos, Rhodes and Thessaloniki in Greece.
Germany’s airberlin now flies to Verona by Lake Garda in northern Italy, as well as between Palma de Mallorca and Friedrichshafen and Weeze in Germany.
The Spanish low-cost airline Vueling now flies between its Barcelona base and Bordeaux in southern France, where it operates to the low-cost terminal billi.
The Channel Island airline Blue Islands now flies between Jersey and London City Airport, targeting business traffic between the island and the UK capital.
Ten days after AeroMexico began flying between Guadalajara and Fresno in California, the low-cost carrier Volaris launched the same route.
What strange statistical phenomenon relating to Europe’s biggest LCCs took place in February and March which hadn’t been seen before? Which LCCs are growing (and which aren’t) and what key network developments have there been recently? What are the key highlights in the coming weeks and months?
