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News and Information
New European air routes announced
| January 13, 2005 |
Budget airline Easyjet has announce two new routes from Belfast International Airport to European capitals.
Easyjet confirmed that services to Berlin Schoenefeld airport will begin on 1 July and Rome Ciampino will start the following day.
The announcement brings easyJet's European flights from Belfast to nine.
The new flights are being supported by the Air Route Development Fund, set up in September 2003 for the development of new routes from Northern Ireland.
Its chairman, Bill McGinnis, said the fund of £4m was almost exhausted, but if necessary it would bid for more money from government.
More funding
He said: "We actually give the airports the money to allow them to reduce the landing fees for the aircraft.
"We have near enough exhausted the fund at this moment in time."
Mr McGinnis said the amount of money allocated for new routes depended on the location that was being flown to.
He said that the new route to New York, which will begin operating later this year, required far more funding than ones from Northern Ireland to elsewhere in the UK.
He said: "We will now have to take stock and look at the success of the scheme to date.
Easyjet is delighted to be introducing these brand new routes to Berlin and Rome, increasing our total choice of destinations to 18
Ed Winter
Easyjet
"We will see what gaps there are in the market and bid for more money if necessary."
Ed Winter, Easyjet's chief operating officer, said: "Easyjet is delighted to be introducing these brand new routes to Berlin and Rome, increasing our total choice of destinations to 18.
"We now operate nine aircraft from our Belfast base which accounts for 12% of easyJet's total operation and with three million passengers a year, we are committed to continue being Northern Ireland's largest low cost airline."
The company operates flights from Belfast International Airport to Alicante, Amsterdam, Berlin, Geneva, Malaga, Nice, Palma (Majorca), Paris and Rome, as well as a number of UK destinations. |
Source: BBCNEWS |
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