London City airport has announced plans for the resumption of commercial flights from the end of June.
The airport closed to all flights on March 25 – at the time LCY said that it expected to remain closed until the end of April, although it stressed that this would be “kept under review”.
The airport said that it expects to initially resume operations with domestic services to key UK cities and regions, adding that more details would be announced shortly “alongside airline partners”.
These are then set to be followed by the resumption of international flights in early July, although LCY warned that “the exact timing may depend on the proposed quarantine of passengers arriving into the UK”.
The quarantine is set to come into effect from June 8, with the UK government setting out the details of the restrictions in Parliament this afternoon.
The airport also said that specific announcements on the recommencement of services would be made by airlines.
A reader contacted Business Traveller this week stating that he had been informed that BA’s inaugural flight between London City airport and Newquay (set for July 2) had been cancelled. It’s unclear what the situation is with the future of this service.
LCY said that “A whole range of steps have been taken to provide reassurance to passengers including installing Temperature Checking Technology both on departure and arrival, providing staff with face masks and visors and providing clear instructional signage for every step of the journey”.
“The airport will also deploy rigorous and thorough cleaning regiments, including the use of an anti-bacterial surface treatment which will begin to kill all germs upon contact and lasts for up to 12 months,” the airport added.
“Passengers will be asked to observe social distancing rules wherever possible in the terminal and the airport will deploy an innovative solution with long term partners CrowdVision which will enable the detection of areas where there is a high concentration of passengers who can then be directed to quieter areas.”
The airport said it will also “reach out” to its customer database, to get their thoughts on the future airport experience.
Commenting on the news Robert Sinclair, CEO at London City Airport, said:
“When our doors re-open again shortly, our ambition is to provide the best airport experience in the UK to our passengers by ensuring we follow industry guidance to the letter and by maintaining our reputation as the quickest London airport to get to and through.
“While there are many challenges ahead for the UK aviation industry, it is our hope that by outlining the steps we are taking to make the airport safe, and by incorporating the views of our regular travellers into our plans, we will give people the confidence to fly from our airport to destinations across the UK and Europe.”
