Features

Route of the month

1 Jul 2010 by Alex McWhirter

Alex McWhirter looks at how new services can benefit business travellers

Summer routes at London City

London City airport (LCY) will unwind this summer with four seasonal services. For the first time there will be two routes to the Spanish islands of Majorca and Ibiza, along with Brive and Deauville in France.

Services will be operated by British Airways’ Cityflyer division and Air France-owned Cityjet. The rationale is to use spare capacity during the summer months when business travel is not so strong.

They are keen to attract local well-heeled leisure passengers who may be willing to pay a little more to dodge the queues at the capital’s other airports.

What BA CityFlyer offers

Compared with taking a charter-type B737 or A319 out of Gatwick or Stansted, passengers choosing Cityflyer are in for a treat. It will be using a brand new two-class Embraer 190 aircraft with 98 seats configured in a relatively spacious 2-2 layout, compared with what you would experience when flying a budget carrier, which would be 3-3.

Services to both Palma and Ibiza started on May 21. Originally it was intended to run them until September 13, but they have now been extended until October 31. Flights operate every Monday, Friday and Sunday. Timings vary depending on the day of the week but flights depart LCY between 0700 and 1420, returning from Palma/Ibiza between 1055 and 1845. Economy returns start from £69 with business class leading in at £354.

What Cityjet offers

Dublin-based Cityjet is serving Brive airport in south-west France along with Deauville, just across the Channel in Normandy.

Brive serves the Dordogne, Lot and Corrèze regions and has good access to the medieval towns of Bergerac, Turenne and Sarlat. Deauville is a stylish resort near cultural and historical attractions such as Honfleur, Mont St Michel and Bayeaux, and hosts an American film festival in September.

Geoffrey O’Byrne White, chief executive of Cityjet, says: “These areas of France are immensely popular with British holidaymakers, families and second-home owners. Both areas have a large population of British expats.”

Brive is served by a one-class 100-seat BAe 146 aircraft configured 3-3. Services operate every Friday, Saturday and Sunday and were due to start on June 25, continuing until September 12. Flights depart LCY between 0815 and 1620, and depart from Brive between 1120 and 1925, with tickets typically costing from £107 return.

The four times weekly Deauville service was due to kick off on June 24 and will run until September 27. Flights are rostered for a turboprop F50 configured 2-2. They will depart LCY every Monday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday at 1050 (1530 on Sunday), returning from Deauville at 1320 (1800 on Sunday). Tickets typically cost from £106.

One big selling point is that all four destinations are either time-consuming or tricky to reach overland from the UK, while the two Air France Cityjet services to Deauville and Brive are the only links available from any UK airport.

In fact, Brive (or Brive-Vallée de la Dordogne, to give it the proper name) is a brand new airport that opened in June. It is located in Nespouls, south of Brive and not far from the A20 autoroute.

Visit ba.com, cityjet.com, londoncityairport.com

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