RYANAIR - A VITAL PASSENGER CARRIER TO ALICANTE AIRPORT
The changing of the clock times on the last Saturday of October brings new winter airline timetables and for Alicante airport a major reduction in flights by the low cost airline Ryanair. As from the end of October Ryanair are to relocate nine of the eleven planes currently based at Alicante airport to new bases elsewhere in Europe.
This reduction in flights to Alicante will see the number of Ryanair passengers drop from around four million to about one and a half million a year. Also at risk are 2000 jobs associated with the airline at the new Alicante airport terminal which was opened early in 2011. Michael O’Leary of Ryanair estimates the loss of revenue to Alicante airport, by the reduction in flights to Alicante, to be around 30 million euros a year.
In fact, the reduction in numbers of flights to Alicante airport will have a radical effect on ticket prices which are bound to rise and the number of flights to and from popular destinations such as London Stansted will be severely reduced. Fewer flights will inevitably mean increased prices.
The reason for the reduction on planes and flights to Alicante is the insistence by the Spanish airport authority AENA that Ryanair start to use the air bridges at the airport. Ryanair say the extra cost to the airline of the individual passenger air bridge charge would be prohibitive and that using a one entrance airway instead of a walk on system with boarding and unboarding at the front and rear of the plane would make the turnaround times for the flights too lengthy.
The perverse thing about AENA’s insistence on air bridges at Alicante is that other airports owned by them elsewhere in Spain allow Ryanair to carry on with the front and rear walk on boarding system.
Hopefully some form of compromise will be reached during the winter months and that a return to full schedules will be possible by the spring of 2012 – but O’Leary has a reputation of being very tough with his negotiations between the airline and airports.
The good news for passengers in south eastern England is that EasyJet are soon to base two aircraft at London Southend and there will be daily flights to Alicante and two other Spanish destinations from the end of April 2012.
SOUTHEND AIRPORT - A GREAT NEW SERVICE FROM EASYJET
The newly extended airport at Southend has direct access to the railway line and on to London Liverpool Street (50 minutes away with stops en route) and is probably more convenient than Stansted for passengers in east London and east Essex. There is a new terminal and with only a small number of flights to Southend daily, airport procedures should be simpler. Add to this the fact that arriving and departing aircraft at Southend will usually be able to avoid the crowded airways used by other south eastern airports making any air traffic delays minimal. Bookings for Southend are already well established and the Alicante, Barcelona and Malaga routes to Spain are proving to be very popular.
Iain Henderson – Culture Spain
Iain lives in Spain, was a professional soldier and is a businessman who has lived in many different parts of the world. His lovely villa is available for rent during the summer months.