Airport News - Europe.

Aug 16, 2009

Aegean Airlines

Aegean Airlines will move its two daily non-stop flights to London Heathrow from Stansted this October. From October 25 the routes will be served using new A321 offering two classes. Aegean said its Heathrow departure and arrival times were aimed at both business and leisure travellers. The airline said its goal was to develop partnerships with other Star Alliance members following its integration into the alliance next year. The flights leave Athens at 0910 and 2020 each day. The return flights leave Heathrow at 1245 and 1720. www.aegeanair.com Aug 10, 2009

Aeroflot, Sukhoi Aircraft

Russian flagcarrier Aeroflot will introduce the Sukhoi Superjet 100s into service on 28 December, replacing Airbus A319s on routes from Moscow to Chelyabinsk and Astrakhan. Aug 11, 2009

BAA Airports, London

BAA to Triple Passenger Capacity at Heathrow Terminal 2, Star Alliance Hub BAA Ltd., the operator of seven U.K. airports, plans to more than triple capacity at LondonOs Heathrow Terminal 2 by investing 1 billion pounds (USD 1.67 billion) in a new building and housing airlines from the Star Alliance group. Aug 10, 2009

Eurostar

Eurostar has announced it is to charge GBP 3 per credit card transaction for all bookings made by phone or internet. A spokesperson for Eurostar confirmed that the charge would apply to corporate customers. But Eurostar said the charge was per booking and not per passenger. The train operator said the fee was still significantly lower than those of its airline competitors such as British Airways which charges GBP 4.50 per person. All bookings made by debit card are free which Eurostar said reflected lower costs levied by banks for this type of payment. The GBP 3 charge will offset most of the costs levied by the credit card companies, Eurostar said. Eurostar also announced it had scrapped call centre booking fees. www.eurostar.com Aug 13, 2009

Iberia, British Airways

Iberia's board asked the airline's new chairman and CEO, Antonio Vazquez, to look into alternatives to its merger with British Airways, elEconomista reported. Aug 14, 2009

London Heathrow

London Heathrow officials yesterday unveiled plans for a new GBP 1 billion (USD 1.67 billion) Terminal 2 construction project that will allow the consolidation of Star Alliance operations and provide capacity for an estimated 20 million passengers each year. Construction will take place in two phases, with the initial creation of a terminal building on the site of the existing T2 and Queen's building, both of which will be demolished later this year. Construction is scheduled for completion in 2013. Aug 11, 2009

London Heathrow

London Heathrow has released details of its new GBP 1bn Terminal 2 building which will eventually house Star Alliance airlines. The new terminal, part of a larger GBP 4.8bn investment across the airport, will have more floor space, self-service check-in machines, fast bag drops, check-in desks and security search lanes. Heathrow said the new building, with lower energy requirements, would emit 40 percent less carbon than the existing terminal. Large north facing windows will let in more natural light reducing the need for artificial lighting. Solar panels on the roof will further reduce the building's dependency on energy supplies, and a new "energy centre", partly fuelled by renewable resources, will provide heating and cooling. The new terminal will be built in two phases to minimise disruption following the demolition of the existing building and the Queen's Building. Aug 10, 2009

London Heathrow Express, Gatwick Express

The UK's Airport Express Alliance is to be disbanded when its current contract expires on September 21. Paul Brindley, commercial director Airport Express, said: "Both Heathrow Express and Gatwick Express are very strong brands and want to refocus priorities on their core business so they can continue to deliver excellent customer service. "We would like to reassure all clients and customers that the transition will be as smooth as possible." Reports today claim Gatwick Express' operator Southern is withdrawing support for the sales and marketing alliance between it and Heathrow Express. Staff at the alliance have been told that the withdrawal by Southern will result in job losses, one report said. A spokesperson for Airport Express could not confirm whether redundancies would result from the split or not. Airport Express said details of its future were still being discussed at this stage and a formal announcement would be made shortly. Southern is understood to have decided to look after its own sales and marketing for Gatwick Express after being told it must run the franchise for a further five years. Aug 10, 2009

Ryanair

Ryanair will open its 34th base at Leeds Bradford in March when it will launch 14 new routes with two based 737s. New destinations will be Carcassonne, Faro, Ibiza, Knock, Krakow, Limoges, Malaga, Malta, Montpellier, Murcia, Nantes, Palma, Pisa and Treviso. It currently serves Dublin, Girona and Alicante from the airport and plans to operate 63 weekly flights to/from LBA next spring. It also announced the launch of four-times-weekly Bristol-Malaga service in October, its fourth "winter sun run" from the airport announced in the past week Aug 12, 2009

Wizz Air

Wizz Air will operate seasonal weekly service to Grenoble from Bucharest and Cluj-Napoca Dec. 12-March 27. Aug 10, 2009

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