Month-on-month growth at the airport continues with passenger numbers up, new services commencing and additional capacity: making the Airport the fastest growing Airport in the UK

Cornwall Airport Newquay reports passenger numbers were up 15% over the busy Easter period compared with last year and the airport is optimistic for the summer ahead. The busy start of the holiday season also saw the start of Newquay’s summer schedule, to which a number of new routes have been added this year enabling more people to experience the delights Cornwall has to offer or the chance for Cornish residents to get away.

Flybe’s new Doncaster-Sheffield three-time-weekly service started on 24 March and its daily Birmingham and London Stansted summer services recommenced on 27 March.  The Easter weekend also saw the introduction of the Embraer 195 Jet on the three times daily London Gatwick and daily Manchester service – both increasing capacity on these routes and reducing flights times by 10 minutes in each direction. This change will mean more availability, improved reliability of service and greater comfort on board.

The Airport Development Fee – the £5 levy for each departing passenger – ceased with effect from Easter Sunday. With the requirement to pay this fee removed, the passenger experience of flying from Newquay is further streamlined making air travel from Cornwall not only cheaper but also quicker and easier.

In addition to the start of the new Flybe routes, March also saw the recommencement of the Aer Lingus Regional Dublin service – which has returned with increased frequency and a longer season – and this coming Sunday (3 April) sees the return of Ryanair to Cornwall with its two new routes to Alicante and Frankfurt-Hahn. April and May will see the start of all other seasonal routes including new destinations for 2016 such as Aberdeen, Liverpool and Glasgow as well as the return of popular routes such as Belfast, Edinburgh and Newcastle.

Al Titterington, Managing Director of Cornwall Airport Newquay, said: “The start of the busy summer period marks the busiest period for Cornwall Airport Newquay in a number of years. The airport carried over 250,000 passengers this past year and the forecast is over 370,000 – that’s 50% growth – for the coming financial year, making the Airport the fastest growing Airport in the UK this year, which is good news for Cornwall and its economy. We’re excited by the summer ahead as passenger numbers have increased month-on-month for the last couple of years, which is a trend we hope will continue.”

This exciting raft of new routes, increased frequency and additional capacity is great news for Cornwall – and those wishing to visit Cornwall of course. We are thrilled with the increase in national and international connectivity that comes with these new flights and look forward to welcoming a growing number of visitors to the county and also to seeing more Cornish residents travel further and more easily than ever before.”