**• Eight BA CityFlyer routes to restart summer flying from the central London airport
• Connections between the capital and key UK and Irish cities to resume
• Tickets also on sale now for popular European destinations for summer**
London City Airport has announced British Airways subsidiary BA CityFlyer will resume some routes from London City Airport to Ibiza, Florence, Málaga and Palma this summer.
The airline will also be recommencing domestic flights to Edinburgh, Glasgow and Dublin restoring important Anglo-Irish connections with the capital.
The first flight at the airport since operations were suspended at the end of March, in direct response to the Covid-19 public health crisis, was BA3287 on Sunday 21 June. BA CityFlyer will reconnect the Isle of Man and London with daily flights between London City Airport and Douglas.
Commenting, London City Airport CEO Robert Sinclair, said:
“The restart of some services at London City Airport by our home-based carrier, British Airways, is good news for business and leisure passengers and we hope signals the start of the road towards a recovery. We believe there is demand from passengers to get back to flying and we have worked hard to make that possible – putting in place appropriate measures to make the airport safe and working closely with British Airways to restore some popular routes and important connections. We are looking forward to flights beginning to re-start and working with British Airways to grow passenger volumes and build on their route network in time as confidence returns.”
During the period that commercial operations were suspended, the airport has been busy working behind the scenes to create a safe environment for passengers and staff. Designed following expert advice to meet official guidance and best practice standards, measures put in place include rapid contact-free temperature checking technology, crowd monitoring technology, an enhanced cleaning regime using an anti-microbial surface treatment, and social distancing procedures such as one-way systems and Perspex screens. Passengers will also be asked to wear face coverings in the airport. Despite the changes, the airport has been careful not to sacrifice its speed and convenience, valued highly by City Airport flyers and which is now more important than ever.
Ends.
Notes to Editors
Resuming routes:
Douglas-Isle of Man Airport (IOM)
Ibiza Airport (IBZ); Florence Airport, Peretola (FLR ); Málaga–Costa del Sol Airport (AGP); Palma de Mallorca Airport (PMI)
Dublin Airport (DUB); Edinburgh Airport (EDI); Glasgow International Airport (GLA)
For dates please check BA.com
London City Airport temporarily suspended commercial and private flights on 25th March 2020, in response to the escalating public health crisis and government lockdown measures
During the suspension, the aerodrome was made available to government agencies and the military to support the national effort to manage the pandemic. The airport also made a special donation of £50,000 from its Community Fund to nine East London foodbanks, to help their essential work during the crisis.
A range of measures have been put in place at the airport to create a safe environment for passengers and staff, including:
An enhanced cleaning regime, including a long-life anti-microbial surface treatment used throughout the airport
Touch-free hand sanitiser stations
One-way systems
Perspex screens at key points of interaction, such as check-in desks
Clear signage and floor markings to help maintain social distancing and guide you through the airport
Advance crowd monitoring technology to identify and manage busy areas, using CrowdVision
Non-contact, automatic temperature checking technology for rapid preliminary screening
Staff using face masks or visors and gloves
More information is available here: https://media.londoncityairport.com/coronavirus-june-update/
Last week a survey of over 4,700 customers found:
79% were either very likely or quite likely to travel when they are told it is safe to do so by the Government and airports or airlines – almost half of customers (48%) were very likely to do so
42% of the airport’s customers plan to travel for leisure within the next three months – good news but perhaps not too surprising with summer holidays looming large after many weeks spent stuck at home
41% of City’s flyers anticipate they will take a flight for business within the next three months - contradicting claims that business travel is over
More findings and insights available here: https://media.londoncityairport.com/restart-strong-customer-demand/
London City Airport resumed commercial operations (passenger flights) on Sunday 21st June, at 18:10 with the arrival of BA3287 from the Isle of Man. This was followed at 18:40 by the return flight, BA3288.