Budget Airline Guide

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New European budget airline Volotea launches

By Budget Airline News

The new European budget airline Volotea launched on April 5, 2012. The airline is currently based in Venice, Italy, offers domestic flights to popular leisure destinations like Palermo, Brindisi, Olbia, and Cagliari.

Volotea has big plans for expansion, and has announced it will offer international routes to Croatia, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Poland, Portugal, and Spain. Volotea will offer flights to 53 destinations by August 2012.

More information about Volotea and tickets for their new routes can be found at www.volotea.com.

Iberia Express launches in Spain

By Budget Airline News

New European budget airline Iberia Express officially launched on March 25, 2012. Based in Madrid, Iberia Express will debut as a domestic airline serving Spain and eventually add international routs.

Iberia Express destinations currently include Vigo, Santiago and Granada, Menorca, Ibiza, Fuerteventura, Lanzarote and La Palma. The airline plans to expand to Ireland, Italy, Greece, Latvia and Netherlands in the future.

Iberia Express is a new low-cost wing of Spanish flag carrier Iberia, which recently merged with British Airways.

“The containment of costs will allow Iberia Express to grow and compete with the low-cost operators,” said CEO Luis Gallego,

The airline’s official website can be found at http://www.iberiaexpress.com/en/.

Ryanair to fly to Montenegro from June 2012

By Budget Airline News

Budget airline Ryanair has announced its newest destination will be Montenegro. Direct flights from London, Brussels and Milan are scheduled to begin in June 2012.

Ryanair flights to Montenegro will be seasonal and available from March to October each year. Ryanair has entered into an agreement with the Montenegro tourism board and agreed to operate flights until at least 2016.

Visit www.ryanair.com to make an online booking.

Wizz Air adds Milan-Malpensa routes

By Budget Airline News

Budget airline Wizz Air has announced two new routes to Milan-Malpensa, Italy. Direct flights from Milan-Malpensa to Budapest, Hungary, will begin on June 18 and flights from Milan-Maplensa to Bucharest, Romania, will begin on July 1, 2012.

Wizz Air already operates flights to 11 other Italian airports, and these new routes help secure its position as the leading low cost airline that connects Central and Eastern Europe.

Prices from Milan-Malpensa to Budapest and Bucharest are available as low as 19.99 Euro (one way, all-inclusive). Seats can be booked at www.wizzair.com.

Iceland Express to fly to Cologne, Germany

By Budget Airline News

Iceland Express, the only budget airline based in Iceland, has announced it will add Cologne, Germany, to its summer schedule. The new route will commence on June 5, 2012, at https://www.budgetairlineguide.com/news/wp-admin/post-new.phpa frequency of two flights per week.

Outbound flight HC143 will depart Reykjavik’s Keflavik International Airport (KEF) at 17:50 and arrive in Cologne at 23:30. Return flight HC144 will depart Cologne Bonn International Airport (CGN) at 00:20 and arrive in Reykjavik at 02:15.

Visit www.icelandexpress.com for bookings.

Airberlin’s new long-haul routes to USA, Abu Dhabi, Windhoek

By Budget Airline News

Budget airline airberlin has announced its Summer 2012 schedule with added frequencies from their new base at Brandenberg Airport (BER) and new long-haul destinations. The new routes are to New York, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Windhoek and Abu Dhabi.

Direct service from Berlin to Abu Dhabi began in January 2012, but will increase to a daily flight with the summer schedule. A daily flight from Dusseldorf to Abu Dhabi will also begin March 25, 2012. Service to the three new destinations in the USA begin in May. Once-weekly flights from Berlin to Windhoek also start in May 2012.

airberlin is planning up to 750 weekly departures for the upcoming summer schdule. airberlin offers its passengers a total of nearly 70 direct flights and over 10,500 indirect flights from Berlin. By offering this range of connections, airberlin is confirming its intention to develop the new BER airport into an international hub with up to 40 aircraft will be in operation at this airport.

Wizz Air to fly from Debrecen, Hungary

By Budget Airline News

Wizz Air announced that it will begin services from Debrecen Airport (DEB) from June 18, 2012. The airline will initially offer three weekly flights, on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, from Debrecen to London Luton Airport (LTN).

“Wizz Air is bringing the excitement of air travel at affordable prices directly to Debrecen. Instead of driving several hours to the capital, those living in Eastern Hungary can now fly from Debrecen and access London for a great value. Wizz Air is committed to the region and envisages offering more destinations from Debrecen in the future”, said József Váradi, Chief Executive Officer of Wizz Air.

Wizz Air is confident the new service will contribute significantly to the tourism of Eastern Hungarian and be an important driver for economic growth in the region. To celebrate their move to Debrecen, fares to London start from HUF 9,990 ($47 USD, one way, all inclusive) on wizzair.com.

Norwegian Air Shuttle considering routes to USA, Asia

By Budget Airline News

Norwegian Air Shuttle has revealed it is considering long-haul, low-cost flights to New York, Bangkok, Hong Kong, and Beijing. Currently, Norwegian Air Shuttle is the fourth largest budget airline in Europe and its furthest destination is Dubai, UAE.

The airline is considering long-haul destinations now that it will be acquiring wide-body Boeing 787 aircraft in 2013. Other possible destinations are Tokyo and the west coast of the USA.

“We’re considering all major cities,” said Norwegian CFO Foss said. “We’re doing research, looking into many destinations and how to optimize our aircraft.”

Ryanair cuts routes to Edinburgh Airport

By Budget Airline News

Ryanair has announced it will be cutting its base at Edinburgh Airport from 7 to 6 aircraft. This will result in the termination of 5 routes with effect from April 2012.

The terminated routes are from Edinburgh to Berlin, Malmo, Murcia, Ibiza and Tallin. The total number of Ryanair flights from Edinburgh Airport will drop by 21% from 140 to 110.

In a statement, Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary said:

“Ryanair regrets BAA Edinburgh Airport’s rejection of our proposals for a competitive cost base which would allow Ryanair to further grow our traffic and routes for summer 2012. Sadly BAA Edinburgh seems to prefer higher costs, even if it means fewer passengers and jobs at Edinburgh.

“While Ryanair remains committed to Edinburgh Airport (and with 1.5m passengers and 35 routes, we continue to be one of the largest airlines operating to/from Edinburgh), BAA Edinburgh cannot continue to ignore the competitive marketplace, where airports all over the UK and Europe have been reducing costs and lowering charges in return for traffic growth. We hope even at this late stage that BAA Edinburgh will realise that the way to grow traffic and jobs is by working with Ryanair to lower passengers fares, not raise them.”

Wizz Air to offer Stavanger – Vilnius flights

By Budget Airline News

Starting on May 27, 2012, Wizz Air will add Stavanger, Norway (SVG) to its destinations accessible from Vilnius (VNO). The new Vilnius – Stavanger service will operate 2 times per week, Wednesdays and Sundays.

Wizz Air is the largest low cost airline in Central and Eastern Europe and, with the new route, flies to three major Norwegian cities including Bergen, Oslo and the newly added Stavanger.

“Wizz Air is committed to growing its route network in Lithuania. By deploying a second aircraft to Vilnius this May, we are able to add even more destinations, and now offer access to 13 major European cities. This new route gives Lithuanians access to one of the most important industrial hubs in Norway while introducing a great tourist destination for those living in the Stavanger area,” said John Stephenson, Executive Vice President of Wizz Air.