Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Activity 1.4
Carry out some research on low-cost airlines to
fi nd out which companies fl y from the following UK
airports: Edinburgh, Cardiff, Birmingham, Stansted
and Manchester. Choose one of the companies and
describe its roles, route network, sample prices,
additional services, fare structures, aircraft fl eet, etc.
Explain the interrelationships the airline has with
other components of the travel and tourism sector,
giving examples that include domestic, inbound and
outbound tourism.
easyJet is one of the UK's most popular airlines
This activity is designed to provide evidence for P1,
P2 and M1.
Domestic services refer to air travel within a country,
while international represents travel between different
countries. Scheduled services are those that operate
to a published timetable, on defi ned routes and under
government licence. These services run regardless of
the number of passengers and are used primarily by
business travellers who are prepared to pay a premium
for the extra convenience and fl exibility offered.
Many governments still fund their national airlines, for
example Air France, although there is a general move
away from state ownership towards private sector
operation. One notable success story of recent years
has been the rapid growth in one particular sector of
the airline business, namely budget, low-cost or 'no
frills' airlines, which sell direct to the public and offer
scheduled services on domestic and international
routes at low prices. Ryanair and easyJet are the market
leaders in low-cost services.
Airports
According to fi gures from the Civil Aviation Authority
(CAA), UK airports handled 218 million passengers in
2009 and there were more than one million air transport
movements at London's airports alone. Passenger traffi c
at the fi ve main London airports - Heathrow, Gatwick,
Stansted, Luton and London City - totalled 130 million
passengers. Passenger numbers at Heathrow were
nearly 66 million in 2009, making it the UK's busiest
airport.
Weblink
Check out this website for details of
services operated by the low-cost airlines.
www.whichbudget.com
Birmingham International Airport
Chartered air services are linked to the package holiday
industry, where tour operators contract with an airline
for a specifi c route for a season. Some of the major tour
operators own their own airlines, for example Thomas
Cook. Sales of charter fl ights have been hit hard by the
rise in popularity of low-cost, scheduled services. Well-
known charter airlines include Monarch, Thomas Cook
and Thomson Airways.
Traffi c at UK regional airports is growing rapidly, the
result of increasing numbers of UK fl ights offered by
the low-cost airlines such as fl ybe, easyJet, bmibaby
and Ryanair. Passenger traffi c through regional airports
is growing twice as fast as that through the fi ve main
airports in the London area.
