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Next spring, Bournemouth airport will see heightened competition among airlines as Jet2 has declared it as their twelfth UK base.
Jet2 plans to utilize two airplanes for various routes to Mediterranean and Atlantic islands.
The first ever trip from Bournemouth to Tenerife, scheduled for April 1st, 2025, will be joined by 15 additional new connections. Most of these routes are already operated by other airline companies, including Tui and Ryanair. This indicates heightened rivalry with Tui, as Jet2 Holidays surpassed them in number of package travelers last year.
The only two Jet2 routes with no competition are Fuerteventura in Spain’s Canary Islands and Funchal, Madeira.
In four destinations, namely Gran Canaria, Lanzarote, Palma, and Tenerife, the new arrival will be in competition with both Ryanair and Tui.
There are additional Jet2 competitors competing against Tui.
- Antalya and Dalaman in Turkey
- Corfu, Heraklion, Rhodes and Zante in Greece
-
“The Balearic islands of Spain include Ibiza and Menorca.”
Furthermore, Jet2 will be competing with Ryanair on flights to Alicante and Faro.
Jet2’s chief executive, Steve Heapy, said: “We know that customers and independent travel agents have been asking us for a long time to make this move, so we are absolutely delighted to be announcing today that Bournemouth airport will become our 12th UK base airport.
As the recipient of the Which? Travel Brand of the Year, we are aware that our highly acclaimed flights and vacations will be in high demand in the area. We are excited to showcase our brand to all.
“We are proud to announce this new expansion, which showcases our faith in our company and aligns with our goal of becoming the top leisure travel business in the UK. We recognize that our customers desire exceptional care throughout their vacation.”
Last year, Bournemouth airport served less than one million passengers, ranking it at number 18 among all UK gateways. In comparison, Manchester airport, a major base for Jet2, accommodated 30 times more travelers.
Andrew Bell, CEO of Regional and City Airports, the owner of Bournemouth airport, stated that the expansion will bring new job opportunities to the area, increase the number of destinations offered to 16, add up to 27 more flights per week, and could potentially bring an additional 300,000 passengers to the local airport.
“This partnership with Jet2 and Jet2holidays is an important milestone in solidifying Bournemouth airport as a significant hub for passenger air travel on a national scale.”
According to aviation schedule analyst Sean Moulton, Jet2’s expansion into London Stansted in 2017 and Bristol in 2021 has led to a growth in the southern market.
Jet2 has chosen Bournemouth as one of its 12 bases, even though it is the smallest. This shows their determination to compete with Tui and Ryanair, as evidenced by their decision to offer 16 routes that will directly rival Tui’s routes.
“Should this endeavor prove successful, it has the potential to result in the establishment of multiple smaller bases throughout the United Kingdom.”
The Independent is a British online newspaper that
“The newspaper Independent, based in Britain, is available to read digitally on the internet.”
