Southend Airport partners with Ryanair
This five-year agreement, extendable to 10, will see Ryanair open a new base at London Southend Airport with three Ryanair planes operating out of Stobart Group’s London Southend Airport from Summer 2019, providing 13 routes to eight European countries, including six new destinations.
Ryanair is making a $300 million investment in the new routes and will operate over 55 weekly flights, creating 750 'on-site' jobs per year. This agreement will enable the airport to welcome at least one million additional passengers in the first year and in excess of five million in the first five years.
These destinations will include Alicante, Barcelona Reus, Bilbao, Brest, Corfu, Cluj, Dublin, Faro, Kosice, Malaga, Milan Bergamo, Palma and Venice.
David O’Brien, Chief Commercial Officer of Ryanair, said: “We are pleased to add London Southend Airport to our UK base network. Ryanair guests travelling to and from London and the Essex area can now enjoy low fares on a choice of 13 routes through London Southend’s exceptionally passenger friendly terminal.
“Southend’s train station will deliver direct services from the terminal to London Liverpool St and also the new Crossrail service (opening in 2019), making the airport even more accessible from all parts of London.”
Warwick Brady, CEO of Stobart Group, said: “We are delighted to welcome Ryanair and its customers to London Southend Airport.
“Passengers are increasingly turning to London Southend Airport amid the capacity crisis found elsewhere in the capital, where holidaymakers and business travellers face frustration from overcrowded airports, impacting on customer service.
“In contrast, London Southend Airport offers an excellent, efficient passenger experience, and we are delighted that this is becoming increasingly recognised, demonstrated by the tremendous momentum within our Aviation division.
“We have a clear and focused strategy to grow our airport in order to welcome five million passengers a year by 2022. This long-term partnership agreement with a leading airline such as Ryanair will help us achieve that aim. Since joining Stobart Group over 12 months ago I have been working closely alongside the team at London Southend Airport to secure a major airline that will allow us to deliver on our growth targets. This agreement demonstrates that we now have the right team, skill set and strategy in place to deliver on our stated ambitions.”
