Flybe, Europe’s largest regional airline, has this weekend (Sunday 31st March 2019) started operating its 2019 Summer schedule from Cornwall Airport Newquay with a programme that features its newest route to Heathrow Airport. The year-round service to and from Heathrow Terminal 2 and operated by 78-seat Q400 aircraft, offers four flights a day, seven days a week.
Celebrations were held to mark the start of this important new service, starting with a breakfast hosted by the Cornwall Chamber of Commerce. Guests included the local MP for St Austell & Newquay, Steve Double; Cornwall Council’s Geoff Brown, Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Transport and Malcom Bell, CEO of Visit Cornwall who, together with leading members of the business community, then flew to Heathrow.
On arrival, the group met up with Secretary of State for Transport, Chris Grayling and Flybe CEO, Christine Ourmières-Widener for a joint visit to a special stand hailing ‘all things Cornish’. This featured information of interest being made available both to potential leisure and business customers and complimentary goody bags being offered to passengers transiting through Heathrow Terminal 2; The Queen’s Terminal.
Ms Ourmières-Widener commented: “We are delighted to celebrate with our partners the start of our new Heathrow service from Newquay. There has been an overwhelmingly positive response from customers since we announced the route. It offers multiple choices for onward connections to and from the rest of the world from the UK’s busiest airport – and also on to our own routes there to and from Aberdeen and Edinburgh, Guernsey and the Isle of Man.”
In further comment on the new route, Cornwall Council Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Transport, Geoff Brown said that ‘the new route to the capital operated under a Public Service Obligation negotiated by Cornwall Council and supported by the government, will provide passengers with hundreds of links to global destinations opening up new travel and business opportunities’.
Cornwall Airport Newquay’s Managing Director, Al Titterington, said: “It’s fantastic that all our hard work to make sure that Cornwall Airport Newquay has direct access to Europe’s busiest hub has finally come to fruition. The worldwide connectivity that this brings opens up a world of opportunity for Cornwall.
“Now we have direct flights to Heathrow, we will see the strength of Newquay and Cornwall’s brand abroad grow even further, helping to attract more valuable international tourism to our beautiful county.”
Ross Baker, Chief Commercial Officer at Heathrow said: “This route highlights our commitment to domestic connectivity and it is fantastic to welcome this regular service between Newquay and Heathrow.
