Re-born budget airline Flybe is set to return to the South West skies to operate new routes to Manchester and London.
The transport hub has announced the short-haul carrier will operate year-round flights from Cornwall Airport Newquay to London Heathrow and Manchester Airport, starting in October.
Flybe will launch a 12-times weekly connection (double-daily Monday to Friday) to London Heathrow, while also adding a daily link to Manchester.
The previous incarnation of Flybe, which was headquartered in Exeter, collapsed after running into financial trouble just before the first national Covid lockdown in early 2020. The company’s brand and assets were later bought out of administration for a nominal fee by global private equity house Cyrus Capital - a shareholder in the old business.
Now-based in Birmingham, the new Flybe launched flights earlier this year, with its network now spanning 16 destinations in the UK, France and The Netherlands.
Cornwall Airport Newquay said Flybe would provide it with “significant network expansion”, offering an additional 1,485 weekly domestic seats.
Managing director Sam O’Dwyer said: “We’re delighted to be welcoming the new Flybe as our 10th airline partner at Newquay. With daily flights to both London Heathrow and Manchester starting this winter, these new routes will add much needed extra capacity as well as additional options for passengers on two of our major markets.”
Flybe chief executive Dave Pflieger added: “We’re delighted to begin flights to and from Cornwall Airport Newquay, connecting one of the UK’s most popular year-round leisure destinations.”
Cornwall Airport Newquay said it had refilled most of its route map and now had more airlines in its portfolio than before the pandemic, with Aer Lingus, British Airways, easyJet and Ryanair also operating there.
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