Why your tax money is funding 11 obscure new UK flights (but five will earn Avios!)

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• Liz says:

  29 Jan29 January 09:21

  How to do find availability and costs for a redemption – do you have to phone Avios.com?

  • Liz says:

    29 Jan29 January 09:23

    Nothing coming up on Avios.com or the flybe site for Dundee – Amsterdsm – only Stansted.

    • Rob says:

      29 Jan29 January 09:30

      Not sure these routes are launched yet, the funding was only announced at the end of last year.

      • Liz says:

        29 Jan29 January 09:36

        Ok – it said available from Spring so thought they might be loaded – will keep an eye out for them appearing. Thanks.

• richard says:

  29 Jan29 January 09:47

  how do I book the Carlisle route?
  skyscanner doesn’t recognise carlisle

  • Rob says:

    29 Jan29 January 11:08

    Too early, flights not launched yet

    • Andrew H says:

      29 Jan29 January 11:30

      I wouldn’t expect these flights from Carlisle to be launched in the Spring. It will be later this year.

      • Rich says:

        29 Jan29 January 16:11

        According to Stobart Air, the minister jumped the gun somewhat in announcing the CAX routes. They still need significant work at the terminal to make it viable.

        If/ when it starts, I might just give it a whirl for the craic, since I drive past the airport fairly frequently. If they threw in free parking (why shouldn’t they?) at CAX, and a free train ticket into London (I believe other routes at SEN offer this), then it could be a goer.

        Hardly worth it for Carlisle-London passengers though, who have an hourly train to Euston. Alright, it takes 3.5 hours, but the plane will probably take a similar time once you’ve got out to the airport and then from SEN to London.

• Graeme says:

  29 Jan29 January 10:32

  Another Dundonian here. AMS route is interesting for ex-EU but, as another poster said, it depends on the price and frequency. EDI is only just over an hour away. Using DND is great though – flew from it regularly when LCY service was on the go – still the only airport where I’ve went from plane to car in less than a minute!

  On the point of regional subsidy, I agree it shouldn’t be used to prop up failing airports or self-seving routes that have no chance of being viable. Howerer it is needed – our ‘national’ carrier’s matra of ‘everything through LON’ has been hugely damaging. Perhaps it could be better used to incentivise l/haul routes from major regionals…

• Tim says:

  29 Jan29 January 10:45

  Aren’t Links Air grounded at the moment due the bottoms falling out of their rusty planes? Or more specifically, have had their operating certificate suspended by the CAA due to safety concerns. So maybe the Oxford to Edinburgh route won’t get off the ground. Literally. 🙂

  • Andrew H says:

    29 Jan29 January 11:31

    Links Air have just lost the Cardiff->Anglesey route and will no longer have any involvement with it.

    Their proposed Oxford->Edinburgh route looks dodgy now.

• john says:

  29 Jan29 January 11:42

  Citywing is not an airline they are a ticketing agency. They operate the same business model as Manx2.com which ceased following an accident in Cork. Citywing charter VanAir Let410’s. Citywing operate from the same permise with the pretty much the same people as Manx2.com

• Nick G says:

  29 Jan29 January 12:27

  OT – I live 15 mins from DSA, and now my brother has ’emigrated’ to JER i have found 9+ seats on every outrageously priced DSA – JER flights throughout summer, with the exceptions of the crazy priced Saturday flight. Good times aswell.

  Thanks avios.com finally something of use to me.

• Tilly71 says:

  29 Jan29 January 13:33

  Any ideas why avios charge apd from newquay and ba avios do not?

  • Rob says:

    29 Jan29 January 16:20

    They are exempt by law but that doesn’t always mean the airlin IT keeps up!

    • Tilly71 says:

      29 Jan29 January 17:29

      So if I call up ba avios they will quote taxes with that leg of apd? When i contacted avios on live chat they said they had to charge apd.

      • Rob says:

        29 Jan29 January 17:37

        I know a reader who had to threaten to take avios.com to court before they agreed to remove the tax on a one-way ex HK flight which under HK law should have been free of fuel surcharges.

        Note, though, that I am not sure that connecting flights from a Newquay flight should be APD free even though the website prices that. Same with ex Inverness tickets. Pretty sure the Government did not plan for you to fly Newquay Gatwick Barbados and save £150 APD, as opposed to just saving £10 on the domestic leg.

        • Tilly71 says:

          29 Jan29 January 17:45

          So contacted avios live chat again, different story today since a few months ago. They confirmed the online system cannot remove the apd on that leg so recommended booking then calling up and they will refund the apd.
          Is it just apd on that leg or does it have any reducing impact apd on the next leg GAT – BGI?

        • Rob says:

          29 Jan29 January 22:40

          When this first started, it wiped out the APD on the entire flight.

        • Tilly71 says:

          31 Jan31 January 18:00

          It’s £55 apd on the Newq – Gat leg return.

• signol says:

  29 Jan29 January 13:43

  I’m a Norwich resident, and NWI-EXT used to operate by Flybe before they dropped it (no demand…) And whilst NCL would be nice, it’s far from useful, especially as you could use KL via AMS if the train is too long.

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