RSSC : MOBILITY LEGISLATION CHANGES

New legislation for ‘Persons with Reduced Mobility’

New legislation for Persons with Reduced Mobility, to prevent discrimination and to provide suitable assistance, is coming into effect on 18 December 2012 and Regent Seven Seas Cruises has responded with a change to its booking procedure.

Committed to providing clients with the assistance they require, the cruise line says, "Under the new legislation our responsibility for persons with reduced mobility applies to all passengers who travel from the UK to any EU state, or disembark in the UK or any EU member state.

To ensure we are compliant with the new Reduced Mobility legislation, when dealing with guests with Reduced Mobility we have introduced an additional step in our booking process. Reduced mobility guests requesting assistance will be sent our new checklist for completion. Once we have received the completed check list, we will decide, based on the information provided, if we can safely carry the passenger and still meet the required safety regulations. If we are unable to carry the passenger safely, we will put our reasons for this in writing within 5 working days."

This new checklist will be introduced with immediate effect for all new bookings. Existing bookings travelling after 18 December 2012 have already received the check list.

Queries in relation to the new booking process for clients with Reduced Mobility should be directed to the Reservations Team on 023 8068 2280.

MTB 22/12/2012

AIR CANADA LAUNCHES NEW EDI-TORONTO SERVICE

LONDON, 19 December 2012 – Air Canada rouge™, a new leisure airline unveiled by Air Canada in Toronto yesterday, has announced it is to introduce a new summer service from Edinburgh Airport to its Toronto hub, Toronto Pearson International Airport, with three flights per week from 3 July to 18 October 2013.

Air Canada’s new leisure airline marks a milestone in the transformation of Canada’s flag carrier to compete in the growing leisure travel sector. Along with details of the initial destinations it will fly to beginning in July 2013, the name of Canada’s new leisure airline – AirCanada rouge – was announced following a contest launched on Facebook inviting customers, employees and travel industry professionals for their input. Details about the contest and prize winners have been posted on facebook.com/aircanada.

“With the introduction of Air Canada rouge, Air Canada enters today’s growing leisure travel market on a truly competitive basis,” said Gary Cross, Air Canada’s General Manager, Europe, Middle East, Africa and India. “Air Canada rouge will leverage the strengths of AirCanada’s extensive network, operational expertise and frequent flyer reward programme in order to offer Scottish customers great value for their holiday travel.”

Robert Atkinson, Air Canada’s General Manager – Sales UK, Ireland and Northern Europe, added: “Air Canada rouge will combine the only non-stop service between Edinburgh and Canada, affordable fares and great service with the benefits offered by Air Canada that are valued most by holiday travellers. We look forward to giving customers in Scotland a warm welcome onboard Air Canada rouge, Canada’s affordably stylish leisure airline.”

Air Canada rouge’s Edinburgh-Toronto flight, AC1905, will depart Edinburgh on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday at 10:20 a.m. and arrive inToronto at 12:45 p.m. local time the same day. The return flight, AC1904, will depart Toronto on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday at 8:35 p.m. and arrive at Edinburgh at 8:30 a.m. the next day (all times local).

Other new Air Canada rouge routes

For its inaugural 2013 season, Air Canada rouge will also introduce a new route between Toronto and Venice, Italy. In addition, Air Canadaseasonal services from Toronto and Montreal to Athens, Greece will be flown by the leisure carrier. Similarly, existing Air Canada flights operated in cooperation with Air Canada Vacations to Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica and Costa Rica will be operated by AirCanada rouge effective July 2013.

Air Canada rouge flights to all destinations to be served in the carrier’s inaugural 2013 summer schedule will depart Air Canada’s main hub at Toronto’s Pearson International Airport offering customers seamless connections with Air Canada, Air Canada Express and its Star Alliance partner flights. Air Canada rouge will also operate non-stop flights to Athens from Montreal’s Trudeau Airport, in addition to its Toronto-Athens flights. Air Canada rouge customers benefit from attractively priced through-fares from any point within Air Canada’s extensive network on a single ticket as well as baggage checked through to final destination and Aeroplan mileage accumulation and redemption.

Air Canada rouge fleet

The Air Canada rouge fleet will initially comprise two Boeing 767-300ER aircraft to operate transatlantic flights in a two-cabin configuration offering a selection of rouge Plus™ seats with additional legroom and Premium rouge™ seats featuring additional seating comfort, space and enhanced meal and beverage service; and two Airbus A319 aircraft to operate North American flights in an all-economy configuration offering a selection of rouge Plus seats with additional legroom. These four aircraft will be released from Air Canada’s existing fleet to AirCanada rouge as the mainline carrier takes delivery of two new Boeing 777-300ER aircraft in 2013, as announced on 1 October 2012.

Air Canada rouge will expand to other popular holiday destinations as Air Canada starts to take delivery of new Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft in 2014, thereby freeing up aircraft for deployment in the Air Canada rouge fleet. As this occurs, and subject to commercial demand, Air Canada rouge may operate up to 20 Boeing 767-300ER aircraft and 30 Airbus A319 aircraft, for a total of 50 aircraft, to pursue opportunities in markets made viable by Air Canada rouge’s lower operating cost structure. Flights operated by Air Canada rouge are subject to receiving all required regulatory approvals.

About Air Canada

Air Canada offers more daily flights from the UK to Canada than any other airline, with up to 63 non-stop flights per week to seven major Canadian cities scheduled this winter. Air Canada is Canada’s largest domestic and international airline serving more than 175 destinations on five continents. Canada's flag carrier is the 15th largest commercial airline in the world and in 2011 served more than 33 million customers. Air Canada provides scheduled passenger service directly to 59 Canadian cities, 56 destinations in the United Statesand 63 cities in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Australia, the Caribbean, Mexico and South America. Air Canada is a founding member of Star Alliance, the world's most comprehensive air transportation network serving 1,356 destinations in 193 countries. In 2012, Air Canadawas ranked Best International Airline in North America in a worldwide survey of more than 18 million airline passengers conducted by independent research firm Skytrax.

MB 19/12/12

EDINBURGH AND EASYJET SIGN AIRPORT'S BIGGEST DEAL

Scotland's busiest airport and Scotland's largest airline have today (Monday) signed the biggest deal in the airport's history.

The Chief Executives from Edinburgh Airport and easyJet met in Edinburgh to formally agree the deal that will see new routes commence from the Capital's airport in March 2013.

The agreement means that easyJet will bring over 15 million passengers to Edinburgh over the next 5 years.
easyJet announced earlier this year that it would be placing 2 additional planes at Edinburgh Airport, creating 160 jobs and providing links from Scotland to Berlin, Hamburg, Reykjavik, Dubrovnik, Prague and Copenhagen.

Gordon Dewar, Chief Executive, Edinburgh Airport, said: "This is a landmark deal for this airport and one that we have worked exceedingly hard with easyJet to land. Being an independent business, we can now bring commerciality and customer focus to bear that allows us to complete deals of this kind. Both Carolyn and myself are ambitious for Edinburgh and we look forward to working with her and her team to make our on-going partnership a success."

Carolyn McCall, Chief Executive of easyJet, said: "As Scotland's largest airline we carry almost three million passengers to and from Edinburgh every year. It's vital we can work closely and effectively with Edinburgh Airport to maintain this success and also to help us put our exciting expansion plans into place in 2013. We have been impressed with Edinburgh Airport's commitment to customer service and look forward to working closely with them over the next five years."

MTB 14/12/2012

BUSIEST NOVEMBER IN 4 YEARS AT GLA + NEW SERVICE

Passenger numbers up 5.3% in November 2012

Glasgow Airport experienced its busiest November since 2008 with almost 500,000 passengers travelling through the airport during the month, representing an increase of 5.3% against the same period last year.

Domestic and international traffic grew by 6.1% and 3.9% respectively. The decision by British Airways to add additional Heathrow capacity in order to meet the demand for hub connectivity drove the strong domestic performance, while other London services also performed well. International growth was primarily driven by Emirates’ double daily service to Dubai and strong performances from KLM and easyJet.

Amanda McMillan, managing director of Glasgow Airport, said: “To have enjoyed our busiest November in four years, and to see both domestic and international services performing well, is very encouraging. We have been buoyed by some very positive recent announcements and remain committed to further strengthening Glasgow’s connectivity by growing our route network.”

November saw Barrhead Travel announce it will double capacity for its 2013 summer programme, while CI Travel revealed it will launch Scotland’s only direct link with Guernsey. Emirates confirmed an upgrade of the aircraft used on its evening flight to a three-class Boeing 777.

Gama Aviation, a global provider of business aviation services, also revealed plans for a £3.5 million expansion at Glasgow Airport which will result in the construction of a dedicated aviation hangar. This will allow the company to provide an aircraft handling terminal and enhance its current maintenance capabilities.


AND ... Glasgow Airport lands direct Lufthansa service to Düsseldorf 

Glasgow Airport is to further strengthen its route network after Lufthansa Regional confirmed it will launch a direct service to Düsseldorf in April 2013.

It is the first time Glasgow Airport will have served Düsseldorf, which is located in the heart of the prosperous Rhine-Ruhr region, in 20 years and the launch of the route will also mark the return of the Lufthansa network to Glasgow.

Lufthansa Regional will initially operate six flights per week with the inaugural flight taking off on 8 April 2013 and it will increase to a daily service week commencing 24 June 2013.

Amanda McMillan, managing director of Glasgow Airport, said: “The introduction of Lufthansa Regional’s Düsseldorf service is fantastic news for Glasgow Airport as not only will it result in a direct, daily flight to one of the wealthiest regions in Europe, our passengers will once again have access to the extensive onward connectivity offered by the Lufthansa network.

“Both Düsseldorf and Glasgow are economic powerhouses in their own right and whilst there will undoubtedly be strong demand for this service from within the business community, it will prove a big draw for leisure travellers and has huge potential to generate significant in-bound tourism for Glasgow.

“If we are to further enhance Scotland’s global connectivity then Glasgow must have links with European hubs such as Düsseldorf and we are looking forward to working with Lufthansa to ensure the success of this route.”

Councillor Gordon Matheson, Leader of Glasgow City Council and Chair of Glasgow City Marketing Bureau, said: “Lufthansa Regional’s new route between Düsseldorf and Glasgow, which has been supported through the council’s Air Route Development Fund, is a major boost for the city. Germany represents the largest international market for Glasgow with more than 71,000 trips made each year by German visitors who generate more than £19 million for the local economy.

MTB 14/12/2012

NEW ROUTES, MORE FLIGHTS FROM EDINBURGH

Ryanair and Edinburgh Airport have agreed a new deal which sees 6 new routes from Edinburgh in summer 2013 and increased frequencies on 5 other routes. Routes will begin in April 2013 and are now on sale.
on sale from tomorrow Wed 05 December 2012.

This sees the low cost carrier fly 38 routes (up 11%) carrying 1.6m to 1.8m passengers per year. (up 11%).

NEW ROUTES
1.    Bologna
2.    Beziers
3.    Cagliari
4.    Corfu
5.    Katowice
6.    Santander

FREQUENCY  INCREASES
1.    Alicante
2.    Faro
3.    Malaga
4.    Malta
5.    Palma
   
Gordon Dewar, Edinburgh Airport CEO, said "I welcome Ryanair's return to growth and investment at Edinburgh Airport. When I came to Edinburgh Airport in the summer, it was clear that we had to repair the relationship with Ryanair and work with them to provide more choice for Scottish passengers. I'm pleased that today we can announce a new relationship and new routes. This announcement underlines the fact that Edinburgh and Scotland is an attractive market for a variety of operators and that we as an airport are open and willing to do business to expand our network and encourage growth."

Further details can be found on the Ryanair web site www.ryanair.com.

MTB 10/12/12

ABERDEEN AIRPORT SUPPORTS LOCAL COMMUNITY

An Aberdeen community centre is set to benefit to the tune of £50,000.

Inchgarth Community Centre has been announced as the winner of the Aberdeen Airport Trust Challenge Fund 2012. Members of the Airport Community Panel were on hand at a special meeting of the centre’s membership last night to give them the good news and hand over the cheque.

The donation has been identified to completely regenerate a part of the centre, build a new café, homework and meeting zone, and improve the reception area, allowing the group that runs the centre to open their doors to more of the community.

The vision of their project is to create a learning café and hub which will become the first point of contact with every user. The entire ethos is to enable, educate and train people with disabilities, young people, people with mental health issues and retired people to fulfill their potential and improve the quality of their lives while providing an environmentally positive product and sustainable facility.

The centre in Garthdee in Aberdeen was selected as winner of what is known as the “50k give-away” after a rigorous selection process which saw a record number of applications. The panel of judges was looking for a project or detailed one-off initiative which took the opportunity to make a dream come true for the community.

Sarah Campbell is chair of the Community Panel. “Being able to make this announcement in front of so many people last night was incredibly satisfying. The decision to award Inchgarth this donation was made by an independent panel – all of whom agreed that a donation of this size would make a world of difference to this centre. We are all looking forward to seeing the changes taking shape and watching while the surrounding communities really start to feel the benefits of this award”

Paul O’Connor is from the Community Centre. He said “This is the single largest donation any company has given our community centre, maybe even any Aberdeen community centre – and it is among the largest donations to a charitable association in the city this year. It will make a long lasting difference and change many lives and we cannot express our thanks strongly enough to the Airport Community Panel.”

The donation announced today marks the end of an exciting year for the Aberdeen Community Panel, which has given a total of £80,000 to local charities or groups over the past 12 months.

Work is due to begin on the Inchgarth project at the start of 2013.

More information on the Trust can be found by going to www.aberdeenairport.com/community

MTB 101212