EasyJet plans to establish a new base at Birmingham Airport (BHX) next spring, supporting the introduction of new routes from the UK city.
The LCC will station three 186-seat Airbus A320 aircraft at BHX at the start of the northern summer 2024 season. The move is expected to create about 100 jobs.
“Having already served Birmingham for many years, the decision to open a base and grow at the airport now is testament to the strong demand we see, coupled with the importance of the UK market in supporting our profitable growth,” easyJet CEO Johan Lundgren says.
EasyJet serves seven destinations from Birmingham at present. These include Belfast International, Edinburgh and Glasgow International within the UK, as well as Amsterdam, Geneva, Lisbon and Naples in Europe. Flights to Palma de Mallorca will commence later this month, followed by Faro and Milan Malpensa in June.
Birmingham Airport CEO Nick Barton describes the base opening as a “landmark investment.” He adds: “Years of hard work have led to this. Together, we look forward to years of future success.”
According to data provided by OAG Schedules Analyser, easyJet is currently the fourth-largest carrier at BHX, with a 10% seat capacity share. Jet2.com is the largest, with a 21.4% share, followed by Ryanair with 21.1% and TUI Airways with 17.1%.
The new base opening was announced as easyJet released its half-year financial report for the six months to March 31, 2023. The airline offered 37.9 million seats during the period, up by 25% compared with 12 months ago, while the number of passengers rose by 41% year-on-year to 33.1 million.
Looking ahead, the carrier says booking windows have rebounded towards normalized levels and capacity during the second half of the year will be about 56 million seats, up by 9% on the same period in 2022.
EasyJet adds it will continue to optimize its network to ensure capacity is deployed in the markets where demand is strongest. This has included cutting domestic flights within Germany and entering the Tunisian market over the past 12 months.
“EasyJet's optimized network, combined with the strong demand seen for flights and holidays, enhanced revenue capabilities and operational resilience, means we enter the summer with confidence,” Lundgren says.
The LCC’s fleet is comprised of 328 aircraft as of March 31. It has an order book consisting of 163 firm orders, comprising 130 A320neos and 33 A321neos.
Speaking to Routes Daily earlier this month, Lundgren said easyJet is prepared for the passenger rush this summer—and has enough aircraft to meet demand—but admitted that outside influences could be a factor.
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