The Business Travel Magazine Aug/Sept 2019

THE REVIEW
I N T H E A I R
IN BRIEF
Eastern's Leeds boost
Eastern Airways will
increase services between
Southampton Airport and
Leeds Bradford Airport
from September 9.
A new afternoon flight will
take the operation to up to
three flights a day, offering
more choice on its Flybe
franchise services.
Great Dane arrival
Great Dane Airlines has
launched twice-weekly
services between
Edinburgh and Aalborg –
the airline’s first service
to the UK.
Canadian deal
Air Canada and fellow
Canadian airline Air
Transat are set to merge.
The deal will see the Air
Transat and Transat
brands retained alongside
the Air Canada and Air
Canada Rouge brands.
Cathay purchase
Cathay Pacific has
completed the acquisition
of Hong Kong Express
Airways which will
continue to operate as a
standalone low-cost airline.
Virgin for SMEs
Virgin Atlantic has closed
its Flying Co scheme and
joined the Bluebiz
corporate loyalty
programme for SMEs
alongside Air France,
KLM, Delta Air Lines and
Kenya Airways.
Bristol to Brussels
Brussels Airlines will
relaunch services between
Bristol and Brussels this
September (served by
CityJet CRJ900 aircraft), a
route previously operated
by its defunct partner
airline Flybmi.
minneapolis-ST.PAUL has become
aer lingus' 16th transatlantic route
from Dublin. It is expected to become
a key business service, with the
‘Twin Cities’ a growing tech hub and
home to 17 Fortune 500 companies
Delays worsen as UK
flight numbers grow
NEW research has revealed that flight delays are getting
worse at nearly every major airport in the UK, highlighting
the need to modernise the way the UK and Europe’s air
space is managed.
Consumer association Which? analysed flight delay
statistics for the last five years and found that 6.2% of all
incoming and outgoing flights were delayed by more than an
hour last year, up from 4% in 2014, though Which? notes
delays are often out of the control of the airlines themselves.
Aircraft movements in the UK have increased from just
over 1.5million in 2014 to 2.25m in 2018. “UK airspace has
failed to keep pace with this surge in traffic,” says Which?.
“It hasn’t fundamentally changed since the 1950s and the
CAA acknowledges that this is a reason for increased delays.”
BTA update
The latest from the
Business Travel Association
(formerly the GTMC)
It’s been an eventful year so
far, with lots of changes, not
least for us. In April, we
announced that CEO, Adrian
Parkes, was stepping down
and embracing retirement.
Adrian’s work at the helm of
our association reflected his
passion for the business
travel industry. He led the
organisation during major
regulatory changes, the
advancement of NDC and the
uncertainty of Brexit, all of
which required our focus.
The most substantial
change however, was
announced in early July
during our 2019 Overseas
Conference in the Netherlands,
where we unveiled our
move to become the BTA
(Business Travel Association).
The new brand is a natural
step as our association
seamlessly expanded our
scope of work over the past
few years. Initiatives have
been designed to futureproof
the industry and look at
talent development, engage
with government, promote
the economic benefits of
business travel and
collaborate with our wide
range of partners to unite
over our industry’s challenges
and celebrate its successes.
While Adrian Parkes steps
down, we welcome Suzanne
Horner of Gray Dawes as our
new Chair of the executive
board. We all look forward
to working together under
the new name, not only
implementing the BTA’s
strategy but also carrying the
association’s commitment
even further.
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