Double celebrations at Dundee
25th May 2010
FAMILY SCOOPS FREE FLIGHTS AS LOGANAIR MARKS SECOND DUNDEE ANNIVERSARY
Double celebration as Scotland’s airline retains UK’s most punctual air link title
One lucky Carnoustie family was all smiles after winning free flights in celebration of Loganair’s second anniversary of operating air services from Dundee.
Louise Lyall (40) was waiting to board Loganair’s flight from Dundee to Belfast on Friday (May 21) with her sons Andrew (7) and Callum (8) when she discovered that she had won the airline’s birthday prize draw.
A delighted Louise, who was on her way to visit her mother in Ballymena, received a pair of free return flights to the Northern Irish capital from Dundee West MP, Jim McGovern, and toasted her good fortune with a glass of champagne.
She said: “I never expected it for a minute. As I was waiting in the departure lounge, Loganair staff were handing out champagne and cupcakes to celebrate the airline’s second birthday at Dundee. Then I was told that my name had been chosen at random from among the passengers on my flight and that I was the winner.
“I’m delighted as my husband Stuart (42) and I try to get across to see our family in Ballymena as often as we can and we always fly as it’s much more convenient. These extra flights will come in really handy as it means that we’ll be able to get across again later this year.”
Loganair’s services from Dundee to Birmingham and Belfast have continued to prove popular over the past 12 months with the airline recording a modest 1% growth in passenger numbers despite enduring tough economic conditions.
In addition, new statistics released by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) show that Loganair has retained its title as the UK’s most punctual cross-border air link.
The CAA data for the year ending December 21, 2009 found that 94.5% of flights between Dundee and Birmingham were on time – up from 93.7% in 2008 and well ahead of the UK average of 84.8%.
The route also had the shortest delay of any air service throughout the UK, at three and a half minutes, compared to the national average of just over nine minutes.
Jim McGovern MP said: “Loganair has developed a loyal base of regular passengers at Dundee who appreciate the ability to get through the uncongested and compact terminal quickly.
“It’s particularly pleasing to see that the flights have continued to prosper despite the economic downturn and that Loganair is committed to supporting Dundee’s economy by maintaining convenient air services to two key UK destinations.”
Jonathan Hinkles, Loganair’s commercial director, said: “We’re delighted to have maintained our exemplary punctuality record for our Dundee operations – especially as our flight times represent the best performance of the 31 airlines regularly serving Birmingham.
“We’re also very pleased that we’ve been able to record positive growth in the face of exceptionally tough winter weather, increases in Air Passenger Duty and the grounding of many of our services during April as a result of the volcanic ash cloud.
“It’s a real result when you consider that cross-border traffic from Edinburgh Airport fell by 7% in the past 12 months – from 3.95 to 3.68 million – as all routes suffered a decline.”
The news comes on the back of Loganair’s Dundee-based crews receiving further praise recently for achieving 99.4% compliance with Birmingham Airport’s ‘Operation Pathfinder’ programme, which monitors airline performance with a view to reducing the airport’s impact on the local environment.
Mr Hinkles added: “Our first-class performance from Dundee has shown that our team recognises that punctuality is second only to safety in terms of importance to our customers. I’d like to congratulate our locally based pilots, cabin crew and engineers, as well as the ground staff at Dundee, for their sterling efforts over the past 18 months.”
Loganair flights to Birmingham depart Dundee at 7am and 4.30pm each weekday with return flights from Birmingham departing at 9.05am and 6.30pm. There is also a Sunday evening flight in each direction while flights to Belfast City operate daily (except Wednesday and Saturday).
Additionally, Loganair will be introducing extra Sunday flights between Dundee and Belfast on peak dates throughout the summer to cope with expected high demand during the school holidays and while the British Open golf championship is taking place at St Andrews. Services will operate on July 4, July 18 and September 26, departing Dundee at 12.10pm and Belfast at 1.35pm.
Fares on both routes start from £34.99 including taxes, and flights are bookable at www.flybe.com.
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