The airline will run three flights a week to Tenerife from October

BA's regional subsidiary, BA Connect, is offering the flights as part of its bid to compete with budget airlines.

It will run scheduled services from NEMA with three flights a week to Tenerife from 31 October.

Kevin Hatton of GB Airways, which operates the flights, said NEMA had an excellent catchment area and a strong market for leisure traffic.

"Tenerife is literally a new direction for BA Connect services in the Midlands, which has traditionally been based at Birmingham and focused on business and short break destinations," he said.

The airport's managing director Penny Coates described Tuesday's announcement as "a really exciting milestone".

BA will not be basing the Airbus planes it is using for the service at the airport in Castle Donington.