EasyJet base returns to Newcastle Airport
Jim Scott/BBCAirline easyJet has reopened its base at Newcastle International Airport, more than five years after it left the site amid Covid-era cuts.
Its three-aircraft base supports 140 direct jobs, for pilots and cabin crew, and more than doubles its number of destinations from the site, the budget airline said.
CEO Kenton Jarvis said he did not think the company had lost the trust of potential employees in the region after closing the site in 2020, and that existing crews were "delighted to be coming home".
"That [the site closure] happened in the pandemic and a lot of airlines had to make a lot of tough choices in the pandemic," he said.
EasyJet flights have called at Newcastle over the past six years, but basing the three Airbus A320 family airliners there will mean more flights at more times of the day.
New routes included Antalya, Corfu, Lisbon, Malta, Nice, Prague, Reus, Rhodes, Rome, Sharm-El-Sheikh, and Tenerife.
Director of aviation development at Newcastle Airport, Leon McQuaid, said the pandemic closure had been a "difficult time for everybody" but that it was a "necessity of fleet planning".
He said the new base created more jobs and increased choice.
"It's a huge investment," McQuaid said. "It's absolutely fantastic."
Middle East conflict
Meanwhile, Jarvis warned the war in Iran could see prices at the airline go up in the long-term.
He said the budget flyer was "well-hedged" as it had fuel supplies secured in advance but pricing was "volatile".
"Over time I expect if fuel remains at this level, the prices will become elevated," he said.
The operator said there was an increased demand for destinations away from the conflict, including the Canaries, Spain, Portugal, Malta and Greece, with "softening demand" for Turkey and Cyprus.
However, demand for holidays in general was holding up, Jarvis said, despite fears over the cost of living in the UK.
Asked for his message to the prime minister about the ongoing war, he said: "What I would say, as CEO, is to make sure that they think of aviation, and they think of the importance of the economy of growth in aviation."
Additional reporting by PA Media
