Low-fare carrier Ryanair is adding over 2,000 extra seats to its network from Cornwall Airport Newquay during the Christmas break. The festive route expansion plans came as the low-cost carrier’s CEO calls on the UK Government to follow other European countries in abolishing Air Passenger Duty.
Passengers travelling to and from Cornwall Airport Newquay will benefit from additional services to Alicante and Malaga, as well as Dublin and London courtesy of Ryanair.
The airline has added 2,300 additional seats across its Alicante, Malaga and Dublin routes during Christmas week.
In addition to strengthening the regional airport’s year-round connectivity and supporgin local jobs and inbound tourism, Cornwall Airport Newquay’s Managing Director, Amy Smith, said: “This sustained confidence strengthens our network today and lays the ground work for future route development and new markets that will benefit residents, businesses and visitors alike.”
The carrier’s bumper Winter 2025 schedule will deliver +10 per cent air traffic to and from the Cornish air transport hub this winter.
Speaking from the launch of the new routes at Cornwall, Ryanair’s CEO, Eddie Wilson said the four routes to Alicante, Alicante, Dublin and London offer a selection of both Winter sun destinations as well as key city connections. “We have also added extra capacity for Christmas week, ensuring plenty of low-fare choice for our Cornwall customers, as well as driving traffic and tourism to Cornwall during the off-peak Winter season.”
He also noted that in line with its strategy for growth, Ryanair plans to expand tourism and traffic across its 22 UK airports, including Cornwall. “To do this however, the UK must become competitive,” he said.
“Rachel Reeves should stop talking about growth and start delivering it by abolishing APD. In countries all over Europe, like Sweden, Hungary, Albania, and Regional Italy, Govts are abolishing aviation taxes and are being rewarded with rapid traffic, tourism, and jobs growth. This is the model that Rachel Reeves should copy. She has failed to deliver any growth in the first 12 months of the new Labour Govt, but she can reverse this failure, by scrapping APD to make UK air travel competitive once more, particularly for the UK regions like Cornwall.”
