Flybe ceases trading and cancels all scheduled flights
Flybe Ceases Trading - Flybe customers have been advised NOT to travel to airports as flights will not be operating.
On January 27th, British airline Flybe announced that it had entered administration and would cease operations, less than a year since commencing flight services. All future scheduled flight services have been cancelled, and the airline emphasized in its announcement that they will not be rescheduled.
The airline stated, that it would not be able to help passengers arrange alternative flights. If you have booked a flight via a 3rd party, please contact your booking agent, for advice.
Flybe customers who still need to travel, will need to make their own alternative travel arrangements via other airlines, rail or coach operators.
The UK Civil Aviation Authority will provide advice and information to affected passengers. More information can be found on www.caa.co.uk/news when it is available.
This is the second downfall for the airline, having first collapsed in March 2020 as the then-struggling carrier failed to withstand the sudden plunge in passenger demand caused by the pandemic. Flybe was among the first few airlines to go out of business when the pandemic first emerged.
The airline was relaunched in 2021 as Flybe Limited and the reincarnated Flybe commenced flight services in April 2022, when it intended to serve 16 airports in the UK, France, and the Netherlands during the summer season, sadly, it seems the relaunch efforts have not been enough to ensure Flybe remained flying.
Flybe operated up to 530 flights per week across 23 routes, serving airports such as Belfast City, Birmingham, East Midlands, Glasgow, Heathrow and Leeds Bradford.
Strike Action that may affect Travel - General information and updates
December 12th - Flights from Leeds-Bradford Airport could be under threat after Swissport employees announced plans to strike over pay.
Nearly 50 Unite union members, employed as ramp agents at the airport, are planning to walkout between 19th December and 4th January.
Tthe strike had been called over the company's "refusal" to pay workers a monthly cold weather payment of £125, that Swissport workers at other airports receive.
Swissport said it was in "open discussions" with the union, describing the talks as "productive", while Leeds-Bradford Airport have said it would "work closely with partners" to minimise potential disruption.
12th December - Scotland: Flight Disruption Expected at Edinburgh Airport Travelers using Edinburgh Airport this holiday season face potential flight cancellations. A planned strike by tanker drivers will begin at 05:00 on 18th December and continue until 6th January. The 19-day strike, centered on a pay dispute, is expected to disrupt domestic and international flights.
November 28th UPDATES - it is likely that buses TO the airport to Benidorm will be at 6am, 10am, 11am, 14.00 and 22.00. Buses FROM the airport to the Avenida Europa Benidorm will only be running at 7am, 15.00, 18.00, 19.00 and 23.00.
November 7th UPDATES - The strike planned for Monday11th November has now been cancelled, as the two unions involved (UGT and CCOO) have announced that it would be irresponsible given what is going on in the Valencia area.
"Right now, citizens and the State need to have all possible resources for mobility and logistics. For this reason, it would be irresponsible to maintain a strike in the current context ."
October 28th 2024 - National Road Transport Strike - Public transport will be running minimum services on buses, coaches, chauffeurs, taxis, and minibuses with more than 9 passenger seats.
Strikes are expected to continue on 11th (Cancelled), 28th and 29th November and 5th, 9th and 23rd December. From this last date, the strike will become indefinite, unless an agreement can be reached.
In Alicante, minimum services equivalent to 50% of punctual service have been established. For the rest of the time slots, the services that will be operational will be 40% And a similar proposal in Elche.
The transporters are demanding an increase in fuel prices, working conditions, the lack of support measures from the government and the request for early retirement. The strikers are also demanding better rates, regulation in the sector and guarantees for their economic sustainability. .
15th August 2024 - Employees of the company called "Ilunion" who have the contract to work on the first line of security and screening at Alicante airport, have decided to continue with their industrial action. They will be continuing to call for strike action at one hour periods, twice a day on the 16th, 17th, 18th, 30th and 31st August, plus on the 1st of September.
HOWEVER...Before people are taken in by scaremongering in the UK press, minimum service agreements are in place, at a rate of 86%, which means that actual effects on passengers passing through security are hardly noticeable.
Alicante airport: Security staff strike
A five-day strike at Alicante airport involving security staff will lead to congestion, British holiday company Jet2 has warned.
The industrial action is taking place from 31st July -4th August.
The airport serving the Costa Blanca will be affected between 8.30am-9.30am and 6pm-7pm local time.
Jet2 say on its website: “The strike is supported by security services at the airport and will affect congestion at security control."
What is not reported much is that the Spanish government department of transport set by law a "minimum service" during such strikes.
The minimum services set depend on the type of route - 100% for emergency flights, transfer of citizens or foreigners guarded by police officers or transport of universal postal mail or perishable products.
Commercial flights with routes to or from non-peninsular territories, the minimum services range between 52% from Lleida to 84% from La Coruña, depending on the estimated occupancy.
Routes with foreign or Spanish cities whose travel time by road is at least five hours, the minimum services are between 44% of La Palma and 57% of Alicante.
On journeys that can be replaced by other means of public transport in less than five hours,the minimum services are between 18% in Castellón and 30% in Vigo.
TUI has cancelled nearly 200 flights due to serve Manchester Airport between now and the end of June. It will cancel six daily flights up to June 30th
Tens of thousands of customers will be affected until the end of June as the half-term travel chaos continues.
Which Tui flights are affected?
Six Tui flights a day (43 per week) will be cancelled from Manchester airport until Thursday 30th June.
The company said the flight cancellation was due to “operational and supply chain issues” alongside the increase in the number of people travelling overseas.
A Tui spokesperson added: “We’re incredibly sorry to those customers who have been impacted by the recent disruption to our operations. We understand that last-minute cancellations are incredibly disappointing and we would like to reassure our customers that we are doing everything we can to get them on holiday as planned.
“Whilst every cancellation is regrettable, the vast majority of our flights are operating as planned, with more than 26,000 customers taking off yesterday on holiday.
“We’d like to apologise again for the inconvenience caused and we thank customers for their understanding.”
The aviation industry is facing widespread disruption with some 7,000 flights cancelled worldwide over the last weekend.
Airlines and airports are facing staff shortages as they adjust to the resurgence in demand following the lifting of Covid-19 pandemic travel restrictions.
A Tui spokesperson highlighted “ongoing disruption” to its operation at Manchester. But Tui has said that its flights from all other UK airports are planned to operate as normal.
Will I be refunded if my flight is cancelled?
Yes, Tui passengers whose flights have have been cancelled will receive a full refund within 14 days.
The company is to refund all customers who are affected by cancellations and provide “an extra gesture of goodwill”.
Holidaymakers who have already had their departure axed have already been given vouchers for £200.
Can I claim compensation?
If you were informed of a cancellation less than 14 days prior to your scheduled departure date, you have the right to compensation.
Tui has advised passengers who are due compensation to claim the cash.
This page will be continually updated with any Ryanair updates
March 3rd 2024 - Ryanair have just announced the opening up of nine new routes from Alicante airport with the start of the new high season. The nine new routes take the number of destinations with Ryanair from the airport to a massive 89 in 21 countries, with 10 of them being to other Spanish airports.
The new routes are Cardiff and Norwich (UK) Münster/Osnabrück (Germany) Rzeszów (Poland) Zagreb (Croatia) Sofía (Bulgaria) and Barcelona (obvs Spain!) These are added to a new route to Budapest (Hungary) which was announced a few days before. Flights to Lisbon in Portugal are also going to run year round.
March 2024 - The Dublin-based airline said it will be forced to make 'minor schedule changes' as it will only receive 40 of the 57 planned Boeing 737 MAX 8200 planes before the end of June.
The carrier said in a statement: 'Ryanair will now have to reduce approximately 10 aircraft lines, flying for the peak summer months of July, August and September.
'This will cause some minor schedule changes in the context of Ryanair's 600 aircraft fleet and will reduce frequencies on existing routes rather than cutting new routes.' 'We regret any inconvenience caused to some customers and our airport partners by these enforced summer 2024 schedule changes.'
They have already implemented schedule cuts at some of its 'higher cost airports' such as Dublin, Milan Malpensa, Warsaw Modlin and four Portuguese airports.
If you have any questions about your up and coming summer flights please contact Ryanair.
20th Aug 2022 - Ryanair intensifies its war against 'online' travel agencies
Ryanair has stepped up its war against online travel agencies , which it accuses of charging high commissions for an unnecessary intermediation service. The low-cost airline on Wednesday issued a warning to customers about the "fake" boarding passes provided by the travel site Kiwi.com and has informed that they will no longer be accepted by the airline.
Ryanair state that in accordance with EU regulation 2015/1998, it is mandatory for passengers to complete Ryanair's check-in process directly to ensure they are informed of all necessary regulatory and safety protocols when travelling. However, it considers that Kiwi.com circumvents these aviation regulations by issuing its own boarding passes, "which are not valid on Ryanair flights".
Therefore, from this Wednesday (18th Aug), any Ryanair passenger with a boarding pass issued by Kiwi.com will be denied boarding for not having complied with Ryanair's safety and security protocols during check-in. Customers who wish to retrieve an official boarding pass can do so by accessing their reservation through Ryanair.com or on the airline's app.
Ryanair urges travellers to only book directly on its website or mobile app and to avoid buying through third-party agents who are not authorised to sell Ryanair flights or to issue boarding passes.
Ryanair has obtained a court order in the Czech Republic requiring Kiwi to stop replacing customers' email addresses with fake email addresses, preventing the airline from communicating directly with its passengers.
Other online travel agencies may also be affected by the above.
Ryanair implemented the "Verified Seal", which is a guarantee for customers that they are booking directly on Ryanair's website.
Dara Brady, Ryanair´s Marketing Director said in a statement that customers who have booked through Kiwi.com should contact the agency to obtain the Ryanair booking reference.
3rd February - Ryanair has been ordered to remove an "irresponsible" advert depicting misleading claims about coronavirus vaccinations by the advertising watchdog. (advert pictured below)
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) said it had received 2,370 complaints about the advert - which was shown from December to January - making it the third most complained about advert of all time.
Ryanair stated the advert was meant to be "uplifting" and did not consider the content was insensitive to people who had had COVID-19 or who had lost people to the virus". Others felt the advert trivialised ongoing restrictions and effects of the pandemic.
Ryanair updates
December 27th 2020
Ryanair have once again come up with an advertising campaign that seems to have upset many and has caused massive backlash all over social media. The new television campaign tells travellers to “jab and go!”. This advert show a gloved handholding a syringe and a vial labelled “vaccine,” . The advert is also on the front page of their website.