April 19, 2024

Paull Ank Ford

Business Think different

Exeter airport had just nine passengers in May

Just nine travellers passed by means of Exeter airport in May well in accordance to calamitous figures which exhibit the depths of the travel disaster gripping Britain.

Traveller quantities plunged from pretty much a hundred,000 a 12 months before, airport bosses discovered in proof to East Devon Council as they sought a bailout.

There were still 99.5pc less visitors in July than previous 12 months and the airport faces a £620,000 bill for small business rates.

East Devon Council has passed a assist package which will allow £180,000 of the bill to be paid out more than the future a few a long time – the greatest permitted less than EU state help principles.

The slump has been mirrored across Britain such as at large hub airports such as Heathrow, forcing airlines and linked companies to lay off tens of 1000’s of staff in a battle to endure as a golden age for air travel came to crashing halt.

Over-all, passenger quantities at UK airports could plunge by 40pc 12 months on 12 months, in accordance to Airways UK’s forecasts for the twelve months to July 2021.

Exeter suffered the double whammy when regional airline Flybe collapsed in March followed by the pandemic that grounded  planes around the globe.

It is a extraordinary fall from grace immediately after 1m travellers made use of the web-site in a twelve-thirty day period period of time for 1st time in 2019.