Ryanair mocks absent Chancellor with ‘come back to help out’ tweet December 16, 2021 The Chancellor of the Exchequer faced criticism from Ryanair this afternoon, as the budget airline urged him to return to the UK and help out ailing businesses. Hospitality and tourism firms have been calling on Sunak to bring back pandemic support measures, as they face waves of cancellations amid a surge of Omicron cases before [...]
Volkswagen to produce fewer cars in 2022 following semiconductor supply issues December 16, 2021 Volkswagen has reportedly said it might have to reduce its production forecasts for 2022 as a result of ongoing semiconductor issues. After reducing its 2021 forecasts from 9.3 to 9 million vehicles produced, the German car marker could see deliveries fall to 8 million next year, business magazine Manager Magazin reported this morning, citing sources [...]
BA’s owner IAG to pay €75m to Air Europa after pulling out of takeover agreement December 16, 2021 British Airways’ (BA) owner IAG has announced today it will pay €75m (£63.7m) to Air Europa following yesterday’s decision to pull out from a £420m takeover deal, leaving shares up 0.70 per cent at closing time. IAG said it would it would pay the rival carrier’s owner Globalia €35m, on top a €40m break-up fee, [...]
TfL to slash congestion charge after 6pm, maintaining £15 cap December 16, 2021 Transport for London (TfL) announced today that from 21 February the congestion charge will be scrapped every day from 6pm, remaining operational on weekends between 12pm and 6pm. The £15 price cap will remain unchanged, the network added. Following a 10-week public consultation involving around 100,000 people, TfL has stated that the changes will prevent [...]
Accès interdit: France introduces tougher restrictions for UK travellers December 16, 2021 The French Government has toughened restrictions for UK travellers. The Prime Minister’s office has announced that from 12am Saturday (CET) all those travelling from the UK will be required to show a negative Covid test – either PCR or antigen – taken less than 24 hours, as opposed to the current time of 48 hours. [...]
Thousands of passengers stuck in hour-long queues at Heathrow December 16, 2021 Passengers have been complaining of being stuck in hour-long queues at Heathrow airport, waiting for Border Force to process passengers at immigration. Former Iceland, Focus DIY and Wickes boss Bill Grimsey tweeted yesterday about “absolute chaos” at the London airport hub, calling the immigration process a “joke.” “Well this is a great start to self [...]
Heathrow airfares to rise as CAA confirms interim price cap December 16, 2021 The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has written to Heathrow, confirming the £30.19 interim price cap the airport can charge its airline customers will take effect from 1 January. According to the CAA, the charge will be £29.50 in 2020 prices, going up to £30.19 – a 50 per cent increase compared with the current [...]
EU extends airport slot relief until October 2022 December 15, 2021 The European Commission announced today airport slot relief rules will run until 29 October 2022 to help airlines get back on their feet following the devastating impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. Instead of the normal requirement that compels airlines to use at least 80 per cent of their slots, carriers will now be required to [...]
Flights to Canary Islands cancelled as volcano emits toxic gases December 15, 2021 Flights to the Canary Islands were still being cancelled this morning after toxic gasses from the volcano in La Palma were detected across the island. According to aviation analytics firm Cirium, 21 flights were cancelled to and from airports in the Spanish archipelago yesterday, with a further two cancelled today. To face the situation, yesterday [...]
Government slashes EV grant a second time in bid to reel in spending December 15, 2021 The government has slashed its grant for electric vehicles (EVs) for the second time this year, in a bid to reel in spending as inflation hits a decade-long high. The grant has been cut from £2,500 to £1,500, while the value of vehicles eligible for the funding assistance has been trimmed down by £3,000 to [...]