Bigger airports will get growth off the ground January 27, 2025 Anyone who believes in growth should applaud rumours that Rachel Reeves will allow London’s airports to expand, says Jasper Ostle Rachel Reeves is rumoured to be throwing her authority behind the expansion of Britain’s airports, particularly Heathrow, Luton and Gatwick. It’s a courageous effort to accelerate necessary development: she will face opposition from colleagues, local [...]
Brexit has left the UK aviation sector up in the air January 24, 2025 Since Brexit, UK pilot’s qualifications are no longer recognised in the EU and planes have to fly to America or Brazil for maintenance. If the government is serious about resetting Britain’s relationship with Europe then aviation would be a good place to start, says Chris Hope In 1945, William T Piper, the founder of the [...]
British Airways succeeds Jaguar in public spotlight after rewards changes January 2, 2025 British Airways has become the latest household name to incur the wrath of a high-profile public backlash in the wake of its decision to significantly change its rewards scheme for loyal customers. The airline revealed earlier this week that it was changing its tiering system for rewards to be based on spend and upped how [...]
Why ‘Sunshine Saturday’ has travel operators crossing their fingers December 30, 2024 Black Friday’s travel-focused cousin, Sunshine Saturday, is set to fall on 4 January in 2025. Occuring on the first Saturday of every new year, Sunshine Saturday is the day most people book their holiday getaways for the year ahead. With Heathrow Airport set to cap off its busiest-ever year with two record months and Virgin Atlantic [...]
Why Grenada is the off-the-beaten-track side of the Caribbean December 9, 2024 The West Indies, one of the world’s most beautiful places, is still relatively untouched by tourism. A crescent-shaped group of islands separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, the region is often referred to as the Caribbean, although, strictly speaking, the Caribbean also includes the coastal regions of North, South and Central America. [...]
Plane weird: How the airport broke my spirit December 9, 2024 I’m not a nervous flyer in the usual sense. Being in a tin can at an altitude of 35,000 feet (that’s half the height of Gary Barlow’s son, for reference) doesn’t really get me rattled. The rational side of me kicks in. You’re more likely to be hit by a car, or die from a [...]
Bad Gastein: Skiing with a touch of belle époque glamour December 2, 2024 They say first impressions matter, and my goodness, Bad Gastein certainly makes a great first impression. When approaching the resort, visitors are met with what at first glance, looks like a Wes Anderson film set. A spectacular cliff amphitheatre is crowned by elegant and imposing turn of the century palaces and hotels. As our taxi [...]
Why Virgin Atlantic boss won’t meet British Airways chief alone November 25, 2024 The boss of Virgin Atlantic has revealed the legacy of the dirty tricks scandal in the early 1990s will mean he will never meet his British Airways counterpart alone. Shai Weiss has said that while he has “professional respect” for Sean Doyle, he remains cautious and does “not want to get caught out”. Three decades [...]
Jet2 hikes dividend on record profit as holiday prices rise again November 21, 2024 Average package holiday prices grew six per cent to £904, with inflation leading to higher costs for consumers, Jet2 said.
WH Smith: Profit jumps as expansion into travel shops pays off November 14, 2024 WH Smith’s push into travel has paid off with the bulk of its growth in the last year due to higher profit at airports, train stations and motorway services. WH Smith’s revenue rose seven per cent to £1.918bn in the year ended 31 August, 2024, driven by growth in travel shops plus the company’s expansion [...]