easyJet to set up Spanish base
easyJet is to establish its first Spanish base at Madrid’s Barajas Airport.
Operations are to start on February 16, 2007, with a number of new routes, details of which are to be disclosed next month. The airline currently offers nine international routes from Madrid, including London, Bristol and Liverpool. The Madrid will be the carrier’s 17th base.
The move comes as Iberia is poised to start a low cost carrier from the Spanish capital.
easyJet, which started serving the airport in 1998, claims to be the largest no-frills airline to operate from Madrid. It handled 900,000 passengers to and from the airport last year, double the numbers recorded in 2004.
The airline’s chief executive Andy Harrison said: “easyJet continues to grow across its network and in particular in continental Europe. We believe that Spain has excellent opportunities for growth, as air travel is still dominated by inefficient traditional airlines that do not act in the interest of the consumer.
“Spain has been a key market for easyJet for the past 10 years and the new base will take our commitment to a completely new level.
“While Madrid is one of Europe’s largest and most important capital cities, it is still underserved by low-fares airlines. easyJet’s new base will make Madrid much more accessible for international visitors and will offer Spanish consumers low cost with care and convenience.”
easyJet claims to be the largest low-fares airline in Spain handling 7.5 million passengers on 72 routes to 11 airports in the country.
Report by Phil Davies
Phil Davies
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