Airline Stobart Air has called on the Ƶ and Irish Governments to develop a vaccine passport system to allow vaccinated people resume travel as it announces two new services from the West Country to Ireland.
The Dublin-based company, which has just been sold to a 26-year-old entrepreneur for an initial £2, said it will start flying from Newquay Cornwall Airport to Belfast on June 28 and initially operate three times weekly, with fares starting from £34.99.
An Exeter to Dublin route will commence on August 30 and initially operate four times weekly, with fares starting from £39.99. The firm said flights will operate in line with Covid-19 protocols, including Stobart Air’s enhanced health and safety measures.
And Stobart Air called on the Ƶ and Irish Governments to develop vaccine passports as a priority with Andy Jolly, managing director at Stobart Air, saying: “The aviation industry needs a clear plan for when and how air travel can safely resume in line with vaccination rollout programmes.
“Stobart Air calls on the Governments in the Ƶ and Ireland to work with all industry stakeholders to restore confidence in aviation and facilitate the resumption of safe air travel in line with the vaccination rollout programmes.
“In the immediate term this includes developing a vaccine pass procedure to allow people who have received their complete vaccine course to unrestricted travel within the Common Travel Area.”
Stobart Air, operator of Aer Lingus Regional routes, aid the new Exeter Airport to Dublin Airport route will initially operate on Monday, Thursday, Friday, and Sunday.
The new Cornwall Airport Newquay to Belfast City Airport link will initially operate on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
Anticipating a resumption of air travel within the Common Travel Area in line with the successful rollout of vaccination programmes across the Ƶ and Ireland, Stobart Air has added these new routes to its network to provide additional choices for customers wishing to travel for business and leisure.
Stobart Air said it has implemented a number of enhanced health and safety measures to protect staff, crew and passengers, including enhanced aircraft cleaning, mandatory face coverings - with the exception of small children and those who are unable to wear a face mask for medical reasons - and boarding, disembarkation and in-flight procedures to reduce crew and passenger interaction.
Mr Jolly added: “Anticipating a successful Covid-19 vaccination rollout which will allow air travel to resume safely later this year, we are pleased to add Exeter-Dublin and Newquay Cornwall-Belfast to our route network.
“We believe these new connections will cater to both business and leisure travellers with direct, convenient and cost-effective flights between England’s South West and the two largest cities on the island of Ireland, the vibrant, historic and scenic Dublin in the Republic of Ireland, and Belfast in Northern Ireland.
“We are committed to providing our passengers with frequent, convenient and affordable services through our regional connections. We look forward to welcoming our staff and customers onboard these new routes.”
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“We are pleased to add Exeter-Dublin and Newquay Cornwall-Belfast to our route network, which are subject to a timeline that provides certainty for airlines, airports and customers, and which will cater for both business and leisure travellers with direct, convenient and cost-effective flights.”
Meanwhile, Stobart Air’s sale has gone through and is a complex deal which involves the. Esken, , will now focus on Southend Airport and its energy-from-waste business.
Stobart Air has a contract with Aer Lingus until December 2022 to operate a fleet of 13 aircraft, including flights from Dublin, Cork, Shannon, Donegal and Kerry. A new deal was awarded to Emerald Airlines to run the operation from 2023.
Esken bought Stobart Air back from bankruptcy in 2020 and the new sale price of just £2 is a token and the value of balance sheet cash, put up to £7.5million will change hands depending on certain trigger events up until July 2024.
The new owner of the airline is Ettyl, run by 26-year-old chief executive Jason Scales, who also has a blockchain and technology incubator on the Isle of Man.
