Budget airline easyJet has added a nineteenth plane to its Bristol Airport fleet in a move it says will support around 400 jobs.
The carrier says the Airbus A320neo will allow it to offer "even greater connections" to Europe and beyond.
According to easyJet, the new aircraft is up to 50% quieter and uses 20% less fuel than the generation of aircraft it replaces as the company continues to modernise its fleet with more fuel-efficient aircraft.
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The announcement comes as the airline launches two new routes from Bristol - to Almeria in Spain’s Andalusia region and Palermo, capital of the Italian island of Sicily. In total, easyJet now has 83 routes from the South West transport hub.
Flights to Almeria start on 24 June and will operate twice a week, on Tuesdays and Saturdays, while Palermo will launch on 26 June and operate twice a week - on Thursdays and Sundays.
Ali Gayward, easyJet’s 海角视频 country manager, said: “Not only does our fleet growth in Bristol support many skilled jobs and connectivity which play a crucial role in economic growth, it is a clear demonstration of our continued commitment to serving customers in the southwest as well as supporting inbound travel for tourism.
“Through our unrivalled short-haul network and unique easyJet holidays offering, we continue to provide more choice and value for money, always aiming to make travel easy for the six million customers we fly to and from Bristol each year.”
Rupert Lawrie, commercial director at Bristol Airport, said the addition of the aircraft underpinned the airport's "commitment to local communities".
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"We are actively encouraging newer, quieter and more fuel-efficient aircraft to Bristol Airport," he said.
"These aircraft now make up more than half of the easyJet fleet at Bristol and compares very favourably with other 海角视频 airports - with eleven Airbus NEO aircraft planned in total.
“We’re really proud to be one of easyJet’s biggest European bases, which is so important for providing not only unrivalled choice of destinations, connections and frequency, but more high-quality jobs in our region.”
The announcement comes just days after an Australian investment firm confirmed it had acquired a 55% stake in Bristol Airport from Canada's Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan.