EasyJet expects passengers using its flights from Gatwick to rise by 5% this year with the addition of five new routes targeting business travellers.
Year-round services from Gatwick to Brussels, Paris Charles de Gaulle, Jersey, Newcastle and Strasbourg take off on March 30 following the purchase of take-off and landing slots from Flybe.
The frequency of easyJet’s services between Gatwick and Inverness will also double from one to two return flights a day.
The expansion to cover 108 destinations from Gatwick is expected to appeal to business travellers.
The budget carrier flew 2.3 million business passengers in and out of Gatwick last year and more than 800,000 passengers are expected to use the five new services a year.
The airline’s UK commercial manager Hugh Aitken said: “By adding key European cities like Brussels, Paris and Strasbourg, easyJet can ensure that business travellers using London Gatwick have convenient and affordable links to key cities.
“With more than one hundred destinations and over 50 of Europe’s top cities within easy reach from London Gatwick, easyJet offers an unrivalled network. The addition of Newcastle and Inverness will also ensure that the UK remains well connected.”
The airport’s chief commercial officer Guy Stephenson said: “We are very pleased that easyJet has chosen to launch these five routes from Gatwick, both to maintain continuity of service on important domestic destinations, but also to serve major new European business routes such as Paris, Brussels and Strasbourg.
“This summer Gatwick will serve 45 of the top 50 European business routes.”