No frills airline Ryanair plans to base two aircraft in Newcastle next summer, offering 63 flights across 19 routes to destinations including Lanzarote, Ibiza, and Milan.
High demand this summer for the budget carrier’s seven routes to places such as Palma, Malaga, Alicante and Faro out of Newcastle (pictured) prompted the decision to add 12 new routes next year, Ryanair said.
The other new destinations are Paphos, Chania, Riga, Menorca, Lanzarote, Fuerteventura, Tenerife, Gran Canaria and Krakow.
A seat sale with fares available from £26.99 for travel until October 2022 runs until midnight on August 8, 2021.
The $200 million investment from Ryanair will lead 60 direct jobs and more than 400 indirect positions being created, the airline said.
Ryanair chief executive Eddie Wilson said: “We have seen massive demand for flights from Newcastle this summer as UK customers flock to the beaches of Spain and Portugal and now customers will have much wider choice next summer with the addition of these 12 new routes.”
Nick Jones, chief executive at Newcastle International Airport, called the move “very significant news” for the north-east region.
“Ryanair’s investment is a sign of growing confidence and will provide the north-east public with a great selection of new destinations and extra weekly frequencies, providing more options for leisure and business travel,” Jones said. “This will create new jobs for pilots, cabin crew and engineering alongside support services, and will generate economic value for the wider area.”
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