Transavia to launch low-cost service

Report by John Lavabre

DUTCH airline Transavia is to enter into the low-cost market with the launch of a scheduled service called BASIQ AIR.

The operation will effectively be a scaled down Transavia service. It will be offered on Transavia aircraft with Transavia crew and livery but newspapers, pillows and blankets will not be available. Passengers will also have to buy refreshments and their will only be a limited range of items for sale on board.

Starting on December 18, there will be two flights a day from Amsterdam to Nice and one flight a day from Amsterdam to Barcelona.

The principle behind the operation is to offer one-way fares with those who book first getting the cheapest deal.