British Airways Increases Gatwick Presence

Flag carrier benefits from gates abandoned after Monarch Airlines collapse.

Flyers departing from London Gatwick Airport (LGW) will have more options this summer, thanks to British Airways. Britain’s Daily Express reports the airline will increase their presence at the secondary airport by approximately 150 flights.

International Airlines Group (IAG), parent company of Aer Lingus, British Airways and Iberia, airlines-licence-iag/update-1-ba-owner-iag-secures-failed-airline-monarchs-gatwick-slots-idUSL8N1NX5LC” target=”_blank”>purchased the arrival and departure rights shortly after the collapse of Monarch Airlines in October 2017. At the time of purchase, the conglomerate announced they would use the takeoff and departure slots for all three carriers, but primarily boost the presence of British Airways in the capital city.

Of the 150 British Airways flights added to LGW, flyers will have 35 weekly flights to Malaga, Spain – an increase of seven flights from last summer. Other destinations that will receive more visits by the British flag carrier from LGW include Alicante, Lanzarote and Tenerife, all in Spain, as well as Faro and Madiera, Portugal.

“We are delighted to be able to further grow our presence at Gatwick by adding extra frequencies and improving our timetable,” British Airways chief executive Alex Cruz told the Daily Express. “These exciting new routes give our customers even more choice of destinations at competitively low prices.”

The growth at London’s second-largest airport is not the only recent expansion announcement for IAG. On the first business day of 2018, the corporation announced they would take over more assets from failed airlines by purchasing Austrian carrier NIKI from the former Air Berlin Group. The purchase, which includes aircraft and gate slots, will be a subsidiary of low-cost carrier Vueling.

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