Airport Parking News

www.Parctel.com: Belfast International Airport launched a new long-haul destination today with a new flyglobespan transatlantic flight from the airport.

The web-based airline launched a weekly flight to Toronto's Hamilton International Airport - part of a massive UK-wide programme to Canada from 13 UK and Irish airports.

The airline is already well known to Belfast travellers- having launched a service to Orlando Sanford last year - which is proving very popular.

Chairman Tom Dalrymple is delighted at this expansion of his Belfast programme, as he is keen to extend the company's long-haul routes.

"The key factors of load factor and fuel price are even more important on these longer routes, and therefore the flyglobespan model that has worked so well on short-haul routes fits well into the long-haul market, delivering low seat prices.

"We have a lean, very efficient organisation that allows us to offer extremely competitive fares in all our different classes and price is still the key driver.

The airline's parent company, the Globespan Group has 30 years experience of offering Canadian holidays and Dalrymple sees flyglobespan's 2007 expansion there as an natural extension of their expertise.

John Doran, managing director at Belfast International Airport said:
"We are delighted to welcome another transatlantic destination to our expanding route network and the second with FlyGlobespan within the last six months. With the strong links between Northern Ireland and the Toronto region we are confident that this will be a popular route for Canadian visitors to Northern Ireland as well as local travellers heading to the Toronto region."

Alan Clarke, Chief Executive, Northern Ireland Tourist Board, said "NITB welcomes today's announcement as more good news for tourism. The increase in direct international flights and the resulting improved access should help to ensure that 2007 is another successful year for NI tourism. Flyglobespan's transatlantic flights from Belfast International will provide even better opportunities to target Canadian holidaymakers and business tourists."

Most of the flyglobespan transatlantic routes offer three levels of service on board from Economy to Business Class.

Prices to Toronto start from £99 including taxes.

As with all flyglobespan flights, passengers can book flight only or chose to add on transfers and/or accommodation. All flight, holiday, & city break details are available on www.flyglobespan.com

www.Parctel.com: Zoom Airlines will continue their successful service linking Belfast International Airport to Vancouver throughout the winter season for the first time.

The new weekly scheduled flight will operate from Belfast to Vancouver on Thursdays between October till April. Prices start at £129 one-way plus taxes, fees and charges. Zoom offers the lowest scheduled transatlantic airfares from Northern Ireland, with prices on the Toronto and Halifax routes starting from £99 one-way plus taxes.

This winter, Zoom has experienced an unprecedented level of demand for its low-cost full scheduled flights to Canada, highlighting Canada's popularity as a year-round holiday destination. This level of demand has also been encourage by excellent snow conditions experience in Canada's main ski resorts of British Columbia, Alberta and Quebec. This new route will allow Zoom to tap into the localised and thriving snow-sports market.

News of the expanded winter programme follows hot on the heels of Zoom's recent launch of new direct weekly services from Belfast to Halifax this summer. It is also doubling its popular service to Toronto, increasing to two flights per week this summer. In addition to the winter flight to Vancouver, weekly services to Toronto will also be maintained throughout the Winter 2007/8 schedule.

Jonathan Hinkles, UK Managing Director of Zoom Airlines said: "We are delighted to be announcing our new weekly Belfast to Vancouver flight throughout winter. This new flight has strengthened our position as the leading leisure airline in the Northern Ireland-Canada market.

"Our new winter Vancouver flights are ideal for snow-sports enthusiasts wishing to experience some of the world's top ski resorts including Whistler and Big White at prices equivalent to European fares."

A full scheduled service is provided onboard including in-flight entertainment, meal and free soft drinks for the duration of the flight. A generous 20kg baggage allowance is on offer on all flights with no additional carriage charge for ski or sporting equipment.

Premium class seats are also available on all Zoom flights from an additional £79 each way, offering additional legroom, superior in-flight meals, and complimentary drinks throughout the flight plus check-in and luggage benefits.

At present Zoom operates from five UK hubs (Belfast, Glasgow, London Gatwick, Manchester, Cardiff) and Paris to eight Canadian destinations including Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, Halifax, Ottawa, Edmonton, Winnipeg and Montreal.

www.Parctel.com: There was a new meaning to the word runway at Belfast International Airport today, as Jet2.com, the low cost airline, launched its new three times weekly service to Milan with a price tag of just £26.99 one way including taxes.

Budding models and designers, as well as other local travellers, can now fly Jet2.com direct from Belfast to the Italian fashion capital, famous for its intoxicating mix of designer shopping, sophisticated arcades and world-beating bargains.

To celebrate the inaugural flight, airport fashion store Clockwork Orange held a fashion show of Italian labels for the first passengers as they checked in, adding to the large slice of 'Dolce Vita' that the airline is now offering residents of Belfast and beyond.

Carly Brear General Manager - Sales & Marketing fromJet2.com said, "We have been inundated with requests for direct low cost flights to Milan, with many advance bookings from business and leisure travellers alike.

"Not only is Milan a great city but it offers unrivalled access to the Italian lakes, including Garda and Como Equally important is the high level of overseas bookings we are generating, with Italians booking in their droves to experience all Northern Ireland has to offer."

John Doran, managing director of Belfast International Airport, said, "We are delighted to be celebrating this new Milan route from Belfast with Jet2.com. We are confident it will be hugely successful and are looking forward to working with the airline to develop more new routes in the future."

"Our other airport shops are also planning an Italian theme by decorating their outlets and offering discounts on food and gifts to bring about a little Italian flair to Belfast. Today heralds the start of a bumper season for the airport with a total of 11 new routes launching this summer."

Sam Morrison from Clockwork Orange said, "Milan is the Italian capital of fashion and to celebrate Clockwork Orange thought it would be a great idea to get the first passengers in the mood for their trip. This flight will also be beneficial to local retailers like me who travel to northern Italy to source collections."

www.Parctel.com: Zoom Airlines has announced details of its expanded Belfast to Canada service, strengthening its presence in the low-cost scheduled marketplace.

A direct service from Belfast International Airport to Halifax will depart weekly on a Saturday catering for the unprecedented level of demand for Zoom's low-cost full scheduled flights throughout summer. This route will also operate to Toronto increasing the number of summer flights on this route to two a week.

Zoom offers the lowest scheduled airfares across the Atlantic with prices on the Belfast to Halifax route starting from £99 one-way plus taxes. Flights are currently on offer all-year-round to Toronto and throughout the summer months to Vancouver with a plan to expand the Vancouver route into a year-round service starting this winter.

The introduction of low-cost scheduled flights from Belfast to Canada in 2005 allowed Zoom to cater for a high level of localised demand and achieve a number of firsts in the marketplace. Zoom was the first airline to offer low-cost full scheduled flights direct from Belfast all-year-round, the first to offer a non-stop service to Vancouver and now Halifax, and the first to offer a choice of Canadian destinations throughout the summer months.

Debbie Marshall, UK Director of Zoom Airlines said: "I am delighted to be increasing our Belfast service strengthening our presence in the transatlantic low-cost market place. We endeavour to offer more choice and flexibility on our transatlantic services and the Halifax route is testament to that. Our plan to expand the Vancouver route throughout winter is also very exciting and will appeal to independent skiers who will be able to experience the Rockies at prices similar to a typical European flight.

"We pride ourselves in offering the lowest full serviced scheduled fares from Belfast across the Atlantic and one of the key contributing factors to our success is the one-way fares policy we operate allowing passengers to fly into one destination and return from another."

Alan Clarke, Chief Executive, Northern Ireland Tourist Board, said "NITB welcomes today's announcement as more good news for tourism. The increase in direct international flights and the resulting improved access should help to ensure that 2007 is another successful year for NI tourism. Zoom's routes from Halifax, Vancouver and Toronto will provide even better opportunities to target Canadian holidaymakers and business tourists."

John Doran, managing director, Belfast International Airport, said, "Halifax is just the latest route to be added to our growing number of transatlantic destinations. We are extremely pleased that this route, along with the expansion of the Vancouver service, brings the number of direct transatlantic scheduled destinations to six from Belfast International Airport."

Canada has plenty to offer everyone, with spectacular mountains, lakes and rivers to national parks and vibrant cities with diverse multi-cultural influences. For outdoor enthusiasts there is an abundance of sporting venues offering everything from skiing to hiking, fishing, cycling, canoeing and white-water rafting.

A full scheduled service is provided onboard including in-flight entertainment, meal and free soft drinks for the duration of the flight. A generous 20kg baggage allowance is on offer on all flights with no additional carriage charge for ski or sporting equipment.

Premium class seats are also available on all Zoom flights from an additional £79 each way, offering additional legroom, superior in-flight meals, and complimentary drinks throughout the flight plus check-in and luggage benefits.

This rant against Airport Security comes to us courtesy of the Grumpy Old Man:

Just the other day, I was travelling out of Georgie Best Belfast City Airport. After the usual extended queueing carnival I reached the security gate to discover I couldn't take my tube of toothpaste through without the required small square transparent bag. Fair enough.
"Can you give me a bag then?"
"No you have to go back out to the Information desk."
"So you don't supply any bags here."
"No you have to go back out to the Information desk and then join the back of the queue."
Frankly, that got my goat. In fact, I almost lost the bap.

Would it hurt to put up a sign to explain at the entrance to the queuing area, or dare i suggest, hang a few spare bags there so we can help ourselves?

You know at Gatwick Airport they employ half a dozen people, loaded with armfuls of small transparent bags, to shout their way up and down the length of the queue, helping to get the message through to the poor afflicted riff-raff.

Belfast City Airport could be set to benefit from a new tram link to the city centre.

Regional development minister David Cairns announced on Tuesday that economic feasibility studies are to be carried out on two potential routes, one of which would connect the airport with the centre of the capital.

The proposed new light rail system would link the airport with the city centre, the Titanic quarter and a new shopping development at the Belfast Harbour Estate.

Sounding a cautionary note, Mr Cairns said: "Such schemes are expensive and it is important that they are fully and properly studied before decisions are taken."

However, a new link appears to have garnered full backing from local people. Moneyreagh resident Bill Galloway welcomed the news, telling the Belfast Telegraph: "Anything that would improve the transport system has got to be a good thing."

The airport, which was renamed George Best Belfast City Airport in honour of the football legend in March last year, offers flights from the likes of BA Connect, Flybe and bmi.

At the present time, trains run from Belfast city centre to Sydenham, from where a shuttle bus service takes passengers to the airport terminal. Alternatively, Airlink buses run from the airport to Belfast Europa Bus Centre in the city centre every 20 minutes, with tickets costing £2.

Source: Belfast Airport

Immigration officers at Belfast International Airport will be given new powers to arrest suspects under plans to boost border security to be announced today.

The UK Borders Bill will also allow officers at ports and airports to seize cash and assets from illegal immigrants, drug smugglers and people traffickers.

And the staff will wear a new dark blue uniform - to give them a " clear, visible public presence" - and make clear to passengers that they have new powers.

The Bill, to be unveiled by Home Secretary John Reid, follows widespread criticism of security loopholes that have allowed suspects to enter the country through ports and airports.

At present, the officers can only detain foreigners suspected of breaking immigration laws and must call the police to deal with more serious offences.

A Home Office spokeswoman said: "This Bill will help build stronger borders, increasing the powers of immigration officers at airports and ports and removing incentives for illegal immigration to Britain."

The Bill will also help to speed up the deporting of serious criminals, following the scandal over the release of 1,023 prisoners who should have been considered for deportation.

The Bill will deny access to benefits or accommodation for a new category for people claiming asylum, but have committed serious crimes.

The move is to prevent repeats of cases such as when Afghans claimed asylum after hijacking a plane and landing at Stansted airport in Essex.

The hijackers won an appeal against deportation and were given the right to stay in Britain.

Source: Belfast Telegraph

Belfast International Airport (IATA: BFS, ICAO: EGAA) is an airport located some 21 kilometres (13 miles) northwest of Belfast in Northern Ireland. It is also known as Aldergrove, after the village of that name lying immediately to the west of the airport. Belfast International shares its runways with the Royal Air Force base RAF Aldergrove, which otherwise has its own facilities. Over 4.82 million passengers (2.1% of passengers at all UK airports) travelled through the airport in 2005 (a 1.7 million/54.1% increase over 2000). Belfast International is the 11th busiest airport in the UK in terms of passenger numbers[1] and it is the busiest airport in Northern Ireland. It is also the second busiest airport on the island of Ireland (after Dublin Airport's 18.4 million passengers). BIA serves 41 scheduled destinations with 15 domestic services and 26 European and transatlantic services. Belfast International Airport transatlantic flights include New York - Newark, Orlando (with two airlines), Toronto (with two airlines) and Vancouver. There are chartered flights to Africa, Canada, the Caribbean, Mexico, the USA and many European destinations.
History

* On 26 May 2005 Continental Airlines began nonstop flights to Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey, United States.
* On June 20, 2006 13.5kg of cocaine was seized in the airport. The seizure, valued at around £3m, was the largest in Irish history. Two German men were arrested on suspicion of trafficking. It is believed they were boarding a flight to Luton Airport and intended to travel onwards to mainland Europe. [2]
* On 3 July 2006 Continental airlines announced that it had carried its 100,000th passenger on its Belfast - Newark route.

Airlines and destinations

Scheduled airlines

The following scheduled airlines use Belfast International Airport (at January 2007):

* Air Transat (Toronto-Pearson) (seasonal)
* bmibaby (Birmingham, Cardiff, Manchester, Nottingham)
* Continental Airlines (Newark)
* Cyprus Turkish Airlines (Antalya)
* easyJet (Alicante, Amsterdam, Berlin-Schönefeld, Bristol, Edinburgh, Faro, Geneva, Glasgow, Ibiza [starts 6 May 2007], Krakow [starts 24 April 2007], Liverpool, London-Gatwick, London-Luton, London-Stansted, Malaga, Newcastle, Nice, Palma Majorca, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Rome-Ciampino)
* Flyglobespan (Orlando-Sanford, Toronto-Hamilton [Starts 4 May 2007])
* Jet2.com (Barcelona, Blackpool, Ibiza [starts 14 May 2007], Leeds/Bradford, Malaga [starts 30 April 2007], Milan-Bergamo [starts 26 March 2007], Murcia, Palma Majorca [starts 30 April 2007], Pisa, Prague, Tenerife-South, Toulouse [starts 14 May 2007])
* Manx2 (Isle of Man)
* Wizz Air (Katowice [Starts 29 May 2007], Warsaw [Starts 28 July 2007])
* Zoom Airlines (Toronto-Pearson, Vancouver)

Charter operators

Destinations in Europe and North America are served from BIA by charter airlines. Operators include:

* MyTravel Airways
* Excel Airways
* First Choice Airways
* Air Transat
* Futura
* Thomsonfly
* Thomas Cook Airlines
* Hemus Air
* Finnair
* Helios Airways
* Eurocypria
* Greece Airways/Air Scotland

Some of the destinations served are:

* Alicante, Almeria, Antalya, Arrecife, Bergamo, Bodrum, Bourgas, Cancun, Corfu, Crete, Dalaman, Faro, Fuerteventura, Gerona, Ibiza, Innsbruck, Jersey, Kefalonia, Lapland, Larnaca, Las Palmas, Las Vegas, Lourdes, Mahon, Malaga, Monastir, Montego Bay, Naples, Orlando (Sanford), Palma de Mallorca, Puerto Plata, Plovdiv, Reus, Rhodes, Salzburg, Sharm el Sheikh, Tenerife, Toronto, Varna, Verona.

Cargo operators

Belfast International Airport is one of the most important regional airfreight centres in the UK, handling up to 50,000 tonnes of air cargo in 2004. Due to Northern Ireland's relative isolation from both mainland UK and Europe, superior airfreight services are vital. BIA plays host to a long-established nightly Royal Mail operation. The major cargo operators are:

* DHL Worldwide Express
* TNT Airways

Key facts

* Passenger Growth: Serving over 4.8 million passengers in 2005, Belfast International Airport is the principal gateway to Northern Ireland. BIA has experienced steady growth over the past few years.

* Domestic and European Success: Easyjet has announced a new route for 2007 to Krakow in Poland, bringing their total number of destinations served from Belfast to 20. With over three million passengers traveling through their Belfast base per year, it has become one of easyJet’s fastest growing bases, and now accounts for 12% of easyJet’s entire network. Jet2 has also announced huge expansion for 2007. Their Blackpool service will be increased to double daily, (Jet2.com reported "amazing demand" on the route since it was launched). Jet2 will also operate 5 new routes: Ibiza, Malaga, Milan-Bergamo, Palma Majorca and Toulouse. This will bring the number of destinations served by Jet2 from Belfast to 12. September also saw the announcement Wizz air to operate 2 new routes to Eastern Europe. These new routes are Warsaw and Katowice.

* Transatlantic Success: In its first year of operation Continental carried approximately 85,000 passengers on its Belfast-New York route, an estimated 40 per cent of whom have been inbound US passengers visiting Northern Ireland on business or leisure trips. The figure exceeds the 70,000 target set by the airline for the first year of operation. In March the airline, announced an increase in the frequency of the Belfast to New York service from five flights a week to seven due to demand. The daily service operates from March to October and five times a week in winter. Zoom Airlines announced in Feb 2006 that their route to Toronto had been “hugely successful” and that direct scheduled flights would occur all year round. June 2006 also saw the first direct scheduled service from Belfast to Vancouver. On 28 July Flyglobespan announced that they are to commence a scheduled service from Belfast to Orlando. Weekly flights are to start in November using Boeing 767 aircraft.
* Top Destinations: The most popular domestic destination from Belfast is London followed by Liverpool.

* 77% of passengers at Belfast fly scheduled flights, with only 23% on charter.
* 26% of passengers from Belfast International are business flyers. This equates to 1.2 million Business passengers per annum.
* The airport operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and is not subject to noise abatement procedures, significant environmental constraints or airspace limitations.
* It is the closest all-weather airport in Europe to the USA, and is ideally located for the rapid turnaround and repositioning of transatlantic flights.
* Two runways, one with Cat 111b ILS equipment, offer all weather capability.
* Fifth largest regional air cargo centre in the UK.
* Full range of warehouse and distribution centre.
* Extensive ancillary services on site including executive air charter, air taxi, air ambulance, helicopter training and hire.

Transport Links

By Road: Travellers by car from Belfast reach the airport by travelling north on the M2 motorway, turning off at junction 5 and then via A57 for 7 miles to the airport. From the north and north west the route is easiest found by coming south on the M2 again to junction 5.

By Bus: Translink operates a bus service every 10 minutes (Airbus 300) to the airport from their Europa Buscentre, in the centre of Belfast. This is usually considered the most convenient method of transport to the city centre.

The airport can be reached from Derry/Londonderry and the North West by the Airporter. This coach service operates 7 days a week and an hourly service from Monday-Friday.

By Train: The nearest railway station, 6 miles from the airport is Antrim, with no connecting bus. There are connections to Belfast, Lisburn and Derry/Londonderry. Trains to and from Dublin are via Belfast Central Station, which has its own Airbus stop. A new station serving the airport could one day be constructed on the mothballed Antrim-Lisburn railway line as set out in the airport master plan. This line remains in serviceable condition and passes close to the airport terminal.

Future plans

Belfast International Airport recently published their Master Plan for the next 25 years. The master plan predicts that passenger numbers will increase to between 6 mppa (million passengers per annum) and 7.5 mppa by 2015 and soar to 12 mppa by 2030. Cargo throughput at BIA could reach as high as 82,000 tonnes by 2015, and 148,000 by 2030. To accommodate this growth a number upgrades have been suggested, some of these are named below.

2006-2015

* Extension of Check in Hall
* Extension and reconfiguration of Baggage Hall
* Construction of a new South Pier including departure lounges
* Extension of West Pier
* Passenger Aircraft Parking Apron expanded into Cargo Apron
* Construction of Multistorey Car park and high level link to terminal
* Expansion of cargo / freight handling facilities and apron to western extent of airport lands

2015-2030

* New 3 storey central core linking to existing and recently developed areas.
* A passenger rail connection to the airport
* Enhanced highway links between airport and M2 motorway and improved public transport direct to all parts of Northern Ireland.

Source: Wikipedia