LONDON (Reuters) - Budget carrier easyJet Plc will fly between London and Moscow from next year, favoured over British Airways and Virgin Atlantic by Britain's Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).
easyJet, Europe's second-largest low-cost carrier after Ryanair, was awarded the right to fly the Gatwick to Moscow route after a decision by Britain's air regulator which said rival carriers BA and Virgin Atlantic, founded by Richard Branson, also made applications to fly the route.
British Airways, part of International Consolidated Airlines Group (IAG), will continue to operate the London Heathrow to Moscow route, said the CAA on Wednesday.
"easyJet's proposal...has the potential to deliver the greatest dynamic fare benefits for consumers," the CAA's director of regulatory policy Iain Osborne said.
The Gatwick to Moscow route came up for grabs after IAG was forced to sell 12 landing slots after it acquired BMI, the previous operator of the route.
"We believe that our flights will be popular with both business and leisure travellers alike," easyJet Chief Executive Carolyn McCall said.
The company, which will start flying two services a day on the route from Spring 2013, said it planned to sell tickets from 125 pounds for a return flight.
yahoo
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Air passengers travelling to Moscow from London will benefit from additional choice following a decision from the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) announced today. The CAA has decided that the two United Kingdom airlines that will be entitled to operate between London and Moscow under bilateral agreements with the Russian government will be British Airways (BA) from Heathrow Airport, and easyJet from Gatwick Airport.
The two UK airlines previously entitled to operate between London and Moscow were BA and BMI. Following BA’s take-over of BMI, BA, easyJet and Virgin Atlantic all made applications for permission to operate on this route. Where airlines wish to operate more services than are permitted under an agreement between the governments concerned, the CAA is tasked with deciding which of them should be entitled to operate. In doing so the CAA aims to allocate the rights to operate to the airlines that best serve air transport users’ varied needs, at the lowest prices consistent with a high standard of safety, promoting competition, securing effective provision of civil air transport to the UK and ensuring the effective use of UK airports.
The decision comes after a Scarce Capacity Hearing at which a Panel of CAA Board Members considered the arguments put forward by each of the applicant airlines. The CAA Panel decided to allow BA to continue to operate the services they currently operate from London Heathrow Airport to Moscow Domodedovo Airport and to grant easyJet permission to operate between London Gatwick and Moscow Domodedovo.
Iain Osborne, CAA Director of Regulatory Policy, and chair of the scarce capacity decision panel, said: “On balance, allocating scarce capacity to BA and easyJet is likely to deliver the greatest benefit to consumers. easyJet’s proposal will introduce an innovative product into the market and has the potential to deliver the greatest dynamic fare benefits for consumers.”
“We concluded that easyJet’s proposal would introduce a distinctly different product into the market and would stimulate innovation on the route as a whole, as well as satisfying and stimulating consumer demand that is currently underserved, in particular: people who prefer or are content to use Gatwick.”
easyJet are expected to begin operating services to Moscow from early 2013. The CAA understands that BA will continue with its current schedule.
The decision document can be found on the CAA website here: http://www.caa.co.uk/docs/213/20121024MoscowFinal1.pdf
CAA
easyJet, Europe's second-largest low-cost carrier after Ryanair, was awarded the right to fly the Gatwick to Moscow route after a decision by Britain's air regulator which said rival carriers BA and Virgin Atlantic, founded by Richard Branson, also made applications to fly the route.
British Airways, part of International Consolidated Airlines Group (IAG), will continue to operate the London Heathrow to Moscow route, said the CAA on Wednesday.
"easyJet's proposal...has the potential to deliver the greatest dynamic fare benefits for consumers," the CAA's director of regulatory policy Iain Osborne said.
The Gatwick to Moscow route came up for grabs after IAG was forced to sell 12 landing slots after it acquired BMI, the previous operator of the route.
"We believe that our flights will be popular with both business and leisure travellers alike," easyJet Chief Executive Carolyn McCall said.
The company, which will start flying two services a day on the route from Spring 2013, said it planned to sell tickets from 125 pounds for a return flight.
yahoo
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Air passengers travelling to Moscow from London will benefit from additional choice following a decision from the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) announced today. The CAA has decided that the two United Kingdom airlines that will be entitled to operate between London and Moscow under bilateral agreements with the Russian government will be British Airways (BA) from Heathrow Airport, and easyJet from Gatwick Airport.
The two UK airlines previously entitled to operate between London and Moscow were BA and BMI. Following BA’s take-over of BMI, BA, easyJet and Virgin Atlantic all made applications for permission to operate on this route. Where airlines wish to operate more services than are permitted under an agreement between the governments concerned, the CAA is tasked with deciding which of them should be entitled to operate. In doing so the CAA aims to allocate the rights to operate to the airlines that best serve air transport users’ varied needs, at the lowest prices consistent with a high standard of safety, promoting competition, securing effective provision of civil air transport to the UK and ensuring the effective use of UK airports.
The decision comes after a Scarce Capacity Hearing at which a Panel of CAA Board Members considered the arguments put forward by each of the applicant airlines. The CAA Panel decided to allow BA to continue to operate the services they currently operate from London Heathrow Airport to Moscow Domodedovo Airport and to grant easyJet permission to operate between London Gatwick and Moscow Domodedovo.
Iain Osborne, CAA Director of Regulatory Policy, and chair of the scarce capacity decision panel, said: “On balance, allocating scarce capacity to BA and easyJet is likely to deliver the greatest benefit to consumers. easyJet’s proposal will introduce an innovative product into the market and has the potential to deliver the greatest dynamic fare benefits for consumers.”
“We concluded that easyJet’s proposal would introduce a distinctly different product into the market and would stimulate innovation on the route as a whole, as well as satisfying and stimulating consumer demand that is currently underserved, in particular: people who prefer or are content to use Gatwick.”
easyJet are expected to begin operating services to Moscow from early 2013. The CAA understands that BA will continue with its current schedule.
The decision document can be found on the CAA website here: http://www.caa.co.uk/docs/213/20121024MoscowFinal1.pdf
CAA
