EasyJet will only fly to one destination outside the UK from Newcastle Airport as base closure confirmed

The budget airline has confirmed that it will be closing its base at Newcastle Airport at the end of the month as part of job cuts after the Covid-19 pandemic leaves the travel industry severely damaged.

It remains unclear at this time how jobs in the North East will be affected.

From September 1 EasyJet will only continue to operate flights to three destinations to and from Newcastle Airport including Bristol, Belfast and Nice.

All of the budget airline’s flights to other destinations from Newcastle after the end of the month will be cancelled.

Flights to Nice will continue until the end of October while the flights to Belfast and Bristol will continue indefinitely.

Newcastle Airport bosses say 80% of the destinations impacted by the EasyJet base closure are served by other airlines.

A spokesman for Newcastle Airport said: “Our thoughts go out to all EasyJet staff who have been affected.

“The North East has a long standing relationship with EasyJet and whilst this base closure will impact flights to all their international destinations the airline will maintain year-round services to Belfast, Bristol and Nice for this summer only.

“Over 80% of the international destinations affected are already served by our existing airline partners and we will continue discussions regarding their interest in the other impacted destinations.

"For any passengers affected by flight cancellations who wish to rebook with another airline from Newcastle, car park bookings can be amended free of charge." ​

The company has also confirmed the closure its London Stansted and Southend bases.

Today’s confirmation (Monday, August 17) follows a collective consultation process as EasyJet bosses say they remain committed to working with British Airline Pilots' Association on the next phase which includes the voluntary redundancy and individual consultation process.

EasyJet says it has reached agreement with Unite on voluntary redundancy terms and selection criteria for impacted cabin crew and the individual consultation process with cabin crew continues.

Johan Lundgren, easyJet CEO, said: “We have had to take the very difficult decision to close three UK bases as a result of the unprecedented impact of the pandemic and related travel restrictions, compounded by quarantine measures in the UK which is impacting demand for travel.

“Working closely with our employee representatives, I am pleased that we have been able to identify ways to significantly reduce the number of proposed compulsory redundancies through providing enhanced voluntary redundancy packages for all UK crew alongside additional options like part time and seasonal contracts, base transfers and unpaid leave which we expect to result in reducing the number of job losses overall.

“We would like to reassure customers due to fly from these airports that we are now contacting anyone whose flight is affected with clear advice on their options which include rerouting via alternative airports or receiving a full refund.”

A message from the Editor:

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our advertisers - and consequently the revenue we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription.

Subscribe to the Sunderland Echo website and enjoy unlimited access to local news and information online. With a digital subscription, you can read more than 5 articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content.

Visit here to sign up. You can subscribe to the newspaper with 20% off here. Thank you.