Robin Hood Airport Blog

Numbers booming at Doncaster

Fri, 23 Jul 2010 15:01:25 BST

Robin Hood Airport helped more people to their holiday destinations in June 2010, than it did in the same period last year. Passenger numbers were up 16% on figures for June 2009, indicating that Doncaster finally has enough routes to coax travellers away from its larger rival, Leeds-Bradford Airport.

Flights to ‘sun and sea’ destinations were the main growth area, according to the airport’s director, Mike Morton, with routes to the city of Palma on Majorca, and Alicante in Spain, proving lucrative. Dalaman in Turkey, Faro in Portugal, and Katowice, Poland, were also popular with holidaymakers.

Robin Hood is attracting passengers from Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire, as well as from Yorkshire, suggesting that Doncaster is snatching customers away from East Midlands Airport and the neighbouring, Humberside Airport. The latest traffic figures show that almost 110,000 people passed through the South Yorkshire hub in June.

“This is great news,” Mike Morton explained. “People are realising how much easier it is to fly from their local airport, and are looking to us when planning their trips.” Mr. Morton noted that Doncaster is now searching for new routes for the winter season, with announcements expected in the coming weeks.

Resident airline, Thomson, has also made an effort to secure Robin Hood’s future, by boosting capacity by 15,000 on the airport’s summer holiday routes, including flights to Malaga, Spain, and the already popular Dalaman. The airline will add the extra seats in time for the 2011 summer season.

The airport claims that forward sales for next year's routes are already 'strong.'

Extra 15,000 expected at Doncaster

Fri, 11 Jun 2010 15:48:55 BST

An extra 15,000 people are expected to travel from Robin Hood’s terminal next year, after two holiday firms increased the number of seats available on six of the airport’s most popular ‘sun and sea’ routes.

Thomson and
First Choice, the two travel companies, have improved capacity by 9% on routes to Dalaman and Bodrum in Turkey, Mahon on Menorca, the Canary Island of Lanzarote, and Tunisia. Flights to Malaga in Spain are also expected to carry more passengers during the 2011 summer season.

Robin Hood, which is owned by Peel Airports, Ltd., was a local tabloid staple in 2009, following a spate of financial problems. The Doncaster hub has recovered admirably since then, however, attracting budget airline,
EasyJet, and finally filling the scheduling void left by the departure of
Ryanair in August last year.

The latest passenger boost is a huge vote of confidence for the Yorkshire airport, helping it contend with larger rival, Leeds-Bradford. Mike Morton, boss at Robin Hood, was ‘delighted’ with developments at the site – ‘We have been working to raise awareness of the routes we serve, and we are happy with this predicted growth looking forward.’

Robin Hood will be home to three Thomson aeroplanes next year – two Boeing 737-800s and a single 737-300, which is no longer produced anywhere in the world. Mike Morton intimated that ‘strong forward sales’ for holidays in 2010 had encouraged Thomson and First Choice to invest further in Doncaster-Sheffield Airport.

Irish carrier, Aer Lingus, has also added new routes to Robin Hood in recent months, including a daily service to Dublin, Ireland.

Robin Hood and the 'Seven Cities of Italy'

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 14:33:09 GMT

Robin Hood Airport has announced two brand new routes for the 2010 holiday season, with Aer Lingus Regional flying to Dublin, and Newmarket Holidays, a major British tour operator, going to Italy.

Departing from the 5th September, the Italian route serves the ‘Seven Cities of Italy’ tour, taking in the sights around Lake Garda, the largest freshwater lake in Italy, the ancient cities of Rome, Venice and Verona and much more.

Tickets are pricy, at £759 per person, but the trip includes complimentary dinner and breakfast at two three-star hotels in the north of Italy. Airport bosses noted that the Seven Cities tour is just one of a series of holidays due to be offered by Newmarket at Robin Hood.

The Dublin route is more straightforward, representing a new partnership between Robin Hood Airport and Aer Lingus Regional, a franchise consisting of elements from Aer Lingus and Aer Arran, two popular regional airlines.

Dublin had been a popular destination for Yorkshire flyers until August 2009, when Ryanair refused to pay a €10 travel levy on all flights to Ireland. The airline then deserted Robin Hood altogether, taking an important route to Barcelona with it, and blaming escalating costs for its decision.

The route to Dublin, which will commence on the 28th March, has been hailed as a “major development for Irish aviation and the tourism industry” by Aer Arran boss, Paul Schütz. Robin Hood cited continuing hard work on the part of airlines and local airport staff as being the major factor behind the route.

Man arrested for Twitter rant

Fri, 22 Jan 2010 16:04:45 GMT

An angry Twitter user who joked about blowing up Robin Hood Airport has been arrested under anti-terrorism laws.

Paul Chambers was due to fly to Ireland from the Doncaster site, but faced a flurry of delays after cold weather brought the airport to a standstill. Angry, he logged into the Twitter website, and posted:

“The airport is closed. You've got a week and a bit to get your s**t together; otherwise I'm blowing the airport sky high!”

Police were unimpressed, and Mr. Chambers was later arrested for conspiring to create a bomb hoax. He was questioned for seven hours, and forced to explain the Twitter concept to officers who had “never heard of it.”

Mr. Chambers has since been released on bail, but he could still be found guilty of transmitting a bomb threat when the case goes to court in February. The ‘bomber’ has also had his iPhone, laptop, and desktop computer confiscated.

Airport security operates on a hair trigger, and all threats are taken very seriously, however preposterous or unlikely they may seem. On the 9th January, three men were also arrested at Heathrow for shouting bomb threats at attendants.

Mr. Chambers has not been banned from Robin Hood Airport, despite the murmurings of the popular press, but bosses were keen to express their continued support of anti-terrorism laws, and of recent police action.

Just this morning, a police inspector helped subdue two men on a flight from Bulgaria to Robin Hood Airport, after their drunken tirades became frightening to other passengers.

Yorkshire weathers arctic blast

Fri, 08 Jan 2010 13:56:53 GMT

On Tuesday, Robin Hood joined a jumble of British airports that had been closed, or otherwise thwarted by heavy snow.

Despite offering to rescue stranded aircraft from the skies above Manchester and Leeds, Robin Hood was soon overwhelmed by the elements itself, and by mid-morning, airport bosses had no choice but to close the runway.

It hasn’t stopped snowing since, and Doncaster lies entombed beneath a good few inches of snow. Of course, with transport links down, and the M18 motorway link still festering on the drawing board, Robin Hood Airport might as well be on the moon, as far as accessibility is concerned.

The main terminal building has remained open throughout the week’s snowstorm, but the runway was kept closed until Wednesday morning, when the worst of the weather appeared to have passed. Stranded passengers from Manchester have since been relocated north by the local bus service.

Robin Hood’s story is otherwise the same as those told by other UK airports. Bosses have yet to reveal the true extent of the delays, but passengers have been warned to expect disruption, and to contact their airline for more information.

In happier news, Flybe commemorated the reopening of Robin Hood with a new flight from Doncaster to Jersey, announced this morning. Both parties are said to be delighted with the addition, which takes off in April.

After a disastrous start to 2009, Robin Hood appears to be rising above its shortcomings. Flybe is the second large airline to be tempted to the Doncaster site in recent weeks, following the arrival of EasyJet at the end of last year.

EasyJet to launch flights from Robin Hood Airport

Thu, 07 Jan 2010 14:02:41 GMT

EasyJet has announced that it will soon be launching a number of new flights from Robin Hood Airport. The move is expected to prove hugely popular for travellers in the region, and will provide a real boost to the small airport as well as increasing tourism to the region.

The new flights will commence in April 2010 and will operate to five destinations each week: Amsterdam, Barcelona, Faro, Prague and Palma. These are some of the most popular destinations in Europe and airport bosses are hoping that lots of people will take advantage of the new routes.

Robin Hood Airport only started operating in April 2005, making it the newest airport in the UK. The announcement of these new flights will be a huge boost as it will help the airport to grow and develop.

The five new EasyJet flights could see the airline carry an extra 300,000 passengers in its first year alone, which would see passenger numbers at the airport increase by a third. The flights are certain to be popular due to the tempting price tags attached to them, with many of them costing just £24.99 for a one-way flight.

Mark Whitworth, the chief executive of Peel Airports, which owns Robin Hood Airport, said that EasyJet had shown confidence in the airport by the size of its commitment. He also said that the announcement confirms that the airport will be “experiencing double-digit growth in 2010”.

It is especially welcome news due to the recent decision by Ryanair to stop running its flights to Dublin from the airport, which were used by 60,000 people each year.