East Midlands Airport will welcome services from the Scottish regional airline Loganair in autumn with two routes to Brussels in Belgium and Inverness in the North of Scotland.
Jonathan Hinkles, managing director of Loganair said: “I am extremely pleased to announce the expansion of our route map while also beginning passenger services from East Midlands Airport.”
From 2 September Loganair will begin an early morning and afternoon rotation to Brussels between Monday and Thursday as well as afternoon services on Friday and Sunday. The route was previously operated by the regional carrier Flybmi, which entered administration in February.
The service will be operated with a 49-seat Embraer 145 jet aircraft with a flight-time of one hour and ten minutes, offering a connection to Belgium’s capital city. The airport said the destination is popular with business passengers and the timetable has been created to enable a full day of business on the continent, departing at 06:50 from EMA before returning to the UK via a 19:00 service. The schedule also allows for short leisure breaks, long weekends and extended stays.
The airline will also provide six flights a week between East Midlands Airport and Inverness. The journey to will take around one hour and 35 minutes and customers will be able to explore Scotland or connect with Loganair’s network of island destinations across Shetland, Orkney and the Western Isles.
The airport explained that there are also strong business links between the two regions, with Inverness ranked as Scotland’s fastest growing city, while the East Midlands is one of England’s manufacturing hubs.
Loganair currently operates freight services from East Midlands Airport but this announcement marks the first time it has provided passenger flights from the region.
“We’re delighted to welcome a new airline to EMA. This is fantastic news for passengers who will have new routes to choose from,” said Karen Smart, East Midlands Airport’s managing director. “This is also important for the region as it enhances the connectivity between the East Midlands, mainland Europe and Scotland. Whether its business or leisure, Brussels is a key destination and is ideally situated for ongoing global travel throughout Europe and globally by air from Brussels airport. A direct service to the North East of Scotland brings the stunning Highlands within easy reach of passengers from the East Midlands.
“We look forward to nurturing our relationship with Loganair to enable them to grow their operation with us,” she continued.
Inverness Airport general manager Graeme Bell called it “excellent news” for Inverness and the Highlands, commenting that it will, “enable passengers to quickly access England’s industrial heartland developing business opportunities or exploring the considerable leisure options in Midlands and the nearby Peak District. It also makes our region more accessible to English visitors keen to discover all that the north of Scotland has to offer.”
Director of aviation development at Brussels Airport, Léon Verhallen said: “We are delighted that Loganair will restore flights to East Midlands with up to two daily flights, including a convenient connection from and to Inverness, a city without direct services to Brussels. It will offer convenient connections to cities such as Leicester, Derby and Nottingham for business travel and attractive city trips.”
Verhallen added, “Loganair is establishing itself as a key regional airline at Brussels Airport with a growing number of flights to the UK.”
