READY FOR TAKE-OFF
Flights ++ Airports ++ New routes
SCILLY ISLES HELI-SERVICE
ON TUESDAY, Penzance Helicopters will start a service from Penzance to Tresco and St Mary’s. The 15-minute hop costs £122.50 one-way, including 20kg luggage, with flights operating every day except Sunday. The Star Castle Hotel in St Mary’s has doubles from £149 including breakfast (penzancehelicopters.co.uk, star-castle.co.uk).
SOUTHAMPTON BOOST
EASTERN Airways has just launched flights from Southampton to Manchester, Newcastle and Teesside, with Belfast to follow on March 23. Following the collapse of its former franchise partner Flybe, the Humberside-based carrier now operates its own network of routes serving 15 UK airports (easternairways.com).
FLY-DRIVE CANADA
LOW-COST carrier WestJet will commence flights from Manchester to Halifax, the capital of Nova Scotia, on June 5. The city is an ideal starting point for a self-drive tour circling Cape Breton Island, including its panoramic 186 mile Cabot Trail (westjet. com, novascotia.com).
FAROES FLIGHTS
ATLANTIC Airways will operate weekly flights from Gatwick to the Faroe Islands between June 23 and August 11. Dramatic scenery, abundant seabirds and 23 hiking trails are some attractions of this quirky Danish archipelago (atlanticairways.com, visitfaroeislands.com).
HELP THE PLANET
CONCERNED about the environmental cost of flying? Explorers Against Extinction is a UK charity that makes it simple to offset your carbon footprint using a quick online calculator. Just £6 is enough to cover a return flight to Spain with your donation used to help protect endangered species (explorersagainstextinction.co.uk/ carbon-for-conservation).
ST HELENA LINK
TRAVELLERS visiting Cape Town this winter will be able to add in a trip to this remote South Atlantic isle using a direct midweek flight with Airlink — which has been continued after a successful trial this winter. Available from December, 2020, to February, 2021, the route complements a year-round weekly Johannesburg service (flyairlink.com, sthelenatourism.com).
CHEAPER FARES?
CORONAVIRUS travel worries may mean cheaper package prices as hotels slash rates, but not cheaper air fares, says Trailfinders: ‘Airlines just can’t afford to drop fares now.’ Its best current reductions are £664 return (from £699) on Malaysia Airlines to Perth and £638 return (from £699) on Etihad to Melbourne (020 7368 1200).