Western Morning News (Saturday)
Airlines move to take up the slack after Flybe fails
SEVERAL airlines were understood to be lining up to take over Flybe routes after the Exeter-based airline collapsed early on Thursday.
Guernsey’s airline, Aurigny, was among the first to step in yesterday, immediately launching a new route to Exeter Airport.
The first new service to Exeter will operate next Thursday.
Mark Darby, Aurigny chief executive, said: “Maintaining Guernsey’s connectivity is key and with the collapse of Flybe it is an unmissable opportunity for Aurigny to provide a valuable customer service while at the same time increasing our operation and improving our financial position.
“Given that we are able to do this with no increase in fixed costs, we hope that this will alleviate some travel concerns islanders may have.”
Initially Aurigny is planning a flight a day on Monday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Tickets will be on sale from today, with details at aurigny.com.
Matt Roach, Exeter Airport managing director, said: “The collapse of Flybe represented a desperately sad day for us all here at Exeter Airport. We are therefore delighted that Aurigny has quickly stepped in to operate flights from Exeter to Guernsey.”
Three Flybe routes from Exeter Airport were taken on by Scottish firm Loganair on Thursday. They will operate flights to Newcastle, Glasgow and Edinburgh starting over the next few months.
Ground staff such as security and baggage handlers were provided inhouse by Exeter Airport, and the company was understood to be at an advanced stage in talks to bring in other carriers, which could be good news for worried staff.
Flybe is estimated to be worth around £98.5 million to the local economy and provided around 1,000 jobs directly in the Exeter and East Devon area with another 620 jobs supported by the business.
An Exeter Airport spokeswoman said: “Our heartfelt sympathies are with Flybe’s staff and customers and our staff are doing all they can to help and guide passengers affected.
“We are continuing to do everything we can to encourage government to help us and our partners to urgently address the regional connectivity gap we now have in the South West. And importantly digesting all the implications against a backdrop of Covid 19 [corona virus].”
Brian Strutton, general secretary of the British Airline Pilots’ Association (Balpa), said: “Flybe operated routes which were not only economically and regionally vital, but also profitable. We will be exploring with the administrators which parts can be rescued or sold as a going concern.”
An urgent response group has been set up including Devon County Council, Exeter and East Devon councils, the local enterprise partnership, Exeter College and Exeter Airport to help staff find new jobs and present the region’s needs to government.
RESEARCHERS are trying to find out what impact roads and traffic are having on the UK’s declining hedgehog population.
The study, part funded by wildlife charity People’s Trust for Endangered Species (PTES), aims to investigate how many hedgehogs are killed on UK roads each year
And it will look at if the problem is so serious it is causing local populations of the much-loved British creature to disappear completely – including here in the Westcountry.
It will assess which individuals, such as males or females, young or old, are most at risk of being injured or killed on the UK’s roads and whether road tunnels can effectively reduce the road risks to hedgehogs.
The research, by Nottingham Trent University, comes after the “state of Britain’s hedgehogs” report, published in 2018 by PTES and the British Hedgehog Preservation Society revealed a 30% drop in the number of hedgehogs in urban areas since 2000.
Hedgehog numbers declined by half in rural areas in that time, the report found.
Experts say the reasons for the decline could include loss of their natural habitat and food sources, increased competition and being preyed on by other animals and deaths caused by road collisions.
A study by PTES in 2016 estimated around 100,000 hedgehogs are killed on UK roads each year, which is thought to be a major factor in their decline.
Work to understand if and how roads and traffic are harming hedgehog numbers will assess road casualty figures alongside population size, the researchers said. The study will include sites with tunnels to see if they help hedgehogs safely cross roads.
Flybe routes were not only economically and
regionally vital, but also profitable BRIAN STRUTTON, BALPA