Coventry airport could be flying one-million passengers each year under plans unveiled today (16 December).
New budget airline Thomsonfly.com will begin offering services to various places across Europe from 31 March 2004.
We're going to Ibiza ....
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The airport based in the village of Baginton will offer a range of cheap flights to popular destinations like Rome, Nice, Palma and Ibiza.
It’s thought that 200 jobs will be created if the development of a new passenger terminal is given the go-ahead.
Over one-million passengers each year
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|  | Coventry airport is set to get busier
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The announcement comes after 18 months of discussions between the airport and the airline and tickets have already gone on sale on the internet.
As many as 210,000 passengers will be able to use the service in the first year from a temporary base on the southern side of the airport. Initially the airline will use two Boeing-737 planes with a further two aircraft added to the fleet in the Summer. But a planning application for the new 32,000 square-foot terminal will go before Warwick District Council on Tuesday 6 January 2004.
If the proposal gets the green light then over one-million people could be jetting out of Coventry once completed.
Opposing views on expansion
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The chief commercial officer for Thomsonfly.com, Alex Hunter, told ѿý WM: “There will be two aircraft to start operations and we'll be building to four aircraft in the summer of 2004 to 11 European destinations.
“On the net right now headline fares start at £3.99 for a one way fare to Jersey - £13.99 for one flight to Malaga being the most expensive”
But the plans have already attracted opposition. The chairman of Baginton parish council Roger Fawcett responded to the announcement.
Fawcett told ѿý WM: “This is just the start of something to get a foothold in an airport like Coventry and I think that in the long term it's much more likely that these fares will increase to the level of fares generally.”
The airport currently handles much freight traffic as well as 6,000 private charter passengers each year.
Demand in the midlands is exected to increase from a year 2000 figure of 10 million passengers a year to between 40 and 70 million.
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News of the development at Coventry airport came on the same day as Transport Secretary Alistair Darling announcedthat there would be no new airport built in Warwickshire.
A site encompassing the villages of King's Newnham and Chruch Lawford near Rugby was proposed as a possibility to help ease the pressure on the avaiation industry.
Instead the government opted for a second runway at nearby Birmingham airport as well as expansion at Stantstead.
So what do you make of it all? Are you glad that their will be more cheaper air travel on your doorstep? Or are you concerned about the plans for expansion at Coventry?
And are you pleased or upset that their will be no new airport in Warwickshire?
Why not and let us know what you think
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