Expanding the number of routes flying from Dundee Airport hinges on more support and cuts to air passenger tax, Loganair’s boss has said.
Chief executive Luke Farajallah said talks are “ongoing” to introduce more destinations available from the city’s publicly owned airport.
But he warned this will continue to be grounded by “an ever-closing set of walls” regional airlines like Loganair face with continually rising costs.
These include hikes to employer National Insurance contributions and air passenger duty (APD).
Mr Farajallah said Loganair wants to keep tickets affordable for customers to encourage more people to fly from Dundee.
When taking into account the cost of add-ons like luggage and travel to Glasgow and Edinburgh, he claims Loganair ticket prices “compares very favourably” to airlines like EasyJet and Ryanair.
More routes out of Dundee Airport wanted
Mr Farajallah joined the UK’s largest regional airline last year, having had previous roles with the likes of Wizzair, Flybe, British Airways and EasyJet.
He has overseen a period of growth in the last 12 months, he said, with around 2 million passengers flying with the airline every year.
Loganair operates the “very popular” Dundee to Heathrow route, which flies several times a day between the city and the capital.
The link is supported by a Public Service Obligation (PSO), which protects routes which boost tourism, connect the UK and encourage economic growth.
It was secured in November 2023 for two years, after Loganair was awarded the £12.4m contract.
Speaking with The Courier, Mr Farajallah explained how new routes could be added to Dundee Airport’s roster, which depends on action from government ministers.
“We’re always looking at opportunities to expand, and actually we’ve got an ongoing dialogue with the local authorities in Dundee and the local MP Chris Law, who is very positive and a strong advocate of the (Dundee to London) route.
“Dundee to Heathrow is a very popular route, so we’re completely committed.
“And as long as there is the understanding of the support that we require to keep these routes sustainable in the long term — as passenger numbers ebb and flow — then Loganair feels that we should be present in those routes, there’s no question about that.
“But what’s really important is we recognise prohibitive factors to customers often related to price.
“And therefore, when the chancellor adds APD to every ticket sold and every passenger travelling, these are prohibitive factors, not encouraging people to travel
“So we’re very keen on making sure we descale the amount of tax aviation has to pay.
“This is something we’ve had to talk directly to the ministers in London and Scotland about.”
“We understand they’re very sympathetic, but we’ve got to see that in real terms.
“They’ve got to start lowering the burden of taxation on the airlines particularly.
“Otherwise, we will end up with an imbalanced playing field…because people are being priced out of the market.
“And, you know, it may just be a pound on a domestic flight and two pounds on a European flight. But these eventually add up.
“It seems to be a one-way traffic at the moment to higher taxation for aviation.”
National Insurance hike
As well as APD, he said the changes to National Insurance thresholds in April will add an additional £500,000 to the company’s bottom line.
“When you add these things up — taxation on travellers, National Insurance on businesses etc — you start to see an ever-closing set of walls around you that you have to break through and you have to find new ways to lower costs.
“But the truth is it’s never easy in this environment where things are going in one direction to continue to expand and open new routes.
“And we’re on a growth trajectory.
“We’ve done a lot of this business in the last 12 months to rebuild the confidence in operational performance.
“We started to really deliver the services that Loganair, I think, has promised and delivered for many years, but are very dependable structurally on time basis.
“And that takes investment, that takes cost to invest into the business.
“Airlines bring in so much business to this country and to the region.
“It would be wonderful to see a government supportive of that, not just denying that that’s the case by adding more taxation and more compensatory costs to the mix.”
Keeping Dundee flights affordable
Flights between Dundee and London range in price from £75 to more than £210 one-way.
Most flights fall between £110 and £160 but can be as expensive as £316 depending on booking times.
And Luke said Loganair was upfront with customers about how much flights from Dundee Airport cost.
Dundee Airport is one of the few in Scotland passengers can walk to from the city centre, even if there isn’t a direct bus route or public transport drop-off.
And passengers who save money flying to London from Edinburgh or Glasgow, will still have to pay for travel to and from those airports, Luke added.
This, he said, meant Loganair’s Dundee prices remained “competitive” with the low-cost budget airlines.
“Loganair’s principle has always been the fare that you see on the website will be the fare you pay,” he said.
“There’s not going to be any extras. We’re not going to take you on a magical mystery tour through our website and offer you lots of drop down menus for different things.
“When you buy the ticket, it includes your bag, it includes onboard service, it includes your seat, it includes all of the extras that people sometimes pay extra for with a low cost airline.
“And when you break all of these things down, we’re actually very competitive.”
“There is, of course, an additional price to flying from an airport like Dundee because it’s a regional airport.
“But you have to think about the people who are maybe traveling from Dundee to Edinburgh or Glasgow.
“That’s another journey they’re doing by road or by rail before they get to the airport of their choice.
“But actually, we’d like people to fly from Dundee and we keep our fares as low as they possibly can be, as competitive as they can be, in a world where costs against the airline are rising exponentially.
“But we’re continually looking at ways to lower our fares. And actually, in many ways, the all up pricing proposal that we offer, once it’s understood and clearly put down against all of the other add-ons that you get with the low cost carriers, it compares very favourably.”
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