Man flies from John O’Groats to Land’s End on paramotor via a Somerset tree August 24, 2021 There were some “scary moments” for Daniel Jones, of Norwich, on his way from Scotland to Cornwall, including clipping a tree in Somerset and almost getting blown over a mountain and into a valley in the Cairngorms. Jones, 27, flew from John O’Groats to Land’s End on a paramotor to raise money for Alzheimer’s Research [...]
East Coast rail upgrade set for at least a year’s delay August 24, 2021 One of the biggest upgrades to the UK rail network in recent years will be delayed for at least a year due to the emergence of a number of issues. The £1.2bn East Coast upgrade, which will add nearly 40 services a day to the London-Edinburgh network, is due to open in May 2022. But [...]
Ryanair on course to hit targets after strong August August 24, 2021 Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary today said that the budget airline was recovering at a faster rate than its European competitors after a surge in passenger numbers in August. The Irishman said that passenger numbers for this month were on track to hit 10.5m, up from 9.3m in July, and double the 5m the carrier flew [...]
HS2 to support 4,000 more jobs than first forecast August 24, 2021 The building of the controversial HS2 rail link will support 4,000 more jobs than previously expected, the government has today said. According to a new report from the body behind the project, HS2 will now support 34,000 jobs in total. Of the new roles, Phase 2a – linking the West Midlands to Crewe – will [...]
Channel 4 and BP cut sponsorship ties for Paralympics coverage August 24, 2021 As the Paralympic Games begin today, it has emerged that oil giant BP is no longer a sponsor of Channel 4’s prime-time coverage of the event. An initial press release issued by Channel 4 in January 2020 announced that BP and Toyota would “share sponsorship equally” but a subsequent press release published last week stated that “Channel 4’s Tokyo [...]
Business blow: UK-US travel corridor could remain closed until November August 24, 2021 The UK and US travel corridor could remain closed to Brits until late November, according to reports, in a major blow for both business and leisure. Currently, the US is only allowing American citizens, their relatives and a few exempt groups into the country. Virgin Atlantic has already postponed its restart date for its Heathrow to [...]
Maersk buys eight zero-carbon tankers as green push gathers steam August 24, 2021 Shipping giant Maersk has today taken its biggest yet step towards “greening” its fleet by buying eight new tankers powered by carbon-neutral methanol. Each of the vessels, which will be built by Hyundai Heavy Industries, will be able to carry 16,000 containers. When they hit the water in early 2024 they will save 1m tons [...]
Turn off Zoom: London City airport exec bullish on the return of business travel August 23, 2021 Business travel is expected to quickly rebound in 2022, as executives ditch Zoom calls and return to Europe, the US and beyond to press the flesh, a London City airport executive said today. So far, business travel has lagged behind leisure travel in recovery, as technological alternatives has proven cheaper and more resilient to the [...]
Richard Branson’s Virgin Orbit to go public through $3.2bn Spac deal August 23, 2021 Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Orbit will go public through a blank-cheque deal that values the company at $3.2bn (£2.3bn), it confirmed today. The small satellite launch firm will merge with special purpose acquisition company (Spac) NextGen Acquisition Corp. The deal also includes $100m of so-called Pipe (private investment in public equity) funding from backers including [...]
‘Potentially lethal’ Legionella bacteria outbreak on City Thameslink trains August 23, 2021 The Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union warns for a “potentially lethal” Legionella outbreak on Thameslink trains. The union said it has prepared its members on Thameslink for strikes if urgent action is not taken to resolve the issue. The company said a low level of Legionella had been found in a small number of [...]