Ryanair wins third case against EU state aid as O’Leary’s crusade goes on June 9, 2021 Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary has now bagged a hat-trick of victories in his quest against European state aid for struggling airlines during the pandemic. Luxembourg’s General Court, the EU’s second highest court, today annulled the European Commission’s decision to $550m in support to German charter airline Condor. In its ruling, the court said that the [...]
Traffic light system could cost UK airports £2.6bn this summer June 9, 2021 The UK’s airports risk losing at least £2.6bn for the second year running this summer under the current traffic light travel system, as more travel and aviation leaders called for the scheme to be scrapped. Compared to last summer’s travel corridor system, trade body the Airline Operator’s Association (AOA) said that there were far fewer [...]
Seven thousand Londoners download scooter app as trial launches June 8, 2021 Some 7,000 Londoners signed up for e-scooter operator Lime’s app over the weekend as the capital’s e-scooter trial kicked off in earnest. The largest micro mobility operator in the UK said they saw an average of at least three rides per each of their 200-strong fleet as Londoners to find and hire Lime e-scooters using [...]
Transport for London mulls cutting Tube and bus services in bid to find £900m in savings June 8, 2021 Transport for London (TfL) may be forced to cut Tube and bus services, Sadiq Khan has confirmed, as it scrambles to find £900m in savings a year under the terms of the government’s latest bailout. Last week ministers agreed a new six month funding agreement for the transport network worth £1bn, but the deal comes [...]
Open up UK-US travel corridor, airline bosses plead ahead of G7 summit June 7, 2021 The chief executives of all the airlines which run transatlantic services have come together to once again call for the reopening of the US-UK travel corridor. Routes between the two countries are a central source of income to airlines such as American Airlines, British Airways, Delta Air Lines, JetBlue, United Airlines and Virgin Atlantic, which [...]
Brits in travel chaos as Portugal exodus leaves test centres overwhelmed June 7, 2021 Thousands of Brits face travel chaos this summer, as changes to the government’s ‘green list’ leave test centres overwhelmed and at the brink of collapse. British holidaymakers in Portugal have until 4am on Tuesday morning to return to the UK, or they must quarantine for 10 days. Anyone returning home must have proof of a [...]
New Birmingham HS2 station to cost £100m more than expected June 7, 2021 A new HS2 rail station in Birmingham will cost £100m more than originally expected, the company behind the controversial high speed rail project revealed today. Launching the procurement process to find a contractor to build Birmingham Interchange station, which is expected to open in 2026, HS2 said the contract was worth £370m. In 2019, however, [...]
Bezos Lightyear: Amazon founder set for space June 7, 2021 Amazon founder Jeff Bezos will join the winner of a competition on Blue Origin’s first human spaceflight, with 20 July the target launchdate. Writing on Instagram, the world’s richest man said that he and his brother Mark would join the winner of an auction on New Shepard’s first suborbital sightseeing trip. Bidding for the final [...]
London’s launch of e-scooters in the Square Mile to be postponed until July June 7, 2021 The launch of London’s e-scooter rental trial today is set to be delayed across the Square Mile as the City Corporation has postponed its involvement until July. The City Corporation, the local authority for the Square Mile, said it would not be joining the scheme until 5 July, apparently due to administrative setbacks rather than [...]
Number of Uber UK rides back to pre-pandemic levels June 7, 2021 Uber this morning said that the number of rides booked by UK users has now returned to pre-pandemic levels. The ride-hailing app said that the loosening of restrictions on hospitality venues had been the main driving force behind the return of demand. Most of the trips currently being taken are in the evening, Uber added, [...]