EasyJet has opened its new UK base at Birmingham, signalling another growth phase for the low-cost carrier.
The airline will offer 16 new flights from its new Birmingham base, including Enfidha, Sharm el Sheikh, Rhodes and Kos.
In November, easyJet announced that it would bring forward the base opening to the middle of March.
The expansion means easyJet will operate more UK flights than ever before this year, with 57 million seats on sale – a 10% jump again last year’s programme.
Flights to and from Birmingham are set to carry “one of the highest proportions of package holidays customers on the network”, easyJet holidays said.
EasyJet said: “The airline’s growth is set to continue with more aircraft joining the fleet next year.
“The new base will enable easyJet to unlock the opportunity to capture the strong demand for leisure travel and the package holiday market.
"EasyJet is the largest leisure airline in the UK and the base opening has already more than tripled the airline’s share of the leisure market at Birmingham this summer compared to last year.”
The three-aircraft base is expected to create around 140 jobs and support a further 1200 indirect jobs.
EasyJet chief executive Johan Lundgren said: “We are excited to open our newest UK base at Birmingham today, providing more choice, competition and connectivity as well as supporting over 1,200 jobs for the region.
“This base is enabling us to unlock the opportunity of the strong demand which exists for both leisure and business travel, as well as further grow our share of the package holiday market.
“We see much untapped potential at the airport providing the opportunity to grow further in future years.”
Birmingham Airport chief executive Nick Barton added: “Customers can now take advantage of the airline’s 16 new routes and have the flexibility of flight-only or a full package holiday.”
Find contacts for 260+ travel suppliers. Type name, company or destination.