- New flight times to be introduced by Flybe franchise partner Loganair to allow extended working days in Dundee and London following consultation with business community and service users -
Flybe franchise partner Loganair will introduce improved departure times on its Stansted service to allow business users extended working days in both Dundee and London from January next year.
The improved flight times on the twice-daily weekday service have been agreed following an extensive consultation process which included a passenger survey carried out by Dundee Airport.
Loganair, which launched the Public Service Obligation (PSO) route in March this year, then approached Dundee and Angus Chamber of Commerce to canvas the opinions of its members on a proposal to push back departure times at both destinations to extend the working day.
Almost 90 per cent of Dundee and Angus Chamber of Commerce members who responded to the survey were in favour of the proposed business-friendly time changes.
The new departure times, to be introduced from Sunday, January 4, 2015, are as follows:
Dundee to Stansted – 16.50 (previously 16.25)
Stansted to Dundee – 19.00 (previously 18.25)
Loganair chief operating officer Phil Preston said: “The amendments to the Dundee- Stansted service are being introduced to increase convenience for business passengers.
“We consulted extensively with the business community, with the goal of making modifications to the service to further meet their needs and overall, it has been an extremely useful process.
“The Dundee- Stansted link is a vital economic asset to the region and we will continue to work with the business community to ensure its long-term prosperity.”
The airline’s single rotation service on Sundays will also operate the new departure times from both Dundee and Stansted.
Derrick Lang, Dundee Airport manager, said: “We welcome Loganair’s decision to introduce a more business-friendly evening schedule in response to feedback from our survey.
“The later evening departures will ensure that business travellers can make the most of their working day.
“It’s encouraging that Loganair have listened to local businesses and changed the schedule to suit their needs.
“Hopefully this will encourage those who haven’t yet tried the service to do so. We will continue to work with Loganair and other partners to promote the route.”
Alison Henderson, chief executive of Dundee and Angus Chamber of Commerce, said: “We were delighted to support Loganair in gathering the views of the Dundee & Angus business community, and pleased to see that there have been positive changes to the schedules as a result.
“We remain encouraged by the commitment of Loganair to the Dundee/London routes and hope to see continued & increased use by the business community in 2015.”
To book tickets on this service visit: www.flybe.com, or call 0371 700 2000.
