10 February 2010

Smith welcomes Ryanair expansion

Margaret Smith MSP for Edinburgh West has today welcomed the announcement that Ryanair is to increase its presence at the capital’s airport. From May, the airline will operate a new route to Marrakech, a first for a Scottish airport, as well as 3 other new routes. In addition, the airline will increase the frequency of flights to 9 existing destinations.

Commenting on the announcement, Smith said:

“I am pleased that Edinburgh Airport will benefit from Ryanair’s latest expansion. I know that the team at BAA Edinburgh has worked very hard to attract new traffic and Ryanair’s announcement is testament to this.

“The additional business from Ryanair means that the airport has managed to replace the seats lost by the collapse of Flyglobespan last year. This is good news for jobs and will lessen the impact of globespan’s collapse on the capital. I hope that the announcement will build confidence across the rest of Scotland too, where some smaller airports are still concerned about the loss of Flyglobespan.

“Edinburgh is the UK’s fastest growing airport and these new routes will strengthen its position as Scotland’s airport of choice.”