BMI to compete with BA on Kiev route
30-01-2009
The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has given Bmi approval to compete with British Airways (BA) on flights to Kiev from Heathrow.
Following a CAA hearing, the airline was awarded the five extra flights to Kiev a week that were available following a recent agreement by the UK and Ukraine governments to allow more capacity.
However, BA failed in a bid for the five extra frequencies.
Bmi did not say when it would start operating the route to the Ukrainian capital but the airline’s CEO, Nigel Turner, said that bringing in new competition rather than allocating the capacity to the incumbent carrier will clearly produce more benefit to consumers, bring prices down and provide an improved product offering to both business and leisure passengers.
He went on to say that a new competitive service from Bmi will not only be a boon for point-to-point travellers between Heathrow and Kiev, but will also provide a wide range of connecting services at Heathrow onto Bmi domestic services as well as flights of Star Alliance partner airlines.
Now that the airline has clarification on access to this route it can now focus in more detail on the introduction of services and will be making a further announcement in due course, he added.
Meanwhile Bmi is also doubling the frequency of its flights to Riyadh from between Heathrow and has started operating six flights a week to the Saudi capital.
Following a CAA hearing, the airline was awarded the five extra flights to Kiev a week that were available following a recent agreement by the UK and Ukraine governments to allow more capacity.
However, BA failed in a bid for the five extra frequencies.
Bmi did not say when it would start operating the route to the Ukrainian capital but the airline’s CEO, Nigel Turner, said that bringing in new competition rather than allocating the capacity to the incumbent carrier will clearly produce more benefit to consumers, bring prices down and provide an improved product offering to both business and leisure passengers.
He went on to say that a new competitive service from Bmi will not only be a boon for point-to-point travellers between Heathrow and Kiev, but will also provide a wide range of connecting services at Heathrow onto Bmi domestic services as well as flights of Star Alliance partner airlines.
Now that the airline has clarification on access to this route it can now focus in more detail on the introduction of services and will be making a further announcement in due course, he added.
Meanwhile Bmi is also doubling the frequency of its flights to Riyadh from between Heathrow and has started operating six flights a week to the Saudi capital.
