Norwich Airport lost £500,000 last year
19.11.07
Norwich Airport suffered losses of almost £500,000 last year - despite handling a record number of passengers, the Eastern Daily Press reports. The deal the airport struck with budget airline Flybe is being blamed for its financial difficulties, with bosses using its controversial £3 airport development tax to bridge the funding gap.
Passenger numbers grew by more than 30 percent over the past year, with 772,700 travellers using the airport compared with 583,600 in 2006. But despite the increase in passengers, the airport managed to turn a pre-tax profit of £294,000 in a loss of £491,000 for the year to the end of March.
The newspaper says that airport bosses, eager to grow passenger numbers, lured Flybe to Norwich with a cut-price deal, which has put a strain on the airport's finances. And to make matters worse, increased competition from Flybe on leisure routes has led to an 18 percent drop in charter passengers, cutting income further.
Norwich Airport managing director, Richard Jenner, defended the Flybe deal which he said had been important to encourage the airline to the airport. He added: 'The deal does run out at the end of March next year and we will be looking to negotiate more favourable terms.'
Mr. Jenner told the newspaper that the airport was hoping to attract another low cost airline to Norwich to complement Flybe, which has scrapped routes to Spain and Portugal. He said: 'Stansted and Luton are getting full and places like Norwich will start to attract low cost operators. Flybe is now focused on more business routes which offers an opportunity for a leisure focused operator to come here.'
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