Cornwall reconnected to Heathrow with subsidised flights

Exclusive: Passengers also dodge Air Passenger Duty of £13 each way, making flying cheaper than rail between London and Cornwall

The first flight from Newquay in Cornwall to Heathrow since the 1990s touched down at Europe’s busiest airport at 8.30am on Sunday.

Flybe flew its final flight from Gatwick on Saturday. The 12.50pm departure to Newquay ended several decades of serving the Sussex airport.

The financially troubled regional airline now has Heathrow firmly established as its London base. It is operating four flights a day, each way, on the 210-mile link with Newquay.

Speaking after the Bombardier Dash 8 turboprop arrived at Heathrow Terminal 2, Al Titterington, managing director of Cornwall Airport Newquay, told The Independent: “It means everything for the airport and for Cornwall’s economy as well, being able to connect through the hub airport.”

Christine Ourmieres-Widener, chief executive of Flybe, said: “There has been an overwhelmingly positive response from customers since we announced the route.”

Kavita Winn, a marketing executive for Watson-Marlow, a global engineering company based in Falmouth, used the first flight from Newquay to Heathrow for an onward connection to New York.

“We have a presence in 60 countries, so many of us are travelling frequently,” she said. “For me travelling all over the world, it’s going to mean a much easier journey.”

Rich Bradley, a business analyst from Newquay, who was flying to Heathrow for a link to Bahrain, said: “It’s brilliant. The connecting flights are so much better for me, anyway.”

Pass go: Rich Bradley about to board the first Flybe departure from Newquay to Heathrow (Simon Calder)

But Cornwall residents who had become accustomed to leisure links from Gatwick are disappointed in the move.

Joanna Hasson flies frequently between Gatwick and Barbados. She said: “I’m absolutely devastated they’re moving to Heathrow, so I’m now going to have to travel to Gatwick by road or rail.”

The distance from Newquay to Heathrow is six miles shorter than to Gatwick, but the aircraft used are slower and the chances of holding before landing are higher. The first flight was in the air for 65 minutes.

New horizon: Passengers leaving the first Flybe arrival at Heathrow from Newquay (Simon Calder)

The first plane was half-full, but later services are more heavily booked.

The route is classed as a Public Service Obligation (PSO) link, which means that any losses are covered by the government. Passengers also dodge Air Passenger Duty of £13 each way, which increases the attraction of the plane over the GWR train between London Paddington and Cornwall.

Looking four days ahead, the lowest one-way fare from Newquay on 4 April is £35.50 on the 2.30pm flight to Heathrow. The cheapest one-way train fare is £27 more expensive.

The Green Party says: “The taxation of aviation should be set at a level that reflects not just the climate impact relative to other carbon taxes, but at a level high enough to reduce demand for flights.”

The new flights use so-called “remedy slots” which British Airways was obliged to surrender, under EU competition rules, following its takeover of BMI in 2012.

Flybe also uses these slots for its links from Heathrow to Edinburgh and Aberdeen.