| File:Flyglobespan logo.gif | |||||||
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| Founded | 2002 | ||||||
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| Hubs | Glasgow International Airport Edinburgh Airport | ||||||
| Focus cities | London Stansted Airport | ||||||
| Fleet size | 9 | ||||||
| Destinations | 15 | ||||||
| Headquarters | Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom | ||||||
| Key people | Tom Dalrymple (Chairman) | ||||||
| Website | www.flyglobespan.com | ||||||
Flyglobespan is a low-cost airline based in Edinburgh, United Kingdom. It operates scheduled services from Glasgow and Edinburgh to 15 destinations in 6 countries in Europe. Its main base is Glasgow International Airport (GLA), with a secondary hub at Edinburgh Airport (EDI). The airline's tag line is "Scotland's low fares airline".
History
Flyglobespan was established in November 2002 as an offshoot of the Globespan Group. Operations started in April 2003 using two Boeing 737-300 aircraft provided by Channel Express on services from Glasgow Prestwick International Airport and Edinburgh Airport to 5 destinations in Spain, France and Italy.
Globespan, an Edinburgh-based tour operator with over 30 years experience, already offered a comprehensive portfolio of scheduled and charter flights, cruise travel, rail and coach travel, motor home and car rental, and hotel accommodation tailored for holidaymakers visiting popular destinations in Canada, the USA and Spain. The scheduled flights, mainly to Canada, were operated by Air Transat from a number of airports throughout the UK, with Globespan acting as the booking agent and selling the flights under its own brand. In summer 2002, a similar arrangement was trialed between Edinburgh and Nice, in the south of France. This was to prove particularly successful for Globespan, and led to the creation of its own no-frills brand, Flyglobespan.
Services began in 2003 with aircraft and crews provided by Channel Express, though under the Flygobespan brand with red and white livery, offering irregular flights to some of Europe's most popular holiday destinations. The offshoot was to prove successful however, and frequencies were increased to maximise aircraft utilisation and expand its market share. At this point, the operator relocated from Prestwick to the larger Glasgow International Airport, which is much closer to the major population centres of central Scotland, within months of commencing operation. Flyglobespan was granted its own operating licence by the CAA in March 2004, however, and the airline was now free to purchase, operate, crew and maintain its own aircraft. With this restriction lifted, expansion was swift for the new airline. New destinations were added to the network, including Prague, where the airline faced competition from CSA Czech Airlines, and further points in Spain, including the Canary Islands. CSA withdrew their Glasgow to Prague service on 1 August 2005.
By March 2005 the airline had grown to offer 15 destinations across Europe, with a fleet of 9 aircraft, of which 3 were bought new, and had tripled its passenger numbers to 1.5 million annually. Profits for the year ending October 2004 had risen from £2m in its first year to £3.7m, on a turnover of £98m.
In May 2005, the first domestic services were launched, with twice-daily flights from Glasgow and Edinburgh to London Stansted - routes already operated by the much larger low fares carrier easyJet, with much higher frequencies. The product offered by Flyglobespan is different, however. The airline offers a range of accommodation at the destination through its online booking service, allowing passengers to arrange flights and somewhere to stay in one transaction from one operator, unlike the larger competing carriers.
Despite high fuel costs and intense competition in the no-frills market, the airline is clearly ambitious. Flights from Aberdeen are due to commence in 2006 1 and services from other airports in the UK are being considered, particularly those where Globespan still operate through Air Transat to Canada.
Flyglobespan is also looking to the long haul market, and cites Florida as the most likely destination to be added to the growing network 2, possibly from 2006, using a leased Boeing 777 aircraft in Flyglobespan livery. Though the airline has shown interest in the Boeing 787 Dreamliner 3, no commitment to the aircraft has yet been made.
Destinations
Flyglobespan.com operates services to the following international scheduled destinations (at June 2005): Alicante, Barcelona, Edinburgh, Faro, Glasgow, Lanzarote, Las Palmas, London (Stansted), Málaga, Nice, Palma de Mallorca, Paphos, Prague, Rome (Fiumicino) and Tenerife (Reina Sofía).
Fleet
The Flyglobespan fleet consists of the following aircraft (at June 2005):
External links
- Flyglobespan
- Flyglobespan Fleet Detail
- Flyglobespan Passenger Opinions
- Photos of Flyglobespan aircraft