Latest news with #SophieDekkers
The Independent
16 hours ago
- Business
- The Independent
EasyJet releases fresh batch of flight tickets for 2026 – with seats from £23
EasyJet has launched the sale of its summer schedule for 2026 – and flight fares start from just £22.99. Millions of seats across 161,000 flights are now available for forward-thinking travellers to secure next year's summer getaway. The released easyJet flights – for travel between 15 June and 13 September 2026 – depart for 134 destinations from 22 UK airports. Holiday hotspots including Faro, Palma, Paris, Alicante, and Nice are among the featured journeys as part of the budget airline's 'Big Seat Release'. Sophie Dekkers, easyJet's chief commercial officer, said: 'We're thrilled to release millions of seats for Summer 2026 today, enabling customers across the UK to book early and secure fantastic value fares to our most popular leisure destinations across Europe, North Africa, and beyond.' However, booking a flight early doesn't guarantee travellers have secured the best deal. Simon Calder, travel correspondent for The Independent, said: 'For some travellers, buying the moment flights go on sale can prove good value. People who have a property in Spain or Portugal, and who want to travel on specific dates at a reasonable fare, can be confident that they are locked into the best deal. 'Airlines are happy to see a surge in demand for travel a year ahead, and, of course, they collect the cash instantly – and know that you will not be considering rival airlines. 'But from the passenger's perspective, it's not necessarily an excellent deal. I checked Manchester to Malaga on 19 July 2026 on easyJet, and the basic fare is £230 one way – so not a compelling bargain. 'The same route is only £48 on 1 September next year. But who knows what Ryanair and Jet2 will be charging then? 'The corresponding easyJet price for a flight on the first Tuesday in September this year has easyJet at £75, but Ryanair only wants £28. I wouldn't be tempted to surrender the chance to shop around nearer departure.'
Daily Mirror
18 hours ago
- Business
- Daily Mirror
EasyJet launches super-cheap summer 2026 sale today with limited tickets available
EasyJet has launched its big summer 2026 sale, with tickets from UK airports such as Gatwick, Luton, Manchester and Liverpool to sunny European destinations selling fast EasyJet has launched its big summer 2026 sale, and tickets are selling fast. This morning the budget airline released "millions" of tickets for travel next year. The tickets are based on a dynamic pricing model and they're limited in number, so speed is of the essence if you want to grab the biggest deals. You can visit the easyJet website to search through all of the offers, which went live earlier this morning. Some of the best deals we've found so far include: Manchester to Zurich for £29.99 Birmingham to Belfast for £18.99 Birmingham to Prague for £26.99 Aberdeen to Gatwick for £25.99 Bristol to Amsterdam for £32.99 Liverpool to Nice for £23.99 Liverpool to Majorca for £35.99 Do you have a travel story to share? Email webtravel@ Wherever you're dreaming of going next year, it's well worth a look through the deals on offer. Although the number of tickets made available in this year's sale hasn't been publicised yet, in 2024, 18 million became available, 10 million of which were to or from the UK. The budget airline and its package break wing, easyJet holidays, are at the beginning of a big school holiday period. Over the next six weeks, it will see its biggest summer ever with more than 82,000 flights. Over seven million UK customers are set to take to the skies on over 45,000 flights to and from the UK alone. EasyJet has added seven additional Airbus A320 aircraft to its UK-based fleet at Bristol, Manchester, Birmingham, Edinburgh and newest UK base, London Southend. More than 33 million seats are set to operate to and from the UK across the whole summer season, half a million more than last year. It is running 44 new routes including flights to three brand new destinations; Sal in Cape Verde, Rimini in Italy and Tbilisi in Georgia are operating for the first time this summer, with more choice to longer leisure routes like Turkey, Egypt, Cape Verde, Tunisia and Morocco. The airline will see its busiest day of the summer season on 5 September when nearly 2,000 flights are set to take off with over 300,000 customers expecting to fly, as thousands of families across the UK return from their summer break while others jet off on their well-deserved holidays. The most popular summer destinations from the UK this summer with the Spanish destinations of Malaga and Palma de Mallorca topping the list, as well as Faro in Portugal. Sophie Dekkers, easyJet's Chief Commercial Officer, said: "Every year, millions of customers continue to choose easyJet for the unrivalled choice of destinations we offer across our network, our great value fares and our crew's fantastic service. 'And this year with more seats, new routes and package holidays, we're offering more choice for customers than ever before, and we look forward to taking them away for a well-deserved holiday, always aiming to make travel easy.'
Scottish Sun
2 days ago
- Scottish Sun
Most popular holiday destinations for Scots revealed – but there's a warning for travellers as ‘busiest day' approaches
The top holiday picks have been revealed for those seeking guaranteed sun, outstanding food, culture and natural beauty HOT TICKET Most popular holiday destinations for Scots revealed – but there's a warning for travellers as 'busiest day' approaches Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) THE most popular destinations for Scots holidaymakers this summer have been revealed - and Spanish hotspots took first place. Taking the prime spot was Malaga and Alicante in Spain for those seeking guaranteed sun, outstanding food, culture and natural beauty - closely followed by Faro in Portugal. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 2 Alicante in Spain took joint top spot with Malaga Credit: Alamy 2 September 5 is set to be the busiest day for Scotland's airports Credit: Michael Schofield Other popular destinations included Palma de Mallorca, Rhodes, Tenerife, Antalya and Dalaman. The new report by easyJet Holidays also found Edinburgh and Belfast were said to be the most popular domestic destinations for Scots holidaying closer to home or visiting family. However, those planning a sunny getaway have been warned as Scotland's busiest day of the summer for travel is on the horizon. easyJet research found Friday, September 5, is set to be the busiest day for Scotland's airports. The budget airline will see nearly 2,000 flights take off with over 300,000 customers expected to fly. This includes 180 flights carrying a whopping 28,000 customers to and from Scotland alone. This year, the airline launched eight new summer routes Scotland, including Antalya and Reus from Glasgow, and Enfidha, Dusseldorf, Zurich, Olbia, Marrakech, and Milan Linate from Edinburgh. Sophie Dekkers, easyJet's Chief Commercial Officer, said: "Every year, millions of customers continue to choose easyJet for the unrivalled choice of destinations we offer across our network, our great value fares and our crew's fantastic service. 'And this year with more seats and more new routes, we're offering more choice for customers than ever before, and we look forward to taking them away for a well-deserved holiday, always aiming to make travel easy.' The new data comes as Glasgow Airport was named as the best in the UK and another Scots hub was named in the top 10. The airport was hailed as the first choice for fast and affordable travel. Sould Park opening in Malaga Travel experts analysed air hubs across the UK, comparing the best and worst for average flights per day, average delays, cancelled flights, and flights delayed by 30 minutes or more. Staff at the ground transport firm hoppa also took into account the number of airport links, lounges, parking cost per day and scored the airports out of 10. With a rating of 9.21 out of 10, Glasgow Airport came out on top, The study found the airport has around 158 arrivals and departures per day, with an average flight delay time of 9.6 minutes.
Daily Mail
14-07-2025
- Daily Mail
British holidaymakers facing record-breaking flight delays thanks to French air traffic control - after strikes caused misery for a million passengers
British holidaymakers are facing record-breaking flight delays thanks to French air traffic control this summer, say leading airline bosses and EU officials. More than one million passengers had their flights cancelled after air traffic controllers in France walked out for four days earlier this month, causing uproar for those looking to jet off on a summer getaway. The strikes, which began on July 2, saw around 4,000 flights cancelled and more than 7,000 delayed - costing the aviation industry around £86 million. And with more than 70 per cent of short-haul flights to and from the UK passing through French airspace, fears have been sparked over further delays in the coming months. Ryanair has criticised European officials for allowing industrial action to cripple international travel. Meanwhile the UK's biggest airline, easyJet, has blamed the traffic control for most of the delays on its planes this summer. It is believed that 49 per cent of delays for the airline have been caused by air traffic control problems since the start of summer, three times more than the same period last year. EasyJet's Chief Commercial Officer, Sophie Dekkers, said the biggest issue in France was the 'resourcing and actual planning of the airspace'. She told The Times: 'They don't have the people on the ground to be able to cope with the amount of traffic that's covering their airspace and they don't have the capacity to cope with the traffic.' Ms Dekkers also said there was further strain on airlines as around 20 per cent of airspace in Europe is closed, particularly in the regions near to Ukraine. The widespread closure of airspace means travel to popular holiday destinations such as Spain, Italy, Greece and Croatia, has also been hit. And European officials have warned there could be record-breaking delays and cancellations to come. One senior EU official said: 'Last year, we had the worst summer ever in terms of delays and cancellations. This year will be very similar.' They also said that 37,000 flights - the air traffic control capacity's limit - operate across Europe on the busiest days in the summer, pushing resource to the limit. The managing body of European air space, Eurocontrol, is expecting to process five per cent more flights than last summer and also said that a 'lack of air traffic control capacity to cope with traffic demand is expected to cause high delays'. Airline bosses urged officials at the EU to change the law to protect 'overflights' which do not take off or land as a result of strike action - a known practice in France. Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary is one who called for stricter rules for air traffic controllers in France and asked policymakers to tighten their grip on the situation, after his airline was forced to cancel 718 flights during the recent strikes. Mr O'Leary said 90 per cent of those cancellations would have been avoided 'if overflights were protected by the EU Commission during these recreational French ATC strikes'. He said: 'It is unacceptable that Commission president Ursula von der Leyen continues to stand idly by, while the single market for air travel over Europe is repeatedly shut down by [the] French. 'We do not allow our railways, our motorways or our shipping lanes to be closed by industrial action, so it is unacceptable that the EU president fails to defend the single market for air travel.'
Scottish Sun
13-07-2025
- Scottish Sun
Brit holiday airline warns of flight delays over summer and blames French for hold ups
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) FLIGHTS this summer will suffer massive delays because of French hold ups, a Brit airline boss has warned. The dismal forecast comes as holidaymakers continue to wrestle with disrupted flight schedules often leaving them stuck for hours in terminals and on planes. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 1 Brits should expect long delays this summer, an airline boss has warned Credit: Getty Chief Commercial Officer at Easyjet Sophie Dekkers blamed the expected summer chaos on French air traffic control's poor planning and staff shortages, saying the country lacks capacity to cope with the traffic. She told The Times: 'The biggest issue we've got [in France] is resourcing and the actual planning of the airspace. "They don't have the people on the ground to be able to cope with the amount of traffic that's covering their airspace and they don't have the capacity to cope with the traffic.' With 70 per cent of short-haul flights going in and out of the UK using French airpsace, the budget airline is heavily reliant on France's air traffic control. So, staffing issues or poor planning could be disastrous for the airline's flight schedule. As well as affecting flights to France, departures to some of Brits' favourite holiday hotspots will also be hit such as, Spain, Greece, Italy and Croatia. Most aircrafts will do multiple flights to different destinations each day, so one of the biggest issues this summer will be the "knock-on impact" on the rest of the networks, Ms Dekkers explained. She said: "when people say, 'why is my London-Scotland flight delayed by French traffic control?' "It's because previously that flight was scheduled to do London to Spain and back, and then London to Scotland and back." Issues relating to air traffic control have caused 49 per cent of delays for easyJet since the start of the holiday season (since Easter). Flight Chaos in Europe: French ATC Strikes Disrupt Travel for Thousands This is a 77 per cent hike compared with the same period last year. And with 20 per cent of European airspace still shut, due to the war in Ukraine, delays and scheduling problems have only intensified, she added. 'Severe disruption' EU officials told the Financial Times that the air traffic control system was operating at capacity due to staff shortages and increased demand following the Covid-19 pandemic. Flight compensation rules A look at your rights if a flight is delayed or cancelled, when your entitled to compensation and if your travel insurance can cover the costs. What are my rights if my flight is cancelled or delayed? Under UK law, airlines have to provide compensation if your flight arrives at its destination more than three hours late. If you're flying to or from the UK, your airline must let you choose a refund or an alternative flight. You will be able to get your money back for the part of your ticket that you haven't used yet. So if you booked a return flight and the outbound leg is cancelled, you can get the full cost of the return ticket refunded. But if travelling is essential, then your airline has to find you an alternative flight. This could even be with another airline. When am I not entitled to compensation? The airline doesn't have to give you a refund if the flight was cancelled due to reasons beyond their control, such as extreme weather. Disruptions caused by things like extreme weather, airport or air traffic control employee strikes or other 'extraordinary circumstances' are not eligible for compensation. Some airlines may stretch the definition of "extraordinary circumstances" but you can challenge them through the aviation regulator the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). Will my insurance cover me if my flight is cancelled? If you can't claim compensation directly through the airline, your travel insurance may refund you. Policies vary so you should check the small print, but a delay of eight to 12 hours will normally mean you qualify for some money from your insurer. Remember to get written confirmation of your delay from the airport as your insurer will need proof. If your flight is cancelled entirely, you're unlikely to be covered by your insurance. They added that last year was the worst summer yet for delays and cancellations and "this year will be very similar". Approximately 37,000 flights occur in Europe on the busiest days of the season - but this is the limit of what air traffic controllers can currently manage. Strikes, such as those recently in France, have also made the situation worse. Eurocontrol, the organisation responsible for air traffic control in Europe, said flights were "impacted by air traffic control (ATC) industrial action between 2-5 July 2025, leading to severe disruption for passengers, airlines and airports." In total, there were 3,343 fewer flights to and from French airports compared to the previous week - all of which were cancelled due to the strike. Europe currently also has a reduced airspace due to the war in Ukraine. The EU transport commissioner Apostolos Tzitzikostas explained that this, paired with the shortage of controllers, "threatens to overburden the air network and disappoint passengers". He saod airports are now more congested and "Europe cannot afford chaos in the skies". Travel advice With a summer of further disruptions expected, The Sun's head of travel Lisa Minot has advised what you should do if travelling this summer. She said: "Whatever happens if it is [your flight] delayed or cancelled for reasons outside of the the airlines control, then unfortunately there is no compensation due. "But the airline does have a duty of care to look after you. "If your flight is cancelled and it is the airline's fault ... then you could be due compensation. "It could be anything up to £520." Last month Ryanair also said that this summer would be the worst summer for flight delays and cancellations. The airline revealed the worst air traffic control centres (ATCs) for delays and this included the UK as the fifth worst. Ryanair said that the European Commission and European governments "have taken no action to fix their shoddy ATC services and ATC delays will now be even worse in summer 2025". Micheal O'Leary, the airline's CEO, also said that if staff shortages and ATC issues are not sorted, there will be "record ATC flight delays this summer". The airline's 'League of Delays' revealed that France and Spain have been the most impacted so far this year, with 15,634 and 11,576 flights delayed respectively. The airline has also claimed that 90 per cent of their flight cancellations during the French ATC strikes, could have been avoided if overflights over France were allowed to take place. Many airlines are now calling on Brussels to complete the 'Single European Sky' project which would allow airlines to fly the most direct route possible within the EU. This would mean that airlines would not follow diversions via several points, but instead fly straight to a destination. Last year, air traffic was up by five per cent compared to 2023, with over a third of flights delayed by more than 15minutes on arrival, according to Eurocontrol. Overall, delays averaged around 21.4minutes per flight.
