There was no special appearance by Ozzy Osbourne or any Commonwealth Games-style razzmatazz, but the opening of easyJet’s new base at Birmingham airport was nonetheless hailed as a major “milestone” – and presents a huge opportunity for agents in the Midlands.
The airline’s first new UK base for almost a decade must not be underestimated, according to easyJet chief executive Johan Lundgren. The carrier already operates the equivalent of roughly four “away-based” aircraft to and from Birmingham, and will now station three permanently at the airport, opening up 16 additional routes.
EasyJet is going up against Tui, Jet2.com and Ryanair, and has some catching up to do, but Lundgren believes the carrier can swiftly make up ground. “Tui will have 14 aircraft, but because of the efficiency in how we operate, we feel we have the equivalent of nine,” Lundgren said.
EasyJet holidays, he said, would be a major beneficiary, gaining access to 27 routes “you can’t find with any of our competitors”. Lundgren also claimed the operator offered hotel rates that were “seven out of 10 times” cheaper than its competitors. This will doubtless add to the operator’s Birmingham appeal, where 80% of traffic is leisure.
Birmingham airport chief executive Nick Barton said the new base signalled “a significant shift” in its relationship with easyJet. “In percentage terms, Ryanair will be the biggest [with] around two million passengers, or 17%. Jet2.com is about the same; easyJet will get close to that this year. It’s around a million at the moment, and it will grow to about 1.6 million.”
Together, these airlines will carry an increasingly large portion of the airport’s 12 million passengers. “I’ve always felt that the airport was under-served by low-cost carriers," Barton added. “So this is a very significant milestone.”
For Lundgren, the attraction is the “size and scale” of the local economy, which he described as “bigger than Hungary”, and also the airport’s vast catchment, which he claimed was within two hours’ drive of 85% of England. “The fact easyJet does not have a base here seemed at odds with what we are doing,” he said.
Corporate travel was another impetus, with the carrier’s slot holding at airports like Amsterdam’s Schiphol being a draw for business travellers. “No airline in the world holds more slots at airports like these than us,” Lundgren added.
This may also have swayed his decision to choose Birmingham, with the airport claiming to have the second-highest proportion of business traffic after Heathrow. Lundgren said business travel demand was returning quicker than leisure. He predicted: “We will go back to the level of business travel we had [pre-Covid] because we are over-represented in SMEs and those that need to actually go somewhere, like engineers.”
There are plenty of engineers at Birmingham airport itself, where ongoing investment – Barton said – would reach “£1 million a week for the next three years”. From 1 June, new security scanners will permit liquids in hand luggage, with trials already under way. The airport is spending £55 million on revamping security channels and £10 million on a solar farm that will provide a third of its electricity.
Untapped potential
Barton has longer-term plans for Birmingham, which he said has “a catchment 20% bigger than the population of Canada”. Birmingham’s issue is that some of these potential passengers must choose Manchester, Bristol or even Luton because of gaps in its schedule. Barton aims to fill these, and top of his wish list is to restore a US connection – almost certainly New York, where he was lobbying before Christmas.
“We have every reason to believe the US and Canada will feature in our network planning in two to three years,” he said. “We have 500 people a day from our catchment travelling to the US via another airport.”
He cites aircraft availability, in particular the narrow-body Airbus A321LR, as a barrier, but is nevertheless confident. He adds there is also “some case” for a Hong Kong connection.
Further ahead, Barton is excited by the opportunities the HS2 high speed rail link brings. He claims BHX will be a 36-minute journey from London’s Bond Street – via Old Oak Common on the outskirts of the capital – and says HS2 “will move the dial” and make Birmingham part of a network of UK airports.
Meanwhile, for Lundgren and Barton, there is the small matter of the summer to be getting on with. In its last trading statement, easyJet said demand was strong.
“We continue to confirm that is the case,” said Lundgren, who brushed off suggestions airlines were price gouging due to restrained capacity, adding half of all easyJet fares were “still under £50”.
“Leisure is picking up strongly, easyJet this year will be back to 2019 levels,” he predicted, and he was unapologetic too about easyJet’s perhaps long-overdue arrival at the UK’s second city.
“What will competitors say? I don’t care – the people that will take advantage will be consumers.”
The agent outlook
TTG approached three Midlands agents for their take on easyJet’s decision to open a base at Birmingham, and find out what opportunities it opens up for them.
