Speaking to TTG from Bristol, Heapy said: "It was great for our colleagues. It’s a real shot in the arm to get going again and doing what they love. They were genuinely so glad to be back at work. It’s been a shot in the arm for me too. It reminded me of why I love the industry I work in."
Jet2’s inaugural flight from the airport departed for Majorca on Friday morning (2 July).
The start of operations from Bristol airport comes as the Balearic Islands and Madeira were added to the green watchlist for overseas travel.
Following the additions, Jet2 reported a surge in bookings from customers wanting to travel in July and August from the area.
Heapy described the day as "incredibly exciting" for the company.
"The best thing was seeing our happy customers. Seeing them flying again is great and also seeing brand new customers who have never experienced Jet2 before being blown away by the customer service," he added.
"We know customers want to travel to more destinations and the UK government still has a long way to go to reopen international travel properly and satisfy customer demand both from Bristol airport and across the UK.
"We continue to urge the government to reopen international travel properly, rather than adding just a few destinations and hoping everyone will be happy with that."
