Sun-Air will operate the route under a franchise agreement with British Airways six times a week using a 32-seat Dornier 328 aircraft.

"The return of Sun-Air, after a two-year Covid-forced hiatus, comes as the airport gears up for an increase in business travel," said London City airport.

BA, said City, is also planning to up capacity on "core business routes", including an increase from 30 weekly rotations to 46 on its Edinburgh service and 23 to 36 on its Dublin service.

Other carriers are also reinstating business frequencies, including Swiss increasing weekly rotations on its Zurich route to 38 and Lufthansa upping its Frankfurt service to 36 weekly rotations.

City said on Monday (5 September) that 2022 passenger numbers were nearing two million for the year to date, adding it remained on course to top three million by the end of the year.

Anne Doyere, London City’s aviation director, said: "Brick by brick, we’ve built back our network and we’re delighted to welcome back Sun-Air and connections to and from Billund.

"We have enjoyed a strong summer, and many new passengers have had the opportunity to experience the exceptional and unique level of customer proposition that we provide at London City.

"Looking ahead, we are optimistic about the rest of the year, particularly with many of our key corporates indicating a desire to not only travel again, but travel from an airport they can rely on."