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Passenger Numbers at Air Wales Reach New Heights
20 December 2004
Air Wales, Wales' national airline, has announced a 20 per cent rise in passenger numbers in just one month meaning the airline is now flying more passengers than at any other time in its five year history.
Air Wales carried over 19,000 passengers in October, an increase
of 20 per cent on the previous month and a massive increase of 123
per cent on figures for October last year. Many Air Wales flights
are now flying at full load, with many flights being fully booked
months in advance.
This year has been Air Wales' most successful to date. As well as
the dramatic increase in passenger figures, the airline has added
four new routes - Aberdeen, Liverpool, Newcastle and Norwich - to
its network which now embraces 11 destinations. That represents a
record network growth of 34 per cent in the last six months,
consolidating Air Wales' position as one of the UK's premier
regional airlines.
In fact, the airlines' Plymouth-Cardiff-Liverpool-Aberdeen route is
the only service in the UK to link four cities and, just five weeks
since its launch, has proved so popular that it sold 1,000 seats
just last week alone.
As well as the increase in its destination portfolio, Air Wales
attributes its outstanding success this year to its improving
customer service which is continuously striving to ensure that no
passenger is ever left disappointed. In fact, cancellation and
on-time records for the airlines' flights are way above industry
standards.
Chairman of Air Wales, Roy Thomas, said: "The latest passenger
numbers and load factors are incredible and reflect the reliability
and sustainability of Air Wales in a growing and competitive
market. We are delighted that thousands of passengers, both old and
new, are choosing Air Wales' reasonable fares and unique personal
approach.
"Over the past year, as well as launching a new portfolio of
flights, we have finely tuned our customer service strategy to
ensure we continue to deliver an outstanding service. The airline
industry is a tough one to be in - by its very nature; delays and
cancellations are often out of our control. However, despite that,
Air Wales has achieved a time and cancellation record which is
second to none with figures way above the industry average.
This is testament to the professionalism of all the staff at Air
Wales who work hard to deliver its passengers a personal, punctual,
efficient and niche service, day in, day out. This has been an
outstanding year for Air Wales and we look forward with confidence
to further strong growth in 2005."
Air Wales currently flies to 11 destinations out of Cardiff -
Aberdeen, Amsterdam, Belfast, Cork, Dublin, Glasgow, Jersey,
Liverpool, Newcastle, Norwich and Plymouth.
For more information or to book an Air Wales flight please call
0870 777 3131 or visit www.airwales.com
For more information please contact Natasha Fulford at MGB Public
Relations on 01792 460200 or 07876 645437.
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