news about cheap fares and airlines from travel search engine Trabber

Low-cost air carrier Wizz Air announced that it would start new domestic flights from Bulgaria’s capital to the sea-side city of Varna. The company said it planned to operate four flights per week between Sofia and Varna.

The plans would make it the first low cost airline to operate domestic flights in Bulgaria, a Wizz Air media statement said.

Introduction of the domestic flights was part of a series of new flights that were being introduced, including flights to Milan-Bergamo, Valencia, Barcelona and Izmir.

source: Sofia Echo

EasyJet threw down the gauntlet to arch-rival Ryanair today, declaring that its profits will grow 20% over the next year on top of the 50% increase in earnings it has posted for the last 12 months.

That compares with Ryanair’s own estimated profit growth of about 17% as it expects to have to ramp up its ticket giveaways this winter to keep passengers flying.

Increasing ancillary revenues such as charging passengers extra for speedier boarding and persuading them to book hotels when they are booking their tickets, helped easyJet to record pre-tax profits of £201 million in the year to the end of September, up from £129 million last time.

source: ThisisLondon.com

Korean Air is to launch a new low-cost airline that will serve destinations across south-east Asia.

The airline, known for now as Air Korea, is expected to start services in May 2008, with routes to Shandong and Hainan Provinces in China.

After the China flights, Air Korea plans to run flights to destinations in Japan (excluding Tokyo), Thailand and Malaysia, with further short and mid-haul routes to follow.

Flights will operate out of Incheon International Airport, South Korea’s biggest airport located in the country’s capital, Seoul.

source: travelbite.co.uk

The South West based airline Flybe has announced expansion plans as part of a bid to strengthen its position as a regional hub.

The airline company has said seven new routes are scheduled for its two airports in Cornwall and Devon.

New services to Glasgow, Birmingham and Southampton will be on offer from Newquay.

Passengers from Exeter will be able to travel to Aberdeen, Dubrovnik, Inverness and Brussels.

All the flights are expected to start in the spring next year.

source: BBC

The merger plans of Lufthansa’s Germanwings unit and of TUI’s TUIfly division are set to include Eurowings too, people familiar with the talks told Reuters on Thursday.

The parties plan to build a larger alliance that also involves Eurowings as a third airline, the people said.

Building entrepreneur Albrecht Knauf, who holds a majority stake in Eurowings, may also take a stake in the possible new entity, the people said. Lufthansa owns 49 percent of Eurowings but has all the voting rights and operates the regional airline.

source: Reuters

Tiger Airways joins Yeongnam Air in plans for challenging Asiana/KAL duopoly in 2008

South Korea’s air transport market looks set to undergo a radical shakeup with Singapore-based low-cost carrier Tiger Airways the latest to unveil plans for a new airline there.

Until now South Korea’s market has been dominated by Asiana Airlines and Korean Air, although two small turboprop operators have begun operating limited domestic services in recent years. Real competition should come to the market soon, with start-up Yeongnam Air hoping to begin operating in February. Its plans were unveiled earlier this year and it recently secured a business licence from the ­Transportation ministry.

source: flightglobal.com

Low-cost Irish airline Ryanair can absorb much higher fuel costs than competitors because of its higher profit margins and will never introduce fuel surcharges, its chief executive said on Tuesday.

“‘We’ve guaranteed no fuel surcharges at Ryanair,'” Michael O’Leary told reporters. “‘Ever’.”

O’Leary said if oil prices continue to rise it will benefit Ryanair because it will have fewer competitors.

“‘If Vueling was losing money with oil at $65 a barrel then it’s bankrupt at $95,'” he added, referring to Spanish airline Vueling which announced a 73 percent dive in its third-quarter net profit last month to 1.35 million euros and pre-tax losses rose to 48.6 million.

source: Yahoo!

EasyJet, the largest UK low cost airline, on Tuesday reported a sharp increase in full-year profits and forecast a further significant rise in profits in the current year to next September despite record oil prices.

EasyJet forecast a further increase of around 20 per cent in underlying pre-tax profits in the current year excluding the impact of its proposed acquisition of GB Airways, the largely Gatwick-based franchise carrier of British Airways, which is due to be completed by the end of January.

Flyglobespan has announced that it will begin weekly flights from Bristol airport to Toronto from May next year.

The connection will open on May 26th, with services leaving Bristol every Monday to land at Toronto’s Hamilton airport.

Greek Tourism Development Minister Aris Spiliotopoulos on Tuesday met in London with Ryanair’s deputy CEO for talks on ways to lure the pioneering low-cost airline to the Greek market.

Speaking to reporters in the British capital on the sidelines of the World Travel Market trade fair, the Greek minister said negotiations were currently underway to attract low-cost airline carriers to Greece, while he underlined the importance of high-quality services in the tourism sector.

source: Ana.gr