IoM Air Traffic Recovers Slowly

by Amanda Banks, Tax-News.com, London

14 April 2010

Whilst there is continued evidence of a gradual improvement in the air passenger market for the Isle of Man, the March passenger figures for the Isle of Man’s airport, Ronaldsway, again demonstrated that the recovery will continue to be slow and steady.

The Airport handled just 500 passengers less than in March 2009, a decrease of under 1%, but reassuringly the result was some 1.5% better than expected.

Again North West England, the Isle of Man’s biggest air passenger market, produced the best indication that the decline in passenger numbers witnessed over the past 18 months is showing signs of reversing. The Liverpool route produced an increase of over 9%, and whilst Manchester and Blackpool were slightly down, overall North West traffic was up by over 450 passengers. In addition, the launch of Flybe’s Bristol route, together with a buoyant Gloucester service operated by Manx2 ensured that traffic between the Island and the South West also increased by 19%.

“The slight decrease for March was not unexpected,” said Ann Reynolds, Airport Director. “Recognising that the industry as a whole still has a long way to go to restore the buoyancy in the market of the past, we had expected a decrease of about 2.4%. The fact that Easter straddled both March and April this year has also helped to boost traffic towards the end of the month.”

Another hopeful indication is that scheduled service passengers were also up by over 300 in March, the second month in succession that the scheduled routes had shown an increase. This is particularly significant following the downturn experienced during 2009 when scheduled service passenger numbers decreased by a massive 47,000 over the year.

“It is vitally important that 2010 sees a strengthening of the Island’s scheduled routes with a solid recovery in passenger numbers,” added Reynolds. “The launch of the Bristol route at the end of March again provides the Island with a choice of 20 UK and European scheduled service destinations this summer. Having been able to preserve almost all of these throughout the recession period, we are now looking to strengthen the network so that we can build upon it in the future. It is therefore essential that the existing routes perform well to provide a foundation for further expansion.”

The Isle of Man Airport is now a Division of the Department of Infrastructure and, from 1 April 2010, Phil Gawne assumed responsibility as Minister of Infrastructure. Commenting, he emphasized the importance of strengthening the existing air service network by working closely with the airlines that operate from the Isle of Man Airport.

“The air transport industry as a whole has endured what is probably the most difficult period in recent history over the past couple of years,” Gawne said.

“Whilst, in general, routes from the Isle of Man have held up better than most, there is no doubt that our airlines have also had a tough time. I very much hope that this coming summer will see a regeneration of the Island’s air traffic and we will provide every support to help Isle of Man operators achieve the recovery in passenger numbers they need,” he added.

Recommended