Cambridge Airport Europe business routes announced

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cambridgeshire-22594577

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Scheduled flights to four new European destinations will begin from Cambridge Airport, it has been announced.

Services to Amsterdam, Paris, Milan and Geneva, aimed mainly at business travellers, will begin on 2 September.

It represented an expansion of services, not an expansion of the airport, said a spokesman for airport owner and operator Marshall.

A local parish councillor said they did not envisage an increase in noise but would monitor the situation.

The 24 weekly flights to and from Amsterdam, 12 weekly flights to and from Paris Charles de Gaulle, eight weekly flights to and from Milan's Malpensa airport, and six weekly services to and from Geneva will be operated by Swiss-based Darwin Airline.

Darwin will use 50-seater SAAB 2000 regional aircraft on all the routes.

Terry Holloway, group support executive for Marshall Cambridge, said: "The routes are really intended to serve the business needs of the local community.

"Cambridge is a very rapidly expanding city with a strong demand for business travel and inward investment."

The new routes would provide "focused, niche, quality business air travel services" and provide a "quick and efficient alternative" to other airports such as Stansted and Heathrow, he said.

"We have no ambitions on the bucket and spade market.

"We don't have the facilities to expand the airport. We're not expanding - we're growing the use of our airport," he added.