New budget airline launched

Last updated at 11:15 11 March 2003


A new UK budget airline, called Now, will start flying to seven destinations from this summer.

Based at Luton airport in Bedfordshire, it will serve Manchester, Hamburg, Jersey, Rome, Lisbon, Ibiza and Tenerife.

Using two Boeing 737 300s, Now will add a third aircraft after three months which will enable it to fly to two more destinations - Valencia and Dusseldorf.

The airline hopes to offer around 650,000 seats in its first year of operation and its inaugural flight will be to Rome.

Now said that all its charges except for the £5 Government airport departure tax will be included in the price offered, and fares will be fixed according to destination and season, so that all travellers will pay the same amount for their seats on that flight.

This is in contrast to the pricing policy of some low-fare airlines which sometimes sell the first few seats at a low rate but others at higher prices.

For example, the cost of a ticket on Now to Rome between March and May will be £55 plus £5 tax.

'We believe this pricing model will become the industry standard,' said Lars Welinder, the interim chief executive of Now.

The launch of Now will create 400 jobs and the airline hopes to start selling tickets in April once it has gained its air operating certificate.

Mr Welinder said the airline was aimed at both the business and leisure sectors of the market and would try to offer a little more than other low-cost carriers while still retaining the 'no-frills' concept, such as charging for food on board.

Now, which hopes to start flying by the end of June, expects to break even in its second year of operation.

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