Low-cost airline easyJet is to add another destination from Bristol Airport this summer – taking its total to 67 and strengthening its position as the airport’s largest operator.
The service to Montpellier will launch on June 2 using a 186-seat Airbus A320 aircraft and then operate twice weekly – on Wednesdays and Sundays.
The airline said it expects to carry more than 15,000 passengers on the route, the first direct service between Bristol and the vibrant city in Southern France.
Further summer routes could be added by easyJet as looks to further build its presence at Bristol Airport, where it has a 55% market share. It has 15 aircraft based at the airport with more than 570 crew members.
It has carried more than 50m passenger since launching services from the airport 15 years ago after taking over some routes from British Airways’ short-lived Go budget airline, which easyJet had acquired.
It has also recently added three new winter destinations – Larnaca, Ostersund in Sweden and the Bulgarian capital Sofia.
EasyJet said Montpellier was known for its stunning, historic architecture and its “luscious” beaches and beautiful mountainous areas.
“Located a stone’s throw away from the Mediterranean, Montpellier is the perfect holiday destination for summer 2019,” it said.
The airline’s UK country manager Ali Gayward said: “We’re delighted to launch our new route to Montpellier from Bristol which allows us to offer customers an even wider range of exciting destinations to visit this summer.
“We are proud to be the biggest airline in Bristol, serving 67 destinations such as Geneva and Barcelona internationally, and domestic routes such as Edinburgh and Newcastle and the launch of this new route demonstrates the continued growth of the easyJet network in Bristol.
“We look forward to continuing to provide low fares and friendly customer service to our passengers in Bristol.”
Bristol Airport business development director Nigel Scott added: “We are delighted with this new easyJet service to Montpellier allowing improved business, cultural and leisure possibilities for businesses and consumers in the South West region.
“This destination will be Bristol Airport’s 14th regular service to a French city and further strengthens the vitally important connections between the region and France. We expect over 600,000 passengers to travel between Bristol and France in 2019.
“The route will also offer great inbound tourism opportunities for visiting passengers from the Montpellier region using Bristol Airport as the gateway to the historic and iconic visitor attractions in the area.”
Last month the airport said it planned to create more than 1,000 jobs over the next decade as part of its further development to enable it to handle 12m passengers a year.
The scheme, which has been submitted to North Somerset Council planners, would also generate an additional £1.4bn for the regional economy by the mid-2020s.
The planning application is the latest stepping stone in the airport’s long-term plan of being capable of handling up to 20m passengers a year by the mid-2040s.
Annual passenger traffic through the airport is on target to hit a record 8.5m last year with further growth to 9m this year. Under its current planning permission, the terminal is limited to 10m passengers a year – a figure it is likely to hit in the early 2020s.
