EasyJet to Cancel 20 Percent of Flights

Low-cost airline easyJet has announced plans to axe up to 20 percent of flights from its London Luton base as well as close its East Midlands hub. In a move that mirrors Ryanair’s recent hub streamlining, the low-cost carrier said it would look to relocate the Luton flights to more “profitable bases”.

But the airline denied that it was about to abandon its base at Luton altogether after a dispute over landing charges. The airline currently operates 16 aircraft and employs 1,000 staff at Luton, and carries 4.7 million passengers a year.

The airline said that flights to and from East Midlands airport up to the end of the year are “wholly unaffected” by the closure. It currently employs 120 staff and operates three aircraft, and carries around 700,000 passengers a year.

easyJet also said it would begin a consultation on a reduction of 40 pilots and cabin crew jobs at its bases in Belfast, Bristol, Newcastle and Stansted. The industry is also continuing to struggle as passenger numbers continues to fall and energy prices rise.

The cutbacks come after the resolution this summer of a long-running public battle between the easyJet founder Stelios Haji-Ioannou and the boardroom over the budget airline’s aggressive expansion plans.