Dutch travel group Airtrade has teamed up with Brussels-based Virgin Express to introduce low-cost services from Amsterdam to Rome, with the prospect of more routes to come.
The two companies will initially co-operate on a new Virgin Express service between Amsterdam and Rome starting on 30 March on which Airtrade will buy half of the seats to sell through its network of 1,100 travel agents in the Netherlands. Virgin Express will sell the other half through its sales channels. The two will co-ordinate fares, which start at €59 ($63) one-way.
The initiative is part of a wider plan by Airtrade to establish a "virtual low-cost airline" in the Netherlands by agreeing block space deals with other carriers, says the company. It will sell seats under the BudgetAir brand on its website of the same name, and could eventually acquire aircraft in its own name if the strategy is successful.
It is in talks with several carriers over further link-ups and already has deals with Varig to sell seats on the Amsterdam-Paris leg of its service to Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, and with Continental Airlines on its Amsterdam-New York Newark service.
Airtrade has decided to launch BudgetAir in response to the decision by KLM subsidiary Transavia, which mainly operates to southern France and Spain, to withdraw the sale of its tickets through travel agents. It has also noted the trend of carriers to reduce or eliminate commission for travel agents, and wants to develop alternative business streams in response.
For Virgin Express, the Amsterdam-Rome service is low risk and fits well with its new fleet plan following the cessation of a codeshare deal with SN Brussels Airlines on 30 March. The current operational plan does not fully optimise the use of its fleet of 14 Boeing 737-300s/-400s, says the carrier.
The new arrangements allow the Amsterdam-Rome service, plus a daily service to Bordeaux and a four times weekly service to Palma, to be launched with the same number of aircraft. For instance, it will fit the midday Rome-Amsterdam-Rome rotation in between its current daily Brussels-Rome service.
In 2002 Virgin Express saw its passenger numbers rise by 14% to 2.7 million, and it claims that its Brussels hub has become the first main European airport where the market leader is a low-fare carrier. The airline has considered expansion elsewhere in Europe, but for now intends to concentrate on developing its Brussels network. It had announced a plan to create a second base at Germany's Cologne airport, but pulled back from the operation following the decision of low-cost start-ups Hapag-Lloyd Express and germanwings to operate from the airport. n
MARK PILLING LONDON
Source: Airline Business
