Gloucestershire Airport (GLO), four miles from Cheltenham and widely known as Staverton, is to gain scheduled service status with routes to the Isle of Man and Jersey, starting Monday 3 September.
Manx2.com, a commuter carrier based on the Isle of Man, will offer morning and evening return weekday flights. At the weekends the airline will serve Jersey.
Staverton is a former RAF airfield and has for many years been used for flying club and executive operations. While close to Cheltenham, Tewkesbury and Gloucester, it has also had to compete with Birmingham, Bristol and Cardiff airports, all supported by low cost and charter airlines.
Past attempts to introduce scheduled operations have failed, as the 50-seat (and upwards) aircraft on offer were considered too large for the market.
Where Manx2.com is likely to succeed is through its use of the Beech 1900D, one of the most successful commuter aircraft of all time. The 19-seat, two-pilot aircraft, will take less than one hour between the Isle of Man and Staverton and about the same time to Jersey. It is not pressurised, but does feature very large windows.
Manx2.com is just 12 months old. It is the brainchild of Noel Hayes, founder and chairman, who previously owned what is now Blue Islands, formerly Rockhopper, an airline based on the Channel Island of Alderney.
The carrier currently offers scheduled flights from the Isle of Man to Belfast, Blackpool, Jersey and Leeds Bradford.
Hayes is enthusiastic regarding the new operation: "We chose Gloucestershire Airport as a gateway for our services due to its excellent location and business potential. The forthcoming runway safety project clearly shows its commitment to making the best utilisation of a first class, local commodity."
Airport director, Mark Ryan, commented: "We are delighted that Manx2.com has decided to launch these services from Gloucestershire Airport. Its quiet, fuel efficient, 19-seat aircraft is ideally suited to our operation.
”This partnership highlights the county”s growing reputation and attractiveness to the business community."