Stobart Air announced it will close its base at Southend
airport, resulting in the loss of 66 jobs. The company provided pilots and
cabin crew for Aer Lingus’ regional services at the airport.
The announcement comes after Stobart Air revealed plans to
resume services for Aer Lingus last week, which did not include details of any
job losses.
A spokesperson for Stobart Air said: “The impact of Covid-19
has had an unprecedented impact on our airline and the aviation industry
globally. Over the course of the past three months, due to government
restrictions, we have operated less than 5 per cent of our normal schedule per
month. As a result, we have taken the difficult decision to close our Southend
base.
“While extremely regrettable, we need to align our resources
with our operations and reduce costs across the business to allow the airline
to operate sustainably.”
The Unite union said the base closure is a “bitter blow to
the workforce who now face a highly uncertain future”.
Regional officer Jo Jacques commented: “This is yet another
example of why it is essential that the government brings forward specific
support for the aviation industry in order to prevent further job losses and
secure the future of regional airports such as Southend.”