No flights from Alderney to UK before 21 September
AURIGNY will not resume flights between Alderney and Southampton until 21 September at the earliest.
Flights which had been listed from 1 September have been cancelled as travel restrictions remain in place. Alderney has not seen any cases of coronavirus.
The airline is leaving a gap in the schedule so Southampton flights can be added as soon as is permitted.
‘We will continue to run the Alderney to Guernsey schedule as planned and put on additional flights if we see the demand,’ a spokesman said.
‘We plan to relaunch the Alderney-Southampton services as soon as the authorities clear us to do so, but at this time we do not know when this will be.’
Flights between Alderney and Guernsey have been extremely popular this year with people taking advantage of the route to enjoy isolation-free holidays in the northern isle.
Aurigny has been pleased to have played a part in ensuring that the link between the islands has been maintained throughout the crisis and since the islands emerged from lockdown helped provide a much-needed boost to Alderney’s economy as well as carrying Alderney residents to Guernsey for staycations.
Initial schedules filled quickly and Aurigny has been operating up to five return flights a day between the islands to meet demand. ‘I am delighted that our relationship with the Alderney community post-pandemic is greatly improved with Aurigny’s efforts being appreciated by both residents and the government,’ said Aurigny chief executive Mark Darby, ‘initially providing just the lifeline services and then extending those services to offer a full schedule for holiday-makers and residents.’
He was pleased to see images from Alderney Week and that the island was able to hold a successful event amid the pandemic.
‘We have always been proud to provide vital connectivity to Alderney to the best of our abilities, but the current situation has highlighted our commitment to the island,’ he said.
Paying particular thanks to Steve Parilla and his team in Alderney, he said the Dornier crews have responded to the challenges of the crisis and have been busier than ever.
Alderney Policy and Finance chairman James Dent said was delighted at how Aurigny has responded to the island’s air services needs, both in the immediate period following lockdown, when necessary medical flights continued, and also in more recent months when the airline has responded quickly to rising demand and put on additional services.
‘As well as serving islanders’ needs to get to Guernsey, this has enabled many people from Guernsey to come up and enjoy Alderney, many for the first time in decades or at all,’ he said.
‘I am pleased to confirm that this period of significant challenge for the island has seen the development of new relationships between the island and Aurigny.’
He was grateful to everyone concerned in the company for helping to salvage something from this summer, especially when for much of the spring it looked to be a disastrous year for many island businesses with no visitors at all.
Visit Alderney said the Bailiwick bubble had been a great opportunity for Alderney to showcase what it has to offer to fellow Bailiwick residents.
‘We are so pleased to see many of our visitors either falling in love with our island for the first time or rediscovering after many years.
‘We hope to continue to welcome Bailiwick friends with Aurigny moving into the autumn alongside visitors from further afield when travel restrictions are lifted.’
