Airports and airlines are being urged to bid for government funding of up to £17.5 million in the next year to help launch new routes.
This ‘start up aid’ will be made available from the Regional Air Connectivity Fund which was announced by the government in June 2013 and is open to airports with fewer than 5 million passengers per year. This fund has already been partly distributed to support strategic routes to London from Newquay and Dundee but is now being extended to bids for more routes.
The £56 million is available to cover three years of financial support for start-up aid, with £17.5 million being made available to bids in 2015/16 and around £20 million a year for each of the remaining years. The aid will create new routes, boosting connectivity, increasing trade and supporting jobs in the regions.
