The smaller version of Ryanair, easyJet, which offers no-frills flights from Luton to a number of destinations, is now set to take on British Airways and British Midland on the routes between Belfast and the various London airports.
From next September, easyJet will offer a twice-daily service from Belfast International to Luton at oneway fares between £29 and £109 sterling plus tax. Needless to say, easyJet boss Stelios Haji-Ionnaou (an even more combative version of Ryanair's Michael O'Leary), has launched an early propaganda campaign against BA, accusing it of "ripping off" the Northern Ireland travelling public. To get the new service off the ground, easyJet is offering start-off special deals, with single fares of £9 plus £10 tax on offer for the first two weeks. The £9 fare is only available, however, when bookings are made over the Internet to easyJet's Website.
The firm has been trying to block the start-up of BA's own no-frills airline Go, because it believes that BA will subsidise Go's low-cost fares. Given the frosty relationship that exists between BA and easyJet probably as warm as that between Ryanair and Aer Lingus it will be no surprise if BA does its utmost to prevent easyJet carving out a share of the profitable Belfast-London route.
