On November 22nd, the UK government confirmed that it would provide funding for the continuation of regional flights between London and Dundee (Scotland). With £2.5 million ($3.4 million) to support the route, the one-hour and 45-minute service will continue being offered through regional carrier Loganair- at least until 2023.
Connecting Scotland to London City
While a good amount of flights operate to London from Scottish cities like Edinburgh and Glasgow, other parts of Scotland aren’t so lucky. This includes the city of Dundee, which is nearly one hour and 30 minutes from the Edinburgh Airport.
While air traffic between Dundee and London might be low, the government considers this an important route to support UK regional connectivity. As such, it has decided to extend the PSO (public service obligation) route by an additional two years with £2.5 million in funding.
“We’re maintaining these vital transport links, including the hugely popular London to Dundee and the reinstated Newquay to London routes, for people right across the country for tourism and business travel.” -Robert Courts MP, Aviation Minister via Today UK News
Courts adds that the government is “fully behind UK regional connectivity,” strengthening routes to build back better from the global health crisis. The announcement of the Dundee PSO extension was also paired with news that a PSO flight from Cornwall Airport Newquay (CAN) to London Gatwick (LGW) is to start on December 9th, 2021, operated by Eastern Airways.
Scotland’s transport minister welcomes the extension of this contract as well, stating that the service will benefit business travelers and “offer visitors a direct route to experience the tourism offering in the city and surrounding area.”
Operated by Loganair
As it stands, Scottish regional carrier Loganair holds the contract for this PSO. With a current fleet of 42 aircraft, the airline deploys one of its six ATR42-500 turboprops on the Dundee-London City route. These aircraft have a single-class, all-economy configuration of just 48 seats.
Data from RadarBox.com indicates that this service, LM621/LM622, has been operating with a five or six times weekly frequency. The flight is typically between one hour and 35 minutes and one hour and 50 minutes in duration. Interestingly, the airline has used the exact same aircraft on this service for the last five weeks- the ATR42-500 registered G-LMRD. This particular turboprop is now 22.4 years of age, first operating with Eurowings in 1999.
Loganair’s other aircraft types include the ATR72, Saab 340, Embraer ERJ145, and ERJ 135. Smaller types include the DHC-6 Twin Otter and Britten-Norman BN-2B-26 Islander.
Additionally, it’s been noted that the Scottish government will also continue to support the service both through directly contributing to the cost of the flights and the ongoing subsidy of Dundee Airport.
Have you ever flown on this service between London City and Dundee? Share your experience with us by leaving a comment.
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