Aberdeen airport is always looking to expand its service network. Latest news includes:

New Services for Aberdeen Airport                                                  January 12 2010

New holiday services axed after the collapse of an airline have been promised from Aberdeen Airport. Thomas Cook will add to its summer services after the demise of Flyglobespan.

Thomas Cook is to offer routes to Dalaman and Antalya in Turkey, and Ibiza, Palma, Majorca and Reus in Spain, from Aberdeen Airport.

Flyglobespan ceased services last month and about 550 staff lost their jobs. It emerged E-Clear, the airline’s credit card payment processor, owed Flyglobespan £35 million.

The airline’s administrators were today due to try to have E-Clear put into administration at a hearing at the High Court in London.

Aberdeen Airport Service cancelled after just 2 trips                                October 29 2009

An airline has suspended its service from Aberdeen Airport to Billund, in Denmark – after just two flights.

Scheduled services to Billund, the home of Lego, were cancelled less than a week after they were launched.

Cimber Sterling, which operated the route, has decided to suspend it until next year having only made one return trip to Denmark’s second-busiest airport.

The service had been scheduled to make three weekly return trips, and flew for the first time on Sunday in response to what Cimber said was growing demand for flights between Aberdeen and Scandinavian airports.

A spokeswoman for Cimber Sterling said last night the demand for the service had been overestimated.

She said: “We thought that more customers would travel on the route, but they did not – obviously very few people want to go from Aberdeen to Billund, and vice versa.

“We had probably made the wrong business case for the route, because it did not perform as we expected it to, and we would rather be able to use the planes for other flights that we think more customers would use.”

The spokeswoman added the airline would review the service next year before deciding on reintroducing it.

She said: “It is a route that we would like to operate, so we will evaluate it in the spring.

“We are not going to say definitely either way if we will resume the service or not, but we will consider it again in a couple of months.”

A spokeswoman for Aberdeen Airport said: “From our point of view it is disappointing the airline got to this point and then realised the route was not sustainable, but we are working closely with them and we think we can still get the service off the ground.”

The spokeswoman added the airport had not lost any money as a result of Cimber’s decision, and that any payments the airline had to make had already been made.

Aberdeen Airport extra service to Denmark                              October 28 2009

Aberdeen Airport now has its third direct air link with Denmark following the launch of a new service to Billund, the home of Lego.

Leisure travellers looking to visit the original Legoland theme park can take advantage of flights operating three days a week in both directions, with plans to increase the schedule to six weekly return trips.

Anyone hoping to catch this week’s services could face problems, however, as the online booking service was not working yesterday.

A spokeswoman for the Danish airline, Cimber Sterling, said it was trying to sort out difficulties with its booking system as quickly as possible.

The service took off on Sunday and has been introduced in response to growing demand for flights between Aberdeen and Scandinavian airports, says Cimber.

Other new routes under consideration by fellow airlines could result in the north-east’s first direct air link with Germany, possibly by next summer.

Discussions are “well underway” to introduce connections to major German transport hubs, such as Frankfurt, an Aberdeen Airport spokeswoman said yesterday.

The new service to Denmark gives north-east travellers three access points to the country.

Existing routes to Copenhagen and Esjberg are operated by SAS and BMI respectively.

Billund is in the middle of the Jutland peninsula. The town’s airport was built by the Lego company, which makes most of its world-famous plastic bricks nearby, and is now Denmark's second busiest gateway after Copenhagen.

One-and-a-half hour flights from Aberdeen start from just under £100 one way, with departures at 1pm on Thursdays and Fridays and 2.15pm on Sundays. Coming from the other direction, planes leave Billund at noon on Thursdays and Fridays and 1.15pm on Sundays.

Cimber anticipates demand for its latest service – using a CRJ jet with space for 50 passengers – will be divided evenly between leisure and business travellers.

The company says demand for routes from Aberdeen to Scandinavia is growing by nearly 16% a year.

Aberdeen Airport managing director Kevin Brown said: “This is a very welcome new route. The link with Billund really does cement our position as the best-connected UK airport into the Scandinavian market.”

VisitScotland regional director Ken Massie said: “The growing number of direct destinations from Aberdeen creates fantastic opportunities for both business and leisure travellers.”

A new direct service between Aberdeen and the Norwegian city of Bergen is being launched by Eastern Airways.

The regional airline's route - daily except for Saturdays - will take off from 5 October. Eastern's network already includes Oslo and Stavanger.

Scotland director for Eastern Airways, Graeme Ross, said it was in response to demand from the business community.

Aberdeen Airport managing director Kevin Brown said it cemented the city's links with Scandinavia.

Flybe to increase flights to France and Germany from Aberdeen airport

FlyBe and Loganair to increase flights from Aberdeen Airport  to Cardiff

Eastern Airways are tostart their first ever service from Aberdeen Airport to Oslo, Norway

Eastern Airways have also announced that they are starting a service from Aberdeen to Liverpool John Lennon airport from 6 July 2009.