Today, Blue Islands launch a new, premium inter-island service for the Channel Islands. The new offering, named ‘Blue Shuttle’ is a dedicated 46 seat aircraft servicing only the route between Guernsey and Jersey. In addition a further ATR 42 aircraft is being acquired, purely to serve as a back up for the inter-island route.
The ATR aircraft is operated by two pilots and a member of cabin crew on every flight, for passenger comfort, safety and peace of mind. Complimentary lounges hosted in both Jersey and Guernsey airport are available for all Blue Islands passengers, as standard when travelling with Blue Islands.
Rob Veron, managing director of Blue Islands says,
“As leading business centres, it is imperative that our inter-island service reflects the stature of our passengers, so of course we are responding to that.”
Mr Veron continues,
“We understand how vital the inter-island service is and that punctuality and reliability are key. We have focused on improving punctuality and our April statistics reported 94% punctuality on inter- island flights. However, the aviation industry is a challenging one and unpredictable occurrences such as weather, technical issues and reactionary delays from inbound aircraft serving other routes inherently cause frustrating delays. By having a spare, unscheduled aircraft, Blue Islands will minimise disruption and maximise the reliability and punctuality of our services. The Blue Shuttle will be dedicated to the inter-island route, providing a dedicated service between the islands with up to ten flights a day. This is a substantial investment, but an essential one for our loyal passengers travelling between the islands.”
Travelling between the islands on the larger, more spacious ATR aircraft has many benefits for passengers. “The inter-island ATR experience is worlds apart. There is no need for ear plugs, and it offers enough space to stow overhead luggage or read the paper. It’s just a shame the short flight time means we can’t serve our trademark complimentary Champagne.”
The Blue Shuttle comes with a new schedule with better flight options for business travel, group travel and European connections.
“The new schedule provides sufficient capacity to serve the entire needs of Jersey and Guernsey passengers between the islands and connections are improved for our inbound tourists to enjoy twin-island breaks from our four European destinations.”
The acquisition of a further ATR (the spare aircraft) will be completed over the coming weeks and until then the airlines’ Jetstream fleet will be allocated as back up.
“The acquisition of the new aircraft is well underway. As a dynamic, independent business, we are able to react quickly to market demand, investment appraisal and industry changes to provide new and appropriate services.”
