More Mcr routes for Germanwings when Cologne takes off

LOW-cost airline Germanwings, which this week launched its first route from Manchester to Germany, has said it expects to launching a second route from Manchester next year.

The new route between Cologne/Bonn and Manchester flies five times a week, every day except Wednesday and Saturday, using a 150-seat Airbus A319.

Heinz Joachim Schoettes, the company’s senior vice president of corporate communications, told TheBusinessDesk that around one third of the 30,000 seats allocated for the route between October and March 2010, have already sold.

He added that around 80% of seats on the new route are likely to sell and, if it is as successful as expected, Germanwings would want to launch another route to one of its other four hubs in Berlin, Hamburg, Stuttgart or Dortmund.

Last year the airline carried 7.6 million passengers and had a turnover of around E660m. It already flies from London, Edinburgh and Dublin to Germany and around 40% of its passengers travel on business.

Mr Joachim Schoettes said:  “When we see that this works we will look at our other hubs to connect to Manchester. It makes sense for the second route to be where business is, so Stuttgart or Dortmund.”

Mr Joachim Schoettes added that this was one of the main reasons for choosing Manchester as its next UK destination.

“Manchester is a big business destination and we are geared towards business travellers,” he said.

“Unlike certain competitors who fly from the middle of no-where to no-where, our locations are of use to business travellers.”

Mr Joachim Schoettes also explained that the recession was a good time to launch a low-cost business route, with many business travellers preferring to travel with a wholly low-cost carrier than have to take a flight where they are segmented from first or business class users.

“These guys are not allowed to travel business class for short and medium haul flights anymore.  So this way they can’t see the segregation of those who are behind the curtain,” he said.

Flights to Cologne/Bonn from Manchester start at £19.99, one-way including taxes. Germanwings flies on to 70 destinations from Cologne.