EASYJET will axe all international flights from Newcastle Airport - leaving it with just two services from the North-East.

The airline will permanently cancel flights to Mainland Spain in September, with flights to Nice coming to an end in October. 

It means easyJet will be left with just two domestic flights from the region, Belfast and Bristol.

It comes as the airline confirmed it would close its base at Newcastle Airport following the impact of Covid-19 on the travel industry by the end of the month.

The closure of its Newcastle base is followed by closures at Stansted and Southend. 

It is understood that around 670 pilots and crew work at the three bases - however it is not known how many passengers will be affected.

A spokesman for Newcastle Airport said: “Our thoughts go out to all EasyJet staff who have been affected.

“The North East has a long standing relationship with EasyJet and whilst this base closure will impact flights to all their international destinations the airline will maintain year-round services to Belfast, Bristol and Nice for this summer only.

“Over 80% of the international destinations affected are already served by our existing airline partners and we will continue discussions regarding their interest in the other impacted destinations.

"For any passengers affected by flight cancellations who wish to rebook with another airline from Newcastle, car park bookings can be amended free of charge." 

What EasyJet have said

Johan Lundgren, Chief Executive Officer of easyJet, said: “We have had to take the very difficult decision to close three UK bases as a result of the unprecedented impact of the pandemic and related travel restrictions, compounded by quarantine measures in the UK which is impacting demand for travel.

“Working closely with our employee representatives, I am pleased that we have been able to identify ways to significantly reduce the number of proposed compulsory redundancies through providing enhanced voluntary redundancy packages for all UK crew alongside additional options like part time and seasonal contracts, base transfers and unpaid leave which we expect to result in reducing the number of job losses overall.

“We would like to reassure customers due to fly from these airports that we are now contacting anyone whose flight is affected with clear advice on their options which include rerouting via alternative airports or receiving a full refund.”

If you've been affected by easyJet's announcement - let us know! email jim.scott@newsquest.co.uk