Five RCA regional routes considered for Department of Transport support
Five regional air routes out of Norwich and City Of Derry Airports are to be considered for government support.
Following an announcement today by the Department for Transport, scheduled flights between Norwich and Paris, Dublin, Newcastle and Exeter are in contention for funding from the Regional Air Connectivity Fund.
The route between City of Derry and Dublin is also being considered for support.
Andrew Bell, who heads up RCA( Regional and City Airports) the airport management division of Rigby Group PLC, whose airports include Norwich, Exeter and City of Derry, said:
“We are delighted that RCA has 5 out of the 15 live applications put through to the next stage for consideration for Government support as part of the Regional Air Connectivity Fund. Regional airports like the ones we own and manage play a critical role, not only in their regional economies but also from a wider national perspective in connecting parts of the UK as well as providing important options for international travel.”
Notes for Editors
About RCA
Regional & City Airports (RCA) is a highly innovative business which owns and operates regional airports, led by a team with proven commercial and operational expertise in both the airport and airline sectors.
We already own and operate Norwich International Airport, Exeter Airport and Coventry Airport, hold management contracts for Blackpool International Airport and City of Derry Airport and are actively seeking additional growth opportunities.
The vision behind RCA is to help smaller regional airports to prosper through effective management and collaboration – enabling them to benefit from the economies of scale and sharing of best practice traditionally enjoyed by larger hub airports.
Backed by our £2.8 billion parent company, Rigby Group plc, RCA is actively building its portfolio of owned or managed airport assets. As we grow we are increasingly able to leverage significant buying power and shared expertise. We have built a reputation as an efficient, safe and commercial airports operator, driving improvements to route development, commercial revenues, operating costs and capital investment to deliver a consistently sound commercial return.
Already employing more than 450 people, RCA is on its way to becoming a leading player in the UK regional airport sector and is taking advantage of the lack of capacity at major hub airports in the UK to demonstrate how regional airports can ease the strain, through effective management and operation.
About Rigby Group
Rigby Group (RG) plc (“Rigby Group”) is the holding company for the business investments of the Rigby Family. The family owned and operated Group, which is focused in six core areas: technology, airports, hotels, real estate, finance and aviation. The Group employs some 6,000 staff worldwide.
- SCC, the technology businesses;
- Eden Hotel Collection;
- British International Helicopters;
- Regional & City Airports Management;
- Rigby & Rigby – the property businesses and a 50% interest in the Coventry & Warwickshire Development Partnership; and
- The investments are held by the ultimate holding company.
SCC, Europe’s largest independent technology solutions provider, is the technology brand of Rigby Group plc, the 13th largest privately owned business in the UK and winner of the 2013 UK Family Business of the Year. The company was established in 1975 by Sir Peter Rigby.
We enable people to do business by planning, supplying, integrating & managing their IT. We make IT work through partnership, knowledge & passion: trusted to run IT infrastructures & services for leading business across Europe for 40 years.
- Profitable track record since 1975
- Rigby Group turnover £1.6 billion
- SCC UK turnover £751m million
- Over 5,000 employees
- Supporting over 5 million users
- Leading partner to all key vendors
- CarbonZero for Recycling and Data Centre operations
