London City welcomes return of SWISS flights to Zurich

• SWISS to operate twice-weekly service from LCY to Zurich, with flights resuming from today (Wednesday 12th May)
• Key business and leisure connection restored with Switzerland’s largest city ahead of the restart of international travel from the UK

London City Airport has welcomed the restoration of connections to Zurich (ZRH),
with SWISS to resume flying to Switzerland’s largest city from today (Wednesday 12th
May).
SWISS will operate two rotations per week to Zurich initially, although their schedule will increase in line with the anticipated surges in demand for leisure and business travel as travel restrictions are relaxed in the UK and Europe this summer.

Commenting on the resumption of SWISS flights, London City Airport’s Head of Aviation, Anne Doyere, said: “We are delighted that SWISS has returned to the airport to restore an important business and leisure connection between London City and Zurich.
“Zürich is a key centre for international business, finance and tourism, so this is very positive news for our passengers who can once again enjoy safe and speedy
journeys to Zurich direct from the heart of London.”
As the UK’s vaccination programme continues and international travel restrictions are relaxed further in the coming weeks, it is expected that more passengers will
return to flying from London to destinations across Europe.
SWISS will gradually scale up their routes and schedules from London City ahead of the autumn as leisure and business traffic picks up. The Swiss national carrier expects to restore its route from LCY to Geneva (GVA) in August.
Tamur Goudarzi Pour, Chief Commercial Officer, Swiss International Air Lines, said: “We are very pleased to resume connections from Zurich and Geneva to London
City. Its proximity to the city center and its convenient size with short distances make London City Airport equally attractive for our business and leisure travelers.

”British tourists visiting Zurich can explore the historic old town, its beautiful parks and green spaces and take a boat trip on Lake Zurich. For those seeking nature and
adventure, Zurich is the perfect base for visiting the mountains, lakes and valleys of the breathtaking Swiss Alps.
This positive news comes as COVID-19-related travel restrictions start to ease with the restart of international travel to and from the UK on Monday 17th May, with the
introduction of a new traffic light system that will determine the testing and quarantine arrangements that passengers will need to follow.

Switzerland has initially been placed in the Amber category, which means that travellers from England will need to take a pre-departure test and PCR tests on days
2 and 8 on their return, and self-isolate at home for 10 days unless exempt. The UK Government will review this categorisation every three weeks, meaning that
continued progress with the vaccination programmes in the UK and Switzerland could see quarantine-free travel introduced between the two countries in June.
Passengers can pre-book a variety of COVID-19 tests for UK and international markets at London City Airport’s in-terminal testing facility. The airport has also launched a new portal to help customers understand the latest Covid-19 data and the testing and quarantine requirements of their destination, simplifying the
booking experience and enabling passengers to make informed travel choices.
Research has shown there is significant pent-up demand for international travel this summer. Polling of the British public conducted for the airport in March found that
72% of frequent flyers want to return to travel when restrictions are lifted, while 71% said that travel should be allowed to and from countries that have COVID-19 under control.

The airport also surveyed 500 UK business leaders in autumn 2020, finding that two thirds consider air travel as vital for the future success of their business.
Zurich was the airport’s fourth most popular route in 2019, with 429,019 passengers flying between London’s most central airport and Switzerland’s largest city.
Ends
Notes to Editors:
• SWISS flight LX464 is scheduled to land at London City Airport at 17:45 on
Wednesday 12th May, with return flight LX465 departing for Zurich at 18:20.• London City Airport’s new passenger travel portal can be accessed here:
https://travel.londoncityairport.com
• Passengers can search and book flights to all LCY destinations worldwide
at https://londoncityairport.netflights.com/
• Further information on the airport’s in-terminal testing facility can be found
here: https://www.londoncityairport.com/test
• London City will offer flights to 35 destinations this summer across the UK and
Europe.
• Destinations currently served by the airport include Belfast City, Edinburgh,
Frankfurt, and Dusseldorf with British Airways CityFlyer (BACF), Amsterdam with
KLM, Vilnius with LOT Polish Airlines, Dundee with Loganair and Luxembourg with
LuxAir.
• The airport will welcome new destinations this summer, with British Airways
announcing the start of routes to Jersey, Guernsey and Gibraltar in June, as
well as Split and San Sebastian, starting in June and July respectively.
• 2,014 members of the public were surveyed online by Yonder Data Solutions
between 26-28 February.
• Survation polled 515 UK business leaders for London City Airport, with the
fieldwork undertaken in September 2020.
• London City Airport was awarded with the Global Health Accreditation
Standard by the Airports Council International (ACI) in October 2020.
• The airport was recognised as one of the best airports in Europe for customer
experience in the 2020 Airport Service Quality (ASQ) Awards.
Media contact:
David Leach, Head of Corporate Affairs
07701 388093
David.Leach@londoncityairport.com

Paul Cremer

My name is Paul Cremer, and this marks my 42nd year working within the business and general aviation industry. Over this time, I’ve had the privilege of overseeing a diverse array of sector activities, ranging from aircraft charter and management to air ambulance services, ground operations, air traffic control, airport management, technology implementation, and the outsourcing services I currently manage.

In my role focused on delivering advisory, technology, and outsourcing services to aviation customers, I handle a wide spectrum of responsibilities. This includes overseeing International Trip Support, Operations Control Centre Services (OCC), Continuing Airworthiness Management Service (CAMO), Airworthiness Reviews, ARC Services, Aircraft Delivery and Re-delivery Support Services, Maintenance Coordination Services including AOG, Tech Ops (Maintenance Control Centre), and managing myairops software products. As the Head of Aviation Delivery, I lead the customer-facing delivery of Technology & Outsourcing products and services for the market, drawing upon a wealth of knowledge, expertise, and industry connections within Gama Aviation’s Technology and Outsourcing Strategic Business Unit.

My journey into Business and General Aviation began during my teenage years while still in school. I was fortunate enough to be welcomed into the industry, starting at a flying club, and later working at the Air Traffic Services Unit at Blackbushe Airport. There, I maintained the ATC Movement Logs in the Control Tower during weekends, solidifying my passion for aviation. Upon completing my schooling, I seized opportunities at Fairoaks Airport, where I began as Ground Crew while pursuing my Aerodrome Flight Information Service Officer’s license. Advancements in my career led me to the role of Air Traffic Services Manager.

Since joining Gama Aviation in 1996, I’ve held various positions, including Operations Manager (Post Holder), Operations & Commercial Manager, Commercial Manager, Operations Delivery Manager, Head of Business Aviation Delivery, and currently, Head of Aviation Delivery. This role encompasses Gama Aviation Group’s Gama Aviation, myairops, and FlyerTech companies.

In 2023, I was honoured to be invited to serve as the Chair of the Operations Working Group for the British Business & General Aviation Association. This opportunity allows me to contribute to industry initiatives within BBGA’s membership of nearly 200 industry companies, focusing on challenges such as regulatory compliance, Air Services Agreements, technological advancements, workforce development, operational matters, and sustainability.

Marc Bailey

Marc Bailey has spent his entire career in aviation and has worked in most areas of Aviation Services with scheduled airlines, MRO’s, military contract support and latterly with associations, government, and its agencies.

Marc represents your position in Europe (even post Brexit) – as President of ECOGAS (European Council of General Aviation Support) which maintains a voice with EASA. All the major member states are represented on the ECOGAS board. With EASA restructuring its meetings with industry, ECOGAS is now well positioned to represent our position in all areas following industry partnerships with the European Independent Maintenance Group and with ARPAS the new drone and autonomous association.

Marc is chair of the UKASF (United Kingdom Airworthiness Strategic Forum) as part of an initiative to develop Aviation Services across all aviation activities. The UKASF pulls together airlines, MROs, Rotary, Drones, and commercial GA bodies to work with CAA and DfT. The objective is for industry to take the lead to drive strategic issues to benefit all parties. We are well positioned after four years to continue our good work and with the re-established role of Chief Surveyor in the CAA we have a good focal point to do this.

Marc chairs the CAA Finance and Services Forum which allows industry in the UK to discuss in the financial plans for the CAA and the value for money delivered by those funds paid by industry. This is a new and valuable new platform for all parties.

Under recent developments Marc has formed an alliance with, ARPAS, AOPA, BHA and BBGA so that we can strengthen our voice under a joint ‘GA 4 Biz’ banner. This alliance is working to do everything possible to represent the industry’s business interests with UK government and to help realise the Government’s desire to make UK General Aviation a Global Leader in a post Brexit environment. GA4Biz – GA4Biz

The next Generation initiatives with industry and government have continued to develop with the retention platform now evolving into the “Aviation Skills Recruitment Platform”. The platform now not only offers a vehicle for those offering and seeking posts in aviation, it also provides pathways with its TalentView portion seeking to provide pathways for new entrants into our sector. The recruitment platform is being further developed to include training opportunities across a wide range of providers, from government agencies through academic bodies. Getting our next generation activities right in the UK over the next couple of years is our single most important issue which we in aviation must grab with both hands. Marc is playing a central role to help develop many of these channels.

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