TUI, one of the world’s leading travel companies, has decided to move its sole aircraft currently based at London Luton Airport to London Gatwick Airport until the next summer season due to rising demand. The company emphasised that its corporate commitment to Luton remains unchanged.
Travel and tourism giant TUI has made a significant change to its flight operations in the United Kingdom. The company announced that it will redeploy its only aircraft based at London Luton Airport to London Gatwick Airport until the next summer season in line with increasing passenger demand.
In a statement, TUI said that the decision was driven by rising demand at Gatwick Airport and noted that it is also in line with the company’s “long-term strategy to strengthen core operations”.
Corporate Commitment to Luton Continues
Despite the operational change, the company underlined that its commitment to Luton remains in place. The statement recalled that TUI’s UK headquarters and engineering hangar are still located in Luton.
A TUI spokesperson said, “We will continue to offer holiday options from Luton Airport through our trusted airline partners.” Accordingly, passengers who have booked holidays departing from Luton via TUI will travel with partner airlines such as easyJet and Ryanair. For some passengers, alternative departure airports may also be offered.
Palma Flight to Call at Luton
It was also announced that one of TUI’s flights to Palma, the capital of Mallorca, will make a stop at London Luton Airport on both the outbound and return legs to pick up and drop off passengers.
Discussions with Staff Ongoing
It was reported that discussions are continuing with cabin crew members affected by the operation. Employees told the BBC that they had been offered options such as transfers to other airports or redundancy. Meanwhile, it was stated that employees working at the UK headquarters located at Wigmore House in Luton will not be affected by this change.
TUI also announced that following the expiry of the lease at Wigmore House, it plans to relocate to the Capability Green area in Luton.
TUI and the Britannia Legacy
The “TOM” flight code still used on TUI flights stands out as a legacy from the Thomson Travel Group, which the company acquired in 2000. As part of this acquisition, Britannia Airways — founded in Luton in 1961 under the name Euravia and later becoming one of the world’s largest holiday airlines — also joined the TUI group.
The Britannia fleet was restructured under the Thomsonfly brand in 2004.
