Major expansion for FlyMe

Swedish airline FlyMe is launching direct flights from its Gothenburg base to twelve new destinations in Europe, as part of a major expansion plan that could include buying other airlines.

• Police raid law firm linked to Fly Me (23 Mar 07)
• New owners expected for FlyMe (21 Mar 07)
• Accounting firm deserts Fly Me (19 Mar 07)

The airline says it will start flying in March to London, Paris, Amsterdam, Dusseldorf, Prague, Rome and Nice. It will also launch daily services to Mediterranean destinations Malaga, Palma de Mallorca, Alicante, Rhodes and Crete.

Johannes Georgsson, commercial director of FlyMe, said that the new routes will enable people from the region to get to popular destinations without having to change in Stockholm or Copenhagen.

“Western Sweden has around 2 million inhabitants,” said Georgsson.

“We know that many of them want to fly to places like Prague and Paris without taking inconvenient and costly diversions.”

The new routes will put FlyMe in competition with a number of other airlines. Ryanair flies from Gothenburg to London, and SAS, Sterling and Malmö Aviation all operate on some of FlyMe’s new routes.

FlyMe currently flies between five destinations in Sweden and Finland. The airline announced a new daily route from Stockholm to London in the spring, but the plans were later shelved.

Announcing the new routes in a press release, FlyMe said that the company was looking at the possibilities to expand through acquistions. In order to finance future purchases, the company announced a new share issue.

The airline’s major shareholder is Icelandic investment company Fons, which is controlled by Palmi Haraldsson.

Haraldsson has previously been involved in the merger of Danish airlines Sterling and Maersk Air.

“It feels great to be able to be a part of the strengthening of the infrastructure of western Sweden, and to make it possible for more people from Gothenburg to be able to travel directly to international destinations for a sensible price,” he said.