Business Weekly - Cambridge, UK

London Stansted is using an international speed-dating event in Copenhagen to woo new long-haul carriers to the fast-growing Essex hub – and China is among the most ardent suitors.

‘Routes,’ the World Route Development Forum, will take place in Denmark between September 25 and 27 and Stansted is using the opportunity to line up a series of meetings with carriers from Asia and the US.

The forum is the industry’s premier networking event and will be attended by 275 airlines and 500 airports from around the world.

Geoff Conlon, business development manager at London Stansted, who will be attending the forum, believes it will provide an opportunity to target Chinese airlines in particular.

The UK was officially granted Approved Destination Status by the Chinese government in January, which gives it access to the tourist market for the first time. Previously Chinese citizens were only granted visas to the UK for study or business.

He said: “We are currently working with VisitBritain to generate interest in China in the UK as a tourist destination and also economic development officials who are keen to generate business links with China.

“Routes provides us with an excellent opportunity to talk business with Chinese carriers and we have already arranged one meeting to take place during the course of the forum.”

The first package tour from China landed on UK soil last month and it is anticipated that demand will grow quickly.

There are an estimated 25 million Chinese people with enough money to travel abroad, a figure that is predicted to double by 2008.

Conlon said that Stansted also planned to talk to airlines from the US and India.

One Stansted airline – Malev Hungarian Airlines - already offers flights to Shanghai and Beijing but travellers have to catch a connecting flight in Budapest.

The link is proving popular with the East of England business community, with 40 per cent of the airline’s passengers catching transferring flights from Stansted.

Two transatlantic carriers, Eos and MAXjet, are understood to be close to gaining the accreditation required to launch services between the Essex hub and the US.

Eos carried out its ‘proving’ flight in the presence of US regulators the FAA last week, while MAXjet completed its the week before.

Conlon said: “There is growing interest in transatlantic travel on both sides and we will be talking other carriers about other scheduled services while at Routes.”