Airline slams decision to end flight subsidy

Airline bosses have said a council's decision to stop subsidising flights between Newquay and London "will prove incredibly damaging".

The route to Gatwick currently provided by Skybus is under a Passenger Service Obligation (PSO) contract jointly funded by the government and the council.

The government's contribution has been reduced and Cornwall Council said the service would need a taxpayer subsidy of between £14m and £16m over the next four years if it was to continue.

Skybus' managing director Jonathan Hinkles said the airline would stop its service by 31 May after its tender to continue the PSO route had been refused and customers were being fully refunded for forward bookings.

On Friday, councillors were told the government's part of the subsidy had been cut from 66.7% to 50% and the tenders received had not been able to be "lawfully and affordably provided".

They elected to pursue a commercial service in its place.

Hinkles said Skybus had offered four options to the council to continue the PSO from 1 June 2026 and had been the only airline to tender.

He said the council had not considered the bid or entered into any dialogue over a single disputed element of Cornwall Airport Newquay's fees and charges.

Hinkles said: "I think it would be fair to say that we're bitterly disappointed, but also very bitter, because I think the decision has been taken on anything other than rational, sensible ground."

He said he had "grave concerns" about the impact the council's decision would have on Cornwall's connectivity, employment in the aviation sector and the viability of Cornwall Airport Newquay.

"Pulling the PSO air service will not save the council a red cent of money," he added.

"Even if a limited replacement London service now appears, the loss of income to the airport based on huge discounts it has to offer will render its financial position wholly unsustainable."

Hinkles said Cornwall's economy had been "sacrificed on a mountain of stupidity, frankly, from the decision that's been taken today".

Following the collapse of Eastern Airways in November 2025, a temporary deal was reached with Skybus to operate the route between Newquay and Gatwick until May.

Hinkles said his team had made "a huge effort" to get the route up and running and were now feeling "a true sense of despair".

He said: "It is hugely sad that their efforts and commitment could not be reciprocated with fulsome support of the council, which has clearly had its own agenda that will prove incredibly damaging to aviation in Cornwall for years to come."

The leader of Cornwall Council, Leigh Frost, said the government's reduction of subsidy had been "massively unhelpful to us as a council" and meant the share of Cornish taxpayer-funded element would have to increase.

He said: "Ultimately we wanted to see a PSO come in, we didn't get a compliant bid, if we had a compliant bid on that table we would have accepted it."

Frost said the council had put it out for tender twice but had not received a compliant bid.

"That means, legally, if we haven't received a compliant bid we can't accept a non-compliant bid so we've had to make a decision," he added.

He said the council would go to the market and "work commercially with airlines to try and seek a solution" which he hoped would result in routes between Newquay and London City Airport.

"Now we have an opportunity to work with airlines across the board, including Skybus, to make sure that we can get these routes up in the air and make sure that they would keep Cornwall connected," he added.

John Brown, chief executive of Cornwall Chamber of Commerce, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service Cornwall's transport network could not "absorb this loss".

He said: "We understand the financial pressures – two procurement exercises failed to attract compliant tenders, the Department for Transport has cut its contribution from 66.7% to 50% and aviation costs have risen sharply.

"But the chamber believes this decision carries risks that far outweigh the savings."

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