Jet2 has announced it is to offer flights from Gatwick Airport for the first time.
The airline said it had secured slots for six aircraft following the “release of additional capacity” by the West Sussex airport.
Hundreds of jobs will be created in the region, including pilots, cabin crew, engineering and ground operations, a Jet2 spokesperson said.
The company will initially offer flights to 29 destinations, including mainland Spain, the Canary Islands, the Balearic Islands, Greece, Turkey, Portugal, Malta, Italy, Croatia, Bulgaria and Cyprus.
Jet2’s maiden departure from Gatwick Airport will fly to Tenerife, in Spain, on 26 March next year.
Gatwick Airport is the 14th in the UK with a Jet2 base, and it will house five of the firm’s single-aisle, twin-engine aircraft, with a further plane positioned overseas.
Jet2’s chief executive Steve Heapy described it as “an incredibly exciting moment”, while Gatwick Airport chief executive Pierre-Hugues Schmit said he was “thrilled to mark an exciting new chapter for our passengers across the South East and beyond”.
