Zoom Launches 129 New York Trip

Zoom starts £129 flights to New York

Ray Massey, Daily Mail 22 June 2007 http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/consumer/savingideas/article.html?in_article_id=421601

A transatlantic air fares battle started yesterday as a budget airline began flights to New York from as little as £129.

Zoom launched its service with a packed Boeing 767-300 aircraft taking off from London Gatwick to JFK Airport.

The 268 passengers on board were the first of nearly 10,000 who have so far booked Zoom's cut-price fares which went on sale in April.

The airline aims to combine the low prices of 'no-frills' airlines such as easyJet and Ryanair with the on- board perks of traditional airlines such as BA and Virgin.

An economy passenger gets a baggage allowance of 20kg, free meals and one complimentary bar drink.

Zoom says it offers passengers an 'affordable alternative' to British Airways, Virgin, Delta and other carriers which have been charging what it calls 'exorbitant' prices to fly across the Atlantic.

Both BA and Virgin responded to the challenge yesterday by saying they can offer ' comparable' fares.

Zoom's New York economy ticket prices start at £129 each way, including all taxes, fees and charges - about a third of the price of the equivalent one-way ticket with BA or Virgin Atlantic.

At least a quarter of seats on all flights will be at the lowest £129 price, with the rest of the economy seats rising in increments of £10 to £15 to a ceiling of around £500.

The airline was set up three years ago by Scottish brothers Hugh and John Boyle, offering cut-price flights from the UK to Canada.

Before take off, John Boyle said: 'Today a new low-cost era has really taken off. People have been forced to pay outrageously high fares to fly between London and New York for too long.

'You cannot put a sheaf of paper between the prices charged by BA, Virgin and the American carriers on the New York route. It is high time that passengers had a better deal.'

Hugh Boyle said they intended to launch more cut-price services, to San Francisco, Los Angeles and Boston.

A Virgin Atlantic spokesman said it would match any competition and already offered 'thousands' of return tickets to New York at a base rate of £270, adding: 'We will not be beaten on price.'

A British Airways spokesman said: 'Currently our lowest fare to New York is £330 return but our lowest fares start from £270 which are available throughout the year. Our fares are extremely comparable with Zoom.' Zoom launches £129 New York trip

BBC 12th April 2007 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/6548251.stm

A price war for budget transatlantic flights could be on the cards after an airline said it would offer a London to New York service for £129 one-way.

The carrier, Zoom, will begin flights from London Gatwick on 21 June.

In addition, budget airline Ryanair has said it is now eyeing a transatlantic service within three to four years, with flights from 10 euros (£6.80). Zoom's US flights are scheduled to take off from Gatwick in July The news comes ahead of an "open skies" deal allowing more US-Europe flights from March 2008.

'Good availability'

Zoom, which already operates from five UK airports to Canada, said it aimed to become the UK's leading budget transatlantic carrier by undercutting the likes of BA and Virgin Atlantic.

Co-owner Hugh Boyle, the Scottish entrepreneur who started the firm with his brother John, told the BBC that more than 25% of seats would be available at the lowest price.

"It's across the board on all dates. It's not a low season date, it's not just if you go in November or on a Tuesday.

"Every flight on every date will have a good availability of seats at £129."

Passengers will be able to upgrade for £99, the airline said.

The past year has seen the launch of three business class-only airlines - Silverjet, EOS and Maxjet - flying between London and New York.

Low-cost airline Zooms into JFK with $199 London fare

21st June 2007 http://www.usatoday.com/travel/flights/2007-06-21-zoom-jfk_N.htm

NEW YORK (AP) — Low-cost Canadian carrier Zoom Airlines makes its first foray into the U.S. market Thursday when it launches a daily flight from New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport to London's Gatwick Airport.

Zoom is offering one-way fares of $199 on its 266-seat Boeing 767-300's. Slightly larger "premium economy" seats can be had for an additional $179 each way.

In comparison, the cheapest round-trip flight between New York and London in mid-July is listed at $753, or about $377 each way, according to SideStep.com. "It's a very low price for the summer," said Bob Mann, an airline consultant with R.W. Mann & Co. in Port Washington, N.Y.

Zoom does not require passengers to buy a round-trip ticket or stay over on a Saturday night, both typical requirements for a cheaper flight on most airlines. Zoom, based in Ottawa, Canada, and at Gatwick, already operates 10 to 12 daily flights between Canada and the U.K.

Zoom is adding the New York-London route because nearly 42,000 people travel between the two cities every week, said chairman Hugh Boyle.

"It's the daddy of them all," Boyle said.

Some analysts doubt Zoom will last.

"The problem with the Zoom concept is that it doesn't fill a market gap," said Mike Boyd, president of The Boyd Group in Evergreen, Colo. "There are now plenty of low-fare airlines across the Atlantic. ... It's called the economy cabins of American (Airlines), British (Airways), Continental (Airlines), etc."

Boyle said the four-year-old company is profitable, and knows what it's doing.

"We know it works between Canada and the UK," Boyle said.

Zoom is a full-service carrier, Boyle said, meaning it serves food and hands out pillows at no extra charge. There is an additional charge for seat selection.

Most passengers book online, which keeps Zoom's costs low, Boyle said. The airline will sell as many as 25% of its seats at the $199 rate, but other seats will be more expensive. There will be 88 "premium economy" seats on each flight. Zoom will also carry cargo.

Boyle boasted flight occupancy rates of 90%, compared with an industry average of about 81%, according to Goldman Sachs.

Low-cost carriers have tried international routes before, Mann said, but few have stuck with it. That's because low cost carriers prefer to fly planes four to six times a day on busy domestic routes that let the airline quickly turn each plane around for another trip, Mann said.

"It's just a fundamentally different business," Mann said.

But Zoom's 767-300s are the perfect plane for a company trying Zoom's model, he said.

"That's an airplane on which $199 each way, you can cover your costs," Mann said.

Zoom's low fares will put pressure on other carriers, he said.

"This will limit some of the traditional guy's ability to sell some of their more expensive seats," Mann said.

And Zoom's not done. Boyle said the privately held airline is looking at other busy domestic routes and may add new flights early next year.

"The U.S. from the U.K. is a huge market, and we will roll it out," Boyle said.