AN INITIATIVE which brought thousands of visitors to Jersey this summer on charter flights operated by Blue Islands is facing a race against time to secure a new airline partner for 2026.
Flights from Germany, Austria, Switzerland and the Netherlands were all part of the charter programme in 2025, but the immediate suspension of operations this weekend by Blue Islands has caused challenges for travel company Bontour Incoming, part of CI Travel Group, which provides destination management for the charter trips.
CI Travel Group managing director Robert Mackenzie said the 2025 flights chartered by the European operators had brought an estimated 5,000 visitors to Jersey and made a valuable contribution to the local economy.
“These visitors were here for a week and were typically spending quite a lot of money and visiting many of our attractions,” he said.
“Without Blue Islands, it isn’t possible to sell packages for 2026, so sales have had to be suspended for the time being.
“The main priority at present is to secure an alternative carrier, and we are working with others, including Visit Jersey and the European operators, towards that goal.
“We want to ensure there isn’t too long a gap, as that could mean there’s a risk of not being able to have this group of visitors come to Jersey next summer.”
On a broader note, Mr Mackenzie expressed sympathy for those affected directly by the news involving Blue Islands, but said he hoped there may be plus points for the Island in terms of the visitor economy.
“I would imagine most of those displaced by the suspension of flights by Blue Islands would be locals rather than visitors,” he said. “It’s about the quietest time of the year for forward sales, with people focused on the festive season.
“When people do start to make plans for 2026, after Christmas, I would hope having Loganair in place would be a positive – they are better-known than Blue Islands, have a larger fleet and could be a very strong partner for Jersey going forward.”
Other advantages offered by Loganair, he said, were the airline using the GDS reservation system that acts as a conduit between travel bookers and suppliers, and the existence of codeshare agreements with British Airways.
