91Èȱ¬

Guernsey is losing its air link to Heathrow, Flybe has confirmed.

The route will not be part of the summer 2020 schedule and the last flight will be on 28 March.

A States representative told the 91Èȱ¬ it was "very disappointing" the air link would not be continuing into the summer.

However, Flybe will be operating a service from Guernsey to London Southend from 2 May.

Last year, Guernsey paid Flybe a subsidy of £28 per passenger to keep the route running from March to October.

A Flybe spokesman said: "We have continued to explore and assess any possible opportunity that would at some point in the future have supported a longer-term commitment to this route."

The daily Guernsey-Heathrow route started last year and was the first time in 20 years that the island had a connection with London's largest airport.

Deputy Charles Parkinson said: "Whilst it is very disappointing that we will not be able to continue the Heathrow service into the summer season, we are very pleased that Flybe did confirm during our discussions that, from the beginning of May, they will fill the gap and operate the London Southend route."

It follows the announcement that Blue Islands, a franchise partner of Flybe, would be cancelling its routes from the island to Southend and Liverpool.