Airport Guide

History of Jersey Airport

While the island of Jersey was accessible by plane prior to 1937, this was the year in which the local authorities decided to construct a new land-based airport rather than rely upon a strip of the coast to welcome seaplanes and small biplanes when the tide was out.

However, it was the Nazi occupiers of Jersey who constructed the first concrete runways to aid their war effort, with the forces also building several permanent hangers – one of which is still in existence at the airport.

Once the occupation forces had pulled out, the expansion of Jersey Airport continued at a steady rate, with a tarmac runway fitted in 1952 and later lengthened in 1976. However, a failure to further lengthen the landing strip since was recently cited as the reason for Boeing 737-800s not being flown into or out of the airport.

Travelling to Jersey Airport

Given the size of Jersey, reaching the airport from any of the island's towns is both quick and easy.

Regular bus services (the number 15) join the town of St Helier with the airport terminal and, with the island having no railway system, this represents the only public transport link on offer.

That said, there are a number of taxi companies waiting to greet passengers disembarking at Jersey Airport, though many holidaymakers or business travellers opt to hire a car for the duration of their stay on the island and simply drop this off outside the terminal before they fly home.

Airlines flying from Jersey Airport

Low-cost airline Flybe currently offers the greatest number of flight options out of Jersey Airport, serving both the UK and France. Among the destinations offered by the budget carrier are Aberdeen, Belfast City, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Guernsey, London Gatwick, Manchester, Nice, Norwich and Paris Charles de Gaulle.

Blue Islands serves Alderney, Bournemouth, Geneva, Guernsey, Isle of Man and Zurich, bmibaby flies to Birmingham, Cardiff, East Midlands and Manchester, while easyJet offers routes to Liverpool and London Luton.

British Airways offers just a single service to London Gatwick, while Irish counterpart Aer Lingus flies to Cork and Dublin.

Bristol, Plymouth and Leeds/Bradford can be reached by Air Southwest and VLM Airlines goes to London City and Manchester.

Germany's Lufthansa is the only fully international airline flying out of Jersey, operating routes to Dusseldorf, Frankfurt and Munich.