Regional airports 'preferred for easier check-in'

More flyers are making use of regional airports to take advantage of shorter queues and easier check-in procedures, according to one expert.

A spokesperson for Bournemouth Airport said that it had seen an increase in passengers using its facilities in recent times - which can be partly attributed to customers preferring the relative quietness of the airport compared with larger hubs, she added.

"People don't like queuing. Going through security can be a stressful time - it can be a stressful part of your journey," she remarked.

"By choosing to go for a regional airport, the average queuing time is [about] three to five minutes and not 55 minutes."

The comments appear to correlate with figures from the Civil Aviation Authority showing that growth at regional airports was significantly faster than that at the main London airports in 2006.

It also found that more than four in ten - 42 per cent - of the UK's air travellers now fly from local airports.

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