Bring Flybe back to Exeter!

No news yet where revived airline will be based

Calls are being made to bring Flybe back to the city which has been its home for decades.

The airline, Europe's largest regional carrier when it collapsed in March, was based at Exeter Airport. On Monday, its administrators announced that a new company linked to an investment firm that used to be one of Flybe's shareholders was in the final stages of buying the brand.

Cyrus Capital, a hedge fund, will initially run a smaller regional service in the UK. It is unclear whether Flybe still has its operating licence from the Civil Aviation Authority, which comes with valuable landing slots at key UK airports. It is also unclear where Flybe's hub will be.

Paul Nero, a director of Exeter Chamber of Commerce (and managing director of Radio Exe) says Exeter would be a natural base. The city has skilled aerospace workers who are in the market for jobs, and no one knows the Flybe brand better than people in the city.

East Devon MP Simon Jupp, in whose constituency Exeter Airport sits, has published an open letter to the new owners. He says: "I write to urge you to relaunch Flybe from the former headquarters next to Exeter Airport in the East Devon constituency. It provides an excellent plug and play option to get back to business...."I hope you bring Flybe home, where it belongs. We're ready."