Flights to Milan have been removed from Southend Airport just weeks before they were due to come into operation.
Southern bosses confirmed in January that they have partnered with Aeroitalian to launch near-daily flights to Milan Bergamo.
However, a spokesperson for the airport confirmed the flights have now been taken off sale and cancellations are currently underway.
The flights between the Italian and UK capitals were due to start on March 25 at a starting price of £70 one way.
The airport said it is hoping to restore flights to Milan
PA
The routes were to be covered by the Italian start-up Aeroitalia, who confirmed last month that they were launching new routes from the UK for the first time.
This would have been the first route to connect the airport to Milan Bergamo with six weekly flights.
Direct flights between the airport and Miland have not operated since 2021 when the budget airline Ryanair scrapped its four weekly flights.
The new route was introduced as part of the airport's recovery efforts since the pandemic wreaked havoc on the travel industry.
A spokesperson for Southend airport said: “At London Southend, we’re continuing to double our traffic year on year.
“Without our destinations growing rapidly from three to eleven over the past year, with existing and prospective partners, we expect to be announcing more exciting routes very soon.
“Milan remains firmly in our plans. We naturally wish Aeoritalia well in their existing and domestic routes at this time.”
Airports frequently alter and scrap routes to major cities, making it hard for frequent travellers to keep up.
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