Easyjet is to fly out of London Southend airport from April next year.
It will operate three A319 planes from the base to ten European destinations including Barcelona, Faro and Ibiza.
The airline expects to employ around 150 staff at the airport, which opens a new multi-million pound terminal this autumn, and carry around 800,000 passengers in the first year.
Southend airport currently operate flights to Galway, Waterford and Jersey.
A new fast rail link between the airport and Stratford for Docklands and Canary Wharf and central London’s Liverpool Street station has boosted the popularity of the hub.
Easyjet’s customer and revenue director Catherine Lynn said: “We are excited to be opening Southend. The airport is in a fantastic location just outside London with a fast rail link into the city.
“Through offering easy and affordable travel, we expect the new routes to appeal to customers in Essex and London looking for a convenient new departure point for many top European destinations. We also believe that the European city links will also attract a high number of inbound business and leisure passengers to London next year.
The airport’s managing director Alastair Welch added: “This summer we open a dedicated railway station with up to eight services an hour to Stratford – site of the 2012 Olympic Games, and to London Liverpool Street station, both in well under an hour.
“A new state-of-the-art control tower is now operational, work on our runway extension is under way, as is a new terminal building to be completed this autumn, and a new hotel that will open in 2012.”
