Pioneering transatlantic low fares airline figure Sir Freddie Laker has died aged 83.
He is acknowledged as the first to break the stranglehold of flag carriers on the North Atlantic with his Skytrain concept in the 1970s. He revolutionised the industry with £59 fares to New York.
With cheap fares and a walk-on no frills service from Gatwick, Laker Airways paved the way for low cost long haul air travel.
Despite the airline going bust in 1982 after five years owing £270 million following intense pressure from established carriers who fought tooth and nail to bring the upstart down, Laker re-emerged with a venture based in the Bahamas but attempts to re-create the Skytrain concept in the 1990s could not be sustained.
Virgin Atlantic chairman Sir Richard Branson was quoted today as describing Sir Freddie as a “father figure”.
He told the BBC: “If it hadn’t been for Sir Freddie you wouldn’t most likely have had Virgin Atlantic. You wouldn’t have had the easyJets of this world.”
Report by Phil Davies
