Tag: Edinburgh Airport

Drive-in Movies off to a flyer!

PIC: Lloyd Smith

Edinburgh International Film Festival and Unique Events, organisers of Edinburgh’s brand new Drive In Movies event, have hailed the opening weekend a huge success.

Over 4,000 people flocked to Edinburgh Airport to experience a 4-day outdoor cinema extravaganza, supported by Edinburgh Live, for people of all ages which included family favourites, all-time classics and thrilling blockbusters.

PIC: Lloyd Smith

Tickets for the next Drive-in Movies (24 – 27 September) are now on sale at edinburghdrivein.co.uk with another packed programme of cinema classics including Back to the Future, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Mamma Mia! Rocketman, Toy Story and Mean Girls, among others.

The opening weekend of Drive-in Movies saw thousands of people from Edinburgh and Lothians enjoying a fantastic outdoor cinematic experience in the comfort of their own vehicles and in the unique surroundings of Edinburgh Airport.

Strictly following the health and safety regulations and the Scottish Government’s advice, Drive-in Movies offered a safe and fun environment for people of all ages to experience what was the first post-lockdown outdoor event for many.

A top-notch selection of films was shown on a state of the art 100sqm LED screen, one of the largest mobile screens in the world with the audio broadcast straight to cars, for audiences to control the soundtrack.

Audiences sang along to Sunshine on Leith and Grease, shed a tear at Up, fell in love during William Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet and enjoyed the planes landing and taking off nearby which was a particular treat at the screenings of Con Air and Airplane!

Prior to each film, audiences had a chance to sample some of the best fish and chips in the country from seafood specialists Alandas and those not behind the wheel, Edinburgh-based award-winning brewery’s Cold Town Beer.

Nairn’s Oatcakes distributed their ever-so-popular Oat Bars as a special treat for families who came to see Up and Mary Poppins Returns. Popular Edinburgh DJ Stewart Calverto became Captain Calverto as he warmed up the crowds with car disco and quizzes with spot prizes.

PIC: Lloyd Smith

Audiences took to social media to share their views of the event:

‘Great afternoon at #Edinburghdrivein @EdinburghAirpo1 Brilliantly presented by @UniqueEventsltd and @edfilmfest’

‘Had an epic time tonight at seeing alien at #EdinburghDriveIn, great set up’

‘brilliant night out at #EdinburghDriveIn’

‘Dreamy night at the drive-in. Thank you for the brilliant escape @edfilmfest @UniqueEventsltd’

Drive-in Movies’ opening weekend. Credit Lloyd Smith.

Drive-in Movies continues during the last weekend of every month for the rest of the year. September dates are confirmed as 24 to 27 September and the organisers are now pleased to reveal first titles for the event, an exciting selection of cult films and blockbusters: Back to the Future (1985) with some of the most recognisable lines and the inimitable Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd, Big Trouble in Little China with Kurt Russell (1986), John Hughes’ Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986), all-time family favourite Toy Story (1995), teen comedy classic Mean Girls (2004), Drive (2011) with Ryan Gosling, and more recent hits, a homage to ABBA featuring Meryl Streep, Mamma Mia! (2008), Spike Lee’s Blackkklansman (2018), Incredibles 2 (2018) and Elton John’s biopic, Rocketman (2019).

Tickets are on sale now at edinburghdrivein.co.uk

SCHEDULE

Thursday 24 September

BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA (15, 1986) 10:00pm

Friday 25 September

INCREDIBLES 2 (PG, 2018) 2:00pm

FERRIS BUELLER’S DAY OFF (12A, 1987) (CAPTIONED) 6:00pm

DRIVE (18, 2011) 10:00pm

Saturday 26 September

TOY STORY (PG, 1995) 10:30am

MAMMA MIA! (PG, 2008) (CAPTIONED) 2:00pm

BACK TO THE FUTURE (PG, 1985) (CAPTIONED) 6:00pm

BLACKKKLANSMAN (15, 2018) 10:00pm

Sunday 27 September

MARY POPPINS (U, 1964) 10:00am

MEAN GIRLS (12, 2004) 2:00pm

to be announced 6:00pm

ROCKETMAN (15, 2019) 10:00pm

Tickets available now at www.edinburghdrivein.co.uk priced from £27.50 – £35.00 (+ booking fee) per vehicle for up to 5 persons.

Jobs slashed at Edinburgh Airport

A restructuring process at Edinburgh Airport due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the aviation industry will see around a third of its workforce leave the business. 

Following a lengthy and detailed consultation process with staff and unions, the airport has made the regrettable decision as it prepares for a prolonged recovery. 

The airport directly employs 750 people and the redundancy process will begin today, covering all areas including frontline staff, management and support functions. The restructuring includes compulsory and voluntary redundancies across the business.

The airport consulted with staff and unions and its proposals on terms of redundancy were supported by more than 90% of people who took part in the ballot.

Colleagues who will unfortunately be made redundant will begin to receive letters as of 1 August and will leave the business on 31 October 

Gordon Dewar, Chief Executive of Edinburgh Airport said: “This is a bitterly sad day for the airport and for those colleagues who are losing their jobs through no fault of their own but due to the impact of this dreadful pandemic. 

“We have worked with unions and staff over the past four months to protect as many jobs as possible, but unfortunately we have to confirm this regrettable news as the business prepares for whatever comes next.  

“Last year we welcomed a record 14.7 million people through our doors. This year we will be lucky to see a third of that and next year won’t be anywhere near where we have previously estimated so the business has to right size to be in a position to survive and recover when it can.” 

The airport has used the UK Government’s Job Retention Scheme over the past few months as it has carefully considered the best approach to its recovery. It has helped to retain jobs, but the upcoming closure of the scheme and uncertain recovery of aviation means jobs will still be lost. 

Gordon Dewar added: “The furlough scheme has undoubtedly helped us to retain jobs and we are grateful for the UK Government’s support, as well as that of the Scottish Government through things like rates relief.

“Despite this, we continued to burn around £3.5 million a month as passenger numbers dropped dramatically and airlines drastically scaled back operations. It will be a very long road to recovery, and we cannot successfully make that journey while we are set up as a 15 million passenger airport. 

“Aviation was one of the industries to be hit first and unfortunately will be one of the last to fully recover, so job losses have been unavoidable. The situation has been exacerbated by the introduction of an ill-thought out and unworkable blanket quarantine policy which has massively impacted on passenger numbers.  

“Aviation jobs rely on passengers and flights. That has been lost in this argument and despite us working with unions to make the case for directed support, we are still waiting to find out what will be done to preserve these jobs which are crucial to any industry and economic recovery. 

“Throughout the consultation we have striven to be fair, compassionate and seek an outcome that protects as many people as possible.  

“We bitterly regret this necessity and all of our talented colleagues departing the business leave with our very best wishes. They are an incredibly talented workforce who have served Edinburgh Airport fantastically well and we will do what we can to help them find other employment. We are sorry to see them go.” 

Lothians MSP Miles Briggs commented: “Edinburgh Airport have had no choice but to make these redundancies, because of the impact of Covid-19 on the aviation industry, and my thoughts are with employees who will be made redundant through no fault of their own.

“These job redundancies reinforce the importance of investing in the South East of Scotland to grow the economy and create more job opportunities.

“Employees who are being made redundant must be fully supported to find new roles and develop new skills for career changes until the aviation industry recovers.”

First titles for Edinburgh’s Drive-in Movies confirmed

Edinburgh International Film Festival and Unique Events are delighted to confirm the first film titles for their ambitious new project, Drive-in Movies, arriving at Edinburgh Airport on Thursday, 27 August. Tickets are on sale at www.edinburghdrivein.co.uk now. 

Organisers of the Drive-in Movies said: “We are delighted to be able to share with our audiences the first batch of titles to be screened as part of Drive-in Movies next month.

With a broad selection of timeless classics, family favourites and blockbusters, it truly offers something for everyone. We’re already working behind-the-scenes on the programme for the future events, but in the meantime book yourself a wild ride and we’ll see you at Edinburgh Airport for some cinema magic.”

The Drive-in Movies August line-up includes 13 films: classics such as Airplane!, cult titles like The Princess Bride, family-favourites including Up and recent hits like Get Out and Mary Poppins Returns. 

Every month from August 2020 until January 2021, Drive-in Movies will welcome up to 250 cars at the Edinburgh Airport car park, offering film fans of all ages a world-class cinematic experience in a safe, controlled environment. 

Audiences are encouraged to book now at www.edinburghdrivein.co.uk for 27-30 August, the first weekend of Drive-in Movies. 

More titles for the future events, including the second Drive-in Movies weekend (24 – 27 September), are to be announced in due course. 

Line-up confirmed so far includes:

Thursday, 27 August

6pm – Sunshine on Leith (2013)

10pm – Get Out (2017)

Friday, 28 August

2pm – Grease (1978)

6pm – Airplane! (1980)

10pm – Con Air (1997)

Saturday, 29 August

10am – Mary Poppins Returns (2018)

2.15pm – Clueless (1995)

6pm – William Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet (1996)

10pm – Alien (1979)

Sunday, 30 August

10.30am – Up (2009)

2pm – The Princess Bride (1987)

5.45pm – La La Land (2017)

10pm – Dirty Dancing (1987)

The films will be shown on a state of the art 100sqm LED screen, one of the largest mobile screens in the world with the audio broadcast straight to cars, for audiences to control the soundtrack.

Audiences will be able to arrive up to 1 hour prior to the film’s starting to take part in a car disco with a playlist relating to the screening, along with an interactive on-screen quiz with spot prizes. Food and snacks will be available to purchase from a selection of local food suppliers who will have stalls on site. 

With cars suitably distanced apart Drive-In Movies will be a safe environment for families and friends to enjoy an event, in line with government guidelines for outdoor events. Standard tickets priced at £35.00 per vehicle for up to 5 people, with a number of tickets being made available to EIFF’s community partners.

Drive-in Movies offer accessible toilets and food units. Please check listings for captioned screenings. 

If you have access requirements please email admin@filmhousecinema.com.

EIFF & Unique Events launch monthly Drive-In Movies at Edinburgh Airport

Edinburgh International Film Festival and Unique Events, the team behind the capital’s successful ‘Film Fest in the City’ outdoor cinema events have teamed up with Edinburgh Airport to produce a new monthly event for cinema fans throughout the rest of 2020.

From Wednesday 8 July those who have registered online at www.edfilmfest.org.uk will be the first to receive detailed film and ticket announcements and be able to book for these special events, which take-off on Friday 7 – Sunday 9 August, giving families and young film fans some end-of-school holiday fun, then taking place on the last weekend of each month from Thursday 27 -Sunday 30 August.

The film loaded weekends, programmed by the EIFF team, will see four screenings a day starting with a ‘Drive-In Kids Club’ at 10am, Family Favourites in the afternoon, an evening Blockbuster and a late-night screening of Cult Classics for grown-ups.

There will be special Halloween and Christmas screenings and activities in October and December. The films will be shown on a state of the art 100sqm LED screen, one of the largest mobile screens in the world with the audio broadcast straight to car radios, for audiences to control the soundtrack.

Pre-film activity will help to keep people entertained before the movie starts with on-screen movie quizzes, car discos, competitions and give-aways. Cinema food and snacks will be available to order and purchase pre-event and collected on arrival at the event, along with a selection of quality local food suppliers on-site to support local businesses.

With cars parked 2m apart Drive-In Movies will be a safe environment for families and friends to enjoy an event, in line with government guidelines for outdoor events. Standard tickets are expected to be priced at £35.00 per vehicle for up to 5 people, with a number of tickets being made available to EIFF’s community partners. Films will be captioned where possible.

Ken Hay, Chief Executive of Edinburgh International Film Festival said: “We’re delighted we’ve found a way to bring some great films to Edinburgh audiences despite the challenges we currently face.

“It’s not the Festival as we know it but still a way to bring a part of it to life this year. Film Fest in the City has been a very popular part of the Festival in recent years and working with Unique Events again we hope to be able to create that fun atmosphere at our new airport based Drive-In Movies starting with two fantastic weekends in August.”

Unique Events Directors Penny Dougherty & Alan Thomson said: “We’re thrilled to be producing this brand-new event for Edinburgh and continuing our successful partnership with EIFF to deliver another exhilarating outdoor cinema experience.

“Each month, the Drive-In Movies will let audiences get-away from it all, with a packed programme of classic cinema in a fun, safe environment for family and friends, whilst supporting local businesses and events.”

Gordon Dewar, Chief Executive of Edinburgh Airport said:“Edinburgh is world renowned for its festivals and although things are a bit different at the moment, it’s important we all try to provide and hold on to little bits of normality where we can.

“We know that people are missing things they love to do such as heading off on holiday or trips to the cinema, so we are more than happy to try and provide a bit of both in one night.

“We’re looking forward to working with the EIFF and Unique to make this a success and see the Edinburgh Airport Drive-In really take-off!”

Edinburgh Airport COVID-19 testing centre opens to Key Workers

Key workers can now use the newly opened testing centre at Edinburgh Airport to confirm if they have the coronavirus.

A drive-through coronavirus testing facility has opened at Edinburgh Airport as part of the Government’s UK-wide drive to increase testing for thousands more NHS and other key workers.

The Edinburgh Airport site sits alongside a rapidly expanding network of testing sites being set up around the UK, and is operating on an appointment-only basis for NHS staff and other key workers. The facility will be piloted for its first few days of operation.

This follows the launch of the Government’s partnership with universities, research institutes and companies to begin rollout of the network of new ‘lighthouse’ labs and field testing sites across the UK, with 27 testing sites opened to date.

This network will provide thousands more PCR swab tests – which are used to identify if you currently have the virus – for critical key workers, starting with NHS front line staff. This means those who test negative for coronavirus can return to work as soon as possible, and those who test positive are able to recover.

The Edinburgh Airport testing centre is being operated in partnership with Sodexo, with Boots medical staff administering some tests and others being self-administered. Those tested will receive their results within 48 hours.

Health Minister Lord Bethell said: ““The UK Government is rapidly scaling up the national effort to boost testing capacity for coronavirus to protect the vulnerable, support our NHS, and ultimately save lives.

“This new service will help end the uncertainty of whether NHS and social care staff need to stay at home meaning those who test negative will be able to return to work.

“This is a national effort and we are proud to be working with a number of partners to turn this ambition into a reality and roll out additional capacity to where it is needed.”

Scottish Secretary Alister Jack said: “This new testing centre at Edinburgh Airport, which is funded by the UK Government, will help key workers continue to do their lifesaving work and look after those who need it most.

“The UK Government has committed to expand our testing capacity right across the UK and this new centre is now one of three in Scotland. We will continue to work for everyone in the UK to save lives and protect our NHS.”

Professor John Newton, National Coordinator for the UK Coronavirus Testing Strategy, said: “New testing sites such as this one are a key pillar of our 5-pillar plan to scale up testing, and are critical in supporting NHS staff who are isolating at home to return safely to work if the test is negative.”

“This is a brilliant example of industries and businesses turning their resources to creating and rolling out mass testing at scale, which will help to deliver on our aim of carrying out 100,000 tests a day across the UK by the end of the month.”

A Boots UK Spokesperson said: “We feel incredibly proud to be supporting COVID-19 testing for critical workers in Edinburgh.

“Boots has been at the heart of UK healthcare for 171 years and has always come forward to support the community in times of need. Our team in Edinburgh is no exception. Some of our colleagues have already stepped forward to volunteer to run this COVID-19 testing station, which will start testing its first critical workers today.”

Sean Haley, regional chair of Sodexo UK & Ireland said: “Sodexo teams have moved quickly to set up COVID-19 testing centres as part of the industry-wide effort to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The opening of the Edinburgh Airport testing site will mean more frontline NHS and other staff can be tested and cleared to provide care to those who need it most. I am proud of our colleagues who are working together with pace and dedication to support the NHS.”

Gordon Dewar, Chief Executive of Edinburgh Airport said: “We understand that the coronavirus pandemic is a national issue that requires a national response, and we realise we have a role to play by offering up space that can be utilised for crucial testing.”

The Government is also urgently working on setting up a home-testing service for critical key workers, supported by Amazon’s logistics network and other commercial partners.

Coronavirus: Jobs to go as Edinburgh Airport scales back

A consolidation plan to ensure that Edinburgh Airport remains open and operational during the coronavirus outbreak has been put into action. The news comes as the airport management enter talks with staff with a view to shedding at least 100 jobs.

Enforced travel bans across the world have resulted in airlines dramatically reducing their schedules to and from Scotland, directly impacting on passenger numbers at the airport.

There was a small drop in passengers in February with 935,455 passengers passing through the airport, which was 0.4% behind February 2019. However, the airport is predicting a period of zero or close to zero passenger demand.

To protect as many jobs possible and ensure the airport is open throughout, the airport will implement a ‘consolidation’ programme which will also form part of a recovery plan to ensure the airport is ready to return to full operations at the end of the outbreak. This plan includes:

  • Terminal consolidation with certain areas closed and the centralisation of operations
  • Deferring expenditure on some capital projects
  • Powering down high consuming energy items like elements of the baggage system and heating and cooling systems on parts of the airport that are closed
  • A number of retailers and food and beverage outlets suspending operations

Gordon Dewar, Chief Executive of Edinburgh Airport said: “This is an unprecedented time not only for the aviation industry but for everyone as we all do what we can to ensure the health of ourselves and of those around us.

“For us, that includes the health of our airport. Our plan is based on keeping the airport open throughout and being there for those people who are still travelling and those staff members who are making that travel possible.

“We’re in a situation which is ever changing and as more countries enforce travel bans or special measures then it stands to reason that airlines will feel that impact and airports then feel that pain too.

“Unfortunately, that is happening now and we are trying to mitigate as best as we can and steer the airport through this situation in preparation for what comes next – and that is the biggest unknown in all of this.

“The airport is a facilitator of many things, that is our main role. Yes, we transport people around the world but it’s what those people bring that is the true value – they are our inward and outward tourists, they are our business leaders, they are our students and lecturers, they are our scientists and researchers. All of these things are important in the wider Scottish economy and we are doing what we can to ensure we are ready to return towards normal when the time comes.”

The airport has welcomed announcements by the UK and Scottish Governments on financial support for the sector through this situation.

Gordon Dewar added: “We welcome the collaboration there has been with both governments at this critical time but we will need continued support to ensure that the aviation industry is able to play its part in the country’s economic recovery.

“Along with other UK airports, we ask both governments to come together and show unity and support with the industry to help us weather this storm and come out of it still standing and ready to move forward again.”

Funding to support low carbon projects

Two Edinburgh organisations are to receive Scottish Government funding to support low carbon initiatives. There’s over £49,000 for Edinburgh Airport to develop a green energy project, while the city council receives £40,000 for solar powered charging points for electric vehicles at Ingliston and Hermiston Park and Ride sites. Continue reading Funding to support low carbon projects

Scottish Poppies Take Flight Across the Globe

Every year, the team of veterans at Lady Haig’s Poppy Factory hand-make five million poppies to be handed out during the annual Scottish Poppy Appeal. It is safe to assume that the vast majority of these stay in the country, but wouldn’t it be interesting to know how far the Scottish poppy can travel? Continue reading Scottish Poppies Take Flight Across the Globe