SOUTH Essex residents looking to book a last minute getaway out of Southend Airport only have two destinations to choose from due to flights drying up as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

The aviation industry has been hit hard by Covid-19 since the initial outbreak in March, with different nations’ government guidelines restricting travel.

Flights are not going ahead to a host of usual destinations from Southend Airport, but holidaymakers could still book a last minute trip to Alicante or Majorca.

But the opportunity to go to the hotspots is dwindling, with no flights currently on Southend Airport’s list of departures in October.

The news comes as, earlier this month, a new route to Norway was cancelled just a matter of weeks after being launched.

The new route to Bergen, Norway, with airline Wideroe has been put on hold.

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It was launched on August 31 and airport bosses blamed the coronavirus pandemic for the setback.

A Southend Airport spokesman said: “We can confirm that Wideroe have paused the Bergen route until the spring due to Covid-19.

“The pandemic has impacted aviation and ever changing quarantine restrictions have resulted in passenger ambiguity.

“Norway imposed a quarantine for all arriving passengers just 10 days before the inaugural flight.

“Unfortunately, this means that whilst there is no quarantine arriving from Norway into the UK, returning passengers and visitors are affected.

“The Bergen route is currently expected to restart at the beginning of March, with the new Kristiansand route commencing on March 29.”

It has been a testing period for Southend Airport, with budget airline Easyjet also closing its base during lockdown.

The final Easyjet flight left Southend on August 31, just weeks after the firm announced it was closing bases at Southend and Stansted.