Membership numbers at Airlines for Europe are growing further with Icelandair joining Europe’s largest airline association.

The airline operates out of Iceland, and uses the country’s geographical location mid-way between America and Europe, to offer a network of international routes with Iceland as a hub.

“We are looking forward to jointly work with A4E on a number of common matters affecting our industry’s operating environment.

“We should align our efforts, on behalf of our customers, to minimise various operational cost in the airline industry, e.g. lowering the cost of the EU’s airports. A4Es key policy issues are also affecting our daily operation and therefore we need to form a strong voice in Europe,” said Birkir Holm Gudnason, chief executive, Icelandair.

Airlines for Europe is Europe’s new and largest airline association, based in Brussels.

Launched in January 2016, the association consists of Aegean, airBaltic, Air France KLM, easyJet, Finnair, Icelandair, International Airlines Group, Jet2.com, Lufthansa Group, Norwegian, Ryanair, TAP Portugal and Volotea, and plans to grow further.

With more than 550 million passengers on board each year, A4E members account for more than 70 per cent of the continent’s journeys.

“A4E was very successful the last weeks in welcoming new members but since most of our key policy issues need more attention in Brussels and the member states, more and more European airline chief executives see the benefits uniting behind one association in Brussels.

“European airlines are providing unprecedented mobility to citizens and businesses and their economic activity contributes significantly to economic growth and job creation,” said Thomas Reynaert, A4E managing director.