MOZART, the Alps and the Sound of Music could be open to tourists using Southend Airport later this year.

Air Karnten, a new airline based in the southern Austrian region of Carinthia, is set to begin flights between Southend and Klagenfurt from May.

The airline’s website is also advertising city breaks to London, via Southend Airport, for Austrian holidaymakers.

Graham Longley, the councillor responsible for culture and tourism in Southend, said he was delighted there would be more flights coming into the town and said the council was working to encourage people to stay here after they arrived.

He said: “Additional routes into Southend are always welcome, and promoting Southend as a destination in itself is exactly what we have been working on over the last few months.

“In fact, it was one of the first meetings we called when we came to power – looking at ways to encourage people to come back into Southend, rather than seeing it merely as a way into London.”

Mr Longley said he thought the new route would be a boost for Southend hotels.

He added: “London is only 45 to 50 minutes by train and there’s no reason why, when people have come from as far as Austria, they can’t stay by the seaside and travel into London.

“As a new airline, we are delighted to be one of Air Karnten’s first destinations and are looking forward to them being highly successful, as well as seeing many Austrians coming to Southend.”

The airline has yet to sign a formal contract with Southend Airport, as this can only been done once it has been granted an air operator’s certificate by the Civil Aviation Authority.

This can only be done once the airline’s Canadair CJ900 jet is positioned at Klagenfurt Airport, which will take place in the first week of April as the aircraft is currently being operated by Danish airline Cimber.

A Southend Airport spokesman said: “We have not, to date, signed an agreement with the airline in question."