BOURNEMOUTH Airport added a new destination to its ever-growing list as Ryanair grabbed a Pisa the action and jetted off to Italy.

The cut-price carrier launched its inaugural flight to the Tuscan city with the famous leaning tower yesterday and will follow with three flights a week.

It takes the scheduled flight destinations available from Bournemouth to 19.

Ryanair celebrated its 10th anniversary at Bournemouth in early May, but Karl Hogstadius, the company's deputy UK sales and marketing manager, said the additional destination was not to mark the anniversary.

"It would have happened anyway. We've put on 50 new routes this year so far. We have had a 20 per cent growth rate per year for the last five years," he said.

The Boeing 737-800 jet used on the route carries 189 passengers and is based at Pisa airport, which is only five minutes from the city and a 50-minute bus ride from Florence.

Initially, flights will be on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.

"Hopefully we'll upgrade it to a daily flight in the near future," said Mr Hogstadius.

Those on the first flight paid a mere 99p for their tickets, though from now on passengers should expect to pay something nearer the company's £27 average fare.

Flights from Pisa depart at 1830 and land at Bournemouth at 1945. With a 25-minute turnaround, they are scheduled to take off again at 2010 and touch down in Italy at 2325.

Ryanair's first flight from Bournemouth was to Dublin in May 1996.

Frankfurt was added in February 2002 and 12 months later Glasgow (Prestwick) was introduced.

In October 2003 Frankfurt was dropped and a daily flight to Barcelona (Girona) put in its place.

During the past decade Ryanair has flown more than 1.5 million passengers out of Bournemouth.

Scheduled destinations now available are: Alderney, Alicante, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Dublin, Faro, Glasgow, Gran Canaria, Guernsey, Ibiza, Jersey, Malaga, Paderborn/Lippstadt, Palma, Paphos, Pisa, Prague, Salzburg and Tenerife.

Bournemouth Airport marketing manager Sally Windsor said: "We're delighted that Ryanair has now put on its fourth flight from Bournemouth."