EAST Lancashire business travellers flying out of Manchester Airport to Washington DC and Chicago are being offered new standards of pampering.

bmi british midland has appointed a special services team to ease the strain of flying for business passengers.

The comprehensive package of frills starts with priority check-in and even stretches to gym facilities on arrival in the States.

General manager for bmi at Manchester Airport, Tony Williams, said: "Not only do we aim to meet the needs of the business class traveller on the new transatlantic routes, we guarantee to exceed their expectations by attending to personal details."