British Airways is extending choice for short-haul customers at Gatwick with the launch of a new “hand baggage only” fare.

The new type of fare from Gatwick will be available initially to five destinations – Amsterdam, Dubrovnik, Jersey, Tunis and Turin, starting from £39 one-way. The fare will go on sale from February 19, for travel from February 26, 2013.

The initiative occurs alongside the transfer from Heathrow of five Airbus A319s for the Gatwick short-haul fleet.

Peter Simpson, director of Gatwick for British Airways, said: “The introduction of our hand baggage only fare is all about giving our customers more freedom to choose the kind of flying they want.

“Many British Airways customers on Gatwick short-haul breaks choose not to check in a bag as they’re already taking advantage of our generous two-bag hand luggage policy. Those who still want to check in a bag will simply pay the same price they do now.”

Customers choosing the “hand baggage only” fare can continue to take advantage of the airline’s hand luggage allowance and carry on a good-sized case (56cm x 45cm x 25cm), plus a handbag or laptop bag.

Children enjoy the same hand luggage allowance as adults, so families can take advantage of the new fare by combining their allowances. Families can also take buggies to the aircraft side, bring on a child seat and enjoy free seat allocation three days in advance of travel.

All British Airways’ short-haul customers will continue to receive free seat allocation within 24 hours of departure, priority boarding for families, complimentary food and drink, high levels of customer service and a frequent flyer programme that rewards them with Avios and tier points.

To make the new fare clear and easy for customers to identify, ba.com has been redesigned with a special symbol flagging the fare throughout the booking process.

While starting with five routes, the airline plans to extend the initiative to the rest of the Gatwick short-haul network over time.