Volunteers needed for airport shuttle used by King

King Charles III had a ride in December, but did not take his suitcase with him

Volunteers with suitcases are needed to trial an airport's new shuttle service that King Charles III has already ridden on.

The Luton Direct Air-Rail Transit (DART) system, linking the airport with Luton Airport Parkway railway station, is due to open by Easter.

Luton Rising, which owns the airport, said its costs had risen from £200m to about £290m.

The willing passengers would also take part in evacuations and a number of "customer service scenarios".

Volunteers will be chosen on a "first come, first served" basis

The sessions are due to take place on 1, 8, 15 and 22 February, from 09:00 to 14:00 GMT.

The DART will be a cable-drawn, driverless railway running on a 1.4-mile (2.2km) line connecting the mainline railway station to the airport terminal in just over three minutes, 24 hours a day.

The journey will take less than four minutes, Luton Rising said.

It will replace shuttle buses which pick up passengers every 10 minutes.

Anyone who wants to volunteer is asked to register online.

The Luton DART was originally due to open two years ago