The latest airline route news, featuring network changes, schedule alterations, codeshares and interline agreements.
Sept. 20
Air France and Air Madagascar are launching an interline agreement starting Oct. 1, 2024, allowing passengers to book flights operated by both airlines on a single ticket. The partnership will cover Air France's Paris-Charles de Gaulle to Antananarivo-Ivato route and Madagascar Airlines' domestic flights to Nosy Be, Fort Dauphin, Majunga and Tamatave. “Never before have services to Madagascar's domestic destinations offered such a high quality of connections with long-haul flights,” Madagascar Airlines CEO Thierry de Bailleul says.
Icelandair is expanding its route network during the summer 2025 season with a new service connecting Reykjavik Keflavik and Gothenburg, Sweden. Flights will operate twice a week on Thursdays and Sundays from June 19 through Aug. 31. “This route complements our existing service from Stockholm and makes it easier for travelers in West Sweden to experience Iceland,” Icelandair commercial director Tomas Ingason says. Fellow Icelandic airline Play also serves the Reykjavik-Gothenburg market during the summer season.
Play is increasing service to Spain during the summer 2025 season by launching a new route to Valencia. Service from Reykjavik Keflavik will be twice a week, starting on May 24 and operating until the end of September. The airline already serves Alicante, Barcelona, Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, Madrid, Malaga, Mallorca and Tenerife in Spain. “Spain continues to be a key market for us, and we are excited to offer more travel options for our passengers while connecting North America and Europe through Iceland,” Play CEO Einar Örn Ólafsson says.
Latvia’s airBaltic has extended its codeshare partnership with British Airways (BA). As part of the extended agreement, airBaltic will now place its code on BA’s London Heathrow-Riga service, starting from Oct. 1. “Such a partnership will allow both airBaltic and British Airways to offer more flexibility to their passengers on flights between Latvia and the [UK], and beyond,” airBaltic President and CEO Martin Gauss says. The two airlines have had a codeshare partnership in place for the past 10 years.
Sept. 19
Emirates is set to introduce its refurbished Boeing 777s on six U.S. routes from November onward, debuting its new business-class seats and premium-economy cabin. The retrofitted aircraft will be introduced on nonstop flights from Dubai to Chicago, Boston, Dallas-Fort Worth and Seattle, as well as to Miami (linked to Bogotá) and Newark (via Athens). With the deployment of its newly retrofitted 777 aircraft, flights to and from 10 of the 12 gateways in Emirates' U.S. network will feature premium economy by February 2025.
Azores Airlines will enhance its connections between Terceira Island and the U.S. by launching a new weekly flight to New York John F. Kennedy International Airport and extending its Boston Logan International Airport route during the northern winter 2024-25 season. The international growth is complemented by an increase in domestic flights, including one additional weekly flight between Lisbon and Terceira, and two between Terceira and Porto.
Air Serbia has resumed its direct service between Belgrade and Nice after a five-year break. The carrier will operate flights twice weekly, on Thursdays and Sundays, with a flight time of about 2 hr. The city becomes the third French destination served by the airline, alongside Paris and Lyon. “By connecting the Serbian capital with Nice, we have further strengthened Air Serbia's presence in France and provided passengers with the opportunity to reach the beautiful French Riviera in just 120 min.,” says Boško Rupić, Air Serbia general manager commercial and strategy.
Spanish carrier Volotea has added service from Nantes, France, to Hamburg, Germany. Operations will be twice a week on Tuesdays and Saturdays using Airbus A319 equipment. OAG Schedules Analyser data shows the airline will be the sole operator of nonstop flights between the destinations. Volotea also serves Hamburg from Bordeaux, Florence and Lyon.
Sept. 18
Breeze Airways has secured its first Essential Air Service contract, adding a daily route between Ogdensburg, New York, and Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) starting Sept. 27 with Airbus A220-300 aircraft. The service marks the return of flights between the two cities, a connection that has been absent since 2022. Additionally, Breeze will introduce three new routes from Washington Dulles to Salt Lake City-Provo (3X-weekly from Oct. 1); South Bend, Indiana (2X-weekly from Nov. 8); and Vero Beach, Florida (2X-weekly from Nov. 21). “We are excited for Breeze Airways to become the 45th airline at Washington Dulles International,” says Paul Bobson, Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority vice president for airline business development. “Breeze will give local travelers access to three previously unserved markets from the Washington, D.C., region while bringing nonstop service back to upstate New York.”
Hong Kong Express plans to increase frequencies between Hong Kong and Takamatsu Airport, Japan. The number of flights will rise from 5X-weekly to daily using Airbus A320neo aircraft, starting on Nov. 1. This will be the first time the route will operate daily since it first began in 2016.
Brussels Airlines is expanding its winter schedule with one new destination and increased frequencies on its medium-haul and West African networks. Starting at the end of October, the airline will launch a new weekly flight to Fuerteventura, Spain, adding a fourth Canary Islands destination. The carrier will also offer year-round service to Athens, Greece, with 4X-weekly flights, and Krakow, Poland, with 3X-weekly flights. Brussels Airlines is boosting frequencies to several popular sun destinations, including Faro, Lisbon, Porto, Alicante, Malaga and Valencia. Birmingham, England, will also return to the winter schedule with 6X-weekly flights. Additionally, frequencies are being added to Conakry, Guinea; Freetown, Sierra Leone; Nairobi, Kenya; and Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, between October 2024 and March 2025, supported by the introduction of a 10th Airbus A330 aircraft in June.
Air Austral is launching a third weekly flight between Reunion and Bangkok Suvarnabhumi from Dec. 10 through Jan. 28, 2025. The additional flight departing Reunion will be offered on Tuesdays alongside the existing Wednesday and Saturday services. “Thanks to an alignment of departure and arrival times, and its commercial partnership with Thai Airways, Air Austral opens up possibilities for major connections from Bangkok to Japan, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia or even South Korea,” the airline says.
Air France is expanding its network for the 2024-25 winter season, serving 169 destinations in 73 countries, including 85 long-haul and 84 short- and medium-haul routes. As previously reported, new long-haul destinations include Kilimanjaro, Tanzania; Salvador de Bahia, Brazil; Manila, Philippines; and Malé, Maldives. The airline will also extend its U.S. service to Denver and Phoenix into the winter season. In Northern Europe, Air France will launch flights to Kiruna, Sweden, and strengthen service through its partnership with SAS.
Sept. 17
Brazil’s GOL Linhas Aéreas has announced plans to open a new route between Brasilia and Bogotá. Flights between the cities will be 3X-weekly on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, starting on Feb. 4, 2025, and using Boeing 737-8 aircraft. Service will switch to Mondays, Fridays and Sundays from March 30. The new route was approved by Colombian regulators last week. GOL inaugurated its first route to Bogotá in early April with flights from São Paulo-Guarulhos which continue to Buenos Aires Ezeiza. “The operation between Brasilia and Bogotá will be a milestone for Brazil and Colombia, connecting two of the main hubs of operation of GOL and Avianca,” says Rafael Araújo, GOL director of network planning. “From the two capitals, the companies serve more than 80 destinations in 310 daily takeoffs.”
China Southern Airlines will resume service to Adelaide, Australia, in December for the first time since the onset of the pandemic. The airline will offer three flights per week from Guangzhou, starting on Dec. 12. Boeing 787-8 aircraft will be deployed on the route. China Southern first launched its Guangzhou-Adelaide service in December 2016, offering three flights per week before operations ceased in March 2020. Adelaide Airport says the economic impact of the route is estimated to be more than A$69 million ($47 million) annually.
Qatar Airways is growing its operations in Amsterdam from 10X-weekly flights to 14 with the launch of four additional weekly services, starting Nov. 12 through March 29, 2025. The airline says the move will enable 40,000 additional passengers to travel between Amsterdam and Doha during the period.
Norse Atlantic Airways has launched its inaugural flights connecting London Gatwick and Las Vegas. The new route operates three times a week using Boeing 787s. Rosemary Vassiliadis, Clark County Department of Aviation director, says: “Domestic and international travel has been booming with more than 57.6 million passengers served in 2023, and the UK continues to be one of the top three international visitor markets to the destination. The addition of convenient flight options ensures more business and leisure travelers can enjoy the sports and entertainment capital of the world.”
Universal Air is launching regular flights between Malta and Tripoli. Flights will be offered twice a week on Wednesdays and Saturdays. “Our new Malta-Tripoli route isn’t just about bridging cities—it’s also about creating opportunities,” Universal Air CEO Simon Cook says. “We’re providing a crucial link for businesses that will help drive commercial growth.”
Swedish domestic carrier Västflyg is set to offer a new route between Stockholm Arlanda Airport and Trollhättan Vänersborg Airport. Flights will be twice a week on Wednesdays and Sundays, starting on Oct. 2.
Sept. 16
Philippine Airlines plans to resume flights between Cebu and Osaka, Japan. The carrier last operated regular nonstop service between the cities until the onset of the pandemic in March 2020. Operations will restart on Dec. 22, operating 3X-weekly using Airbus A321aircraft. OAG Schedules Analyser shows that Cebu Pacific will also launch flights between Cebu and Osaka from Oct. 15. Frequencies will be 4X-weekly onboard Airbus A320neos.
Canada’s Flair Airlines has launched its inaugural flight from Toronto Pearson International Airport to Guadalajara International Airport, marking the airline’s continued expansion into the Mexican market. The new route will operate up to three times per week. “Guadalajara has long been an unserved market with considerable demand; last year alone, nearly 26,000 passengers flew indirectly from Pearson,” says Greater Toronto Airports Authority CCO and interim COO Khalil Lamrabet.
British Airways will operate a record number of flights to the U.S., Canada and Mexico in summer 2025, offering more than 400 direct flights per week at peak times. The airline will increase frequencies from London Heathrow to key destinations. This includes expanding Miami to a 2X-daily service year-round, boosting flights to Austin, Las Vegas and Washington, D.C., and offering daily service to Pittsburgh for the first time, up from 6X-weekly previously. Vancouver will also see up to 14 weekly flights during peak summer, alongside the airline’s daily service from London Gatwick.
Vietjet is set to launch a new route between Da Nang, Vietnam, and Ahmedabad, India, starting on Oct. 24. The route will operate twice a week, with flights leaving Da Nang at 7.10 p.m. local time and arriving in Ahmedabad at 11.25 p.m. on Wednesdays and Saturdays. The return service will depart at 12.25 p.m. local time and arrive in Da Nang at 6.55 a.m. on Thursdays and Sundays. Vietjet currently operates 60 weekly flights between Vietnam and India across eight routes.
AirAsia has inaugurated a route from Kuala Lumpur to Lucknow, further strengthening its connectivity between India and Malaysia. Service will operate three times per week using a mix of Airbus A320 and A320neo equipment. The LCC will be the sole operator of nonstop flights between the cities, according to OAG Schedules Analyser data.
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