The latest airline route news, featuring network changes, schedule alterations, codeshares and interline agreements.

Dec. 15

Spanish carrier Volotea has announced its eighth Italian base in Bari, marking its 21st in Europe. The move will see the airline launch eight new routes during the summer 2024 season. “The opening of the summer base in Bari once again confirms Volotea’s growth in Italy,” said Valeria Rebasti, international market director for Volotea. “This important milestone and the connections announced today allow us to consolidate the area’s connectivity, with a total of 18 destinations to five different countries, including Croatia and Spain.” From July 3, the carrier will launch 2X-weekly flights to Preveza/Lefkada, followed the next day by a 2X-weekly service to Toulouse and 3X-weekly flights to both Dubrovnik and Rhodes. On July 5, Volotea will open routes to Bilbao, Comiso and Split, each operating 2X-weekly, with another 2X-weekly route to Malaga beginning on July 6.

Denver-based Frontier Airlines has unveiled six domestic route additions, as well as a new service to Jamaica. Flights between Tampa, Florida, and Connecticut's Hartford Bradley start on March 7, operating 4X-weekly, followed by a 3X-weekly service linking Dallas-Fort Worth and Jacksonville, Florida, the next day. Cleveland-Montego Bay begins March 9, operating 3X-weekly. Four more routes to Pittsburgh will launch in May. Two begin on May 16 with a 2X-daily Philadelphia service and 3X-weekly Dallas-Fort Worth service, followed by 4X-weekly routes from both Atlanta and Raleigh, North Carolina, on May 17.

Six new routes to Spain’s Palma de Mallorca are being launched by German leisure carrier Condor. The new services starting in summer 2024 will see the airline fly 3X-weekly from Basel; 5X-weekly from Cologne; 3X-weekly from Dortmund; 2X-weekly from Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden; 5X-weekly from Münster Osnabrück; and 2X-weekly from Rostock.

Maldives-based carrier Maldivian has signed an interline agreement with Etihad Airways. The move will open up 17 destinations in the Maldives for Etihad, such as Faresmathoda and Funadhoo. “This interline will elevate the overall customer experience across the entire journey,” says Arik De, Etihad chief revenue officer.

Cathay Pacific will resume flights between Hong Kong and Christchurch, New Zealand, on Dec. 16. Service will be 3X-weekly until Feb. 29, 2024, using Airbus A350s.  Frosti Lau, Cathay Pacific regional general manager, says: “This is our first seasonal service to return post-pandemic, so is proof of our dedication to the route, people and businesses of the South Island.”

Alaska Airlines has launched nine new routes, including its first-ever flights to the Bahamas and Guatemala. Seasonal flights are now operating from Las Vegas to San Luis Obispo, Puerto Vallarta and Cabo San Lucas, and from Orange Country to Bozeman, Montana, and Tucson, Arizona. The carrier has also launched seasonal routes between Seattle and Nassau, capital of the Bahamas, and Palm Springs and New York John F. Kennedy. Additionally, two year-round routes have opened from Los Angeles to Guatemala City and Nassau.

Romanian carrier Dan Air has opened a new route to Liverpool, England. Flights between Bacau and Liverpool will be offered weekly using Airbus A320 aircraft.

Canada’s Porter Airlines is increasing capacity on eight routes from Ottawa during the summer 2024 season. Service to Vancouver, Edmonton and Calgary will increase from daily to 2X-daily, operated using Embraer E195-E2s, while the airline is also doubling service from one daily roundtrip flight to two daily flights between Ottawa and Fredericton, Moncton and Boston. Service to New York Newark will increase to 3X-daily roundtrip flights from two. These routes are operated with a 78-seat De Havilland Dash 8-400. Additionally, Ottawa-Halifax will see an increase in seat capacity when the route swaps from a Dash 8-400 to a 132-seat E2 in April.

SAS Scandinavian Airlines is expanding its flight schedule to the U.S. and Asia during the summer 2024 season. Copenhagen-New York JFK will increase to 2X-daily, operated with Airbus A321LR aircraft, while Copenhagen-Boston grows from 6X-weekly to daily onboard A350s and Copenhagen-Toronto rises to 4X-weekly. In the Asia market, routes to Shanghai and Tokyo will increase from three to 4X-weekly and flights to Bangkok will be extended until April 20 to cater to the increased demand during the Easter travel period.

Dec. 14

Canadian ULCC Lynx Air is adding flights between Halifax Stanfield International Airport (YHZ) and St. John's International Airport (YYT) to its network. Service will begin on April 10, 2024, operating four times per week. Frequencies will increase to daily from July. “After the success of our flights to Halifax and St. John’s from Toronto and Montreal, connecting the two cities was the natural next step,” says Lynx CCO Vijay Bathija. “There are strong connections between the communities of Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador, and we are proud to offer an ultra-affordable link to connect them.”

China Southern Airlines has commenced operations between Zhengzhou Xinzheng International Airport and London Gatwick Airport (LGW). The route will be offered 2X-weekly using Boeing 787-8 aircraft. London Gatwick now has 16 flights per week to China, with two daily services to Shanghai already operating onboard Air China and China Eastern Airlines. “China is a hugely important market for us, our passengers and the regional economy, so it’s fantastic news for London and the South East to have China’s three major airlines operating from Gatwick for the first time,” says Stephanie Wear, LGW's vice president for aviation development.

Star Alliance carrier Avianca has inaugurated seasonal nonstop flights from San Salvador, El Salvador, to Oakland International Airport, California. The route will be served four times per week using Airbus A320neos until Jan. 29, 2024.

TUI’s inaugural flight from Birmingham Airport (BHX), in England, to Singapore Changi Airport took off on Dec. 13. The weekly flights using Boeing 787-8s will exclusively serve Marella Cruises customers heading out to Singapore to sail onboard Marella Discovery 2 for winter 2023-24. The ship will stop at various destinations, including Routes Asia 2024 host Langkawi, Malaysia. “This investment represents TUI’s confidence in BHX and the Midlands region, and its commitment to providing more options for customers,” says Adam Parker, BHX senior aviation manager.

ITA Airways is expanding operations at London City Airport (LCY) by launching a 2X-daily service to Rome Fiumicino Airport (FCO) in March 2024. The Italian carrier will be the first airline to operate the route from LCY since the pandemic. Anne Doyere, LCY aviation director, says: “Rome will open up a huge range of new travel options for those on connecting flights, so we look forward to welcoming many new passengers to London City.” ITA already serves LCY from Milan Linate.

Dec. 13

Royal Jordanian is adding two new UK services during the first quarter of next year. Flights from Jordan's capital Amman to London Stansted Airport will start on March 3 and be offered four times per week, while a route from Amman to Manchester Airport, England, will commence on March 6 and be served 3X-weekly. Both routes will use Airbus A320-family aircraft. The carrier already serves one point in the UK from Amman, flying to London Heathrow Airport.

From Dec. 26, China’s Xiamen Airlines will increase frequencies between Xiamen and Amsterdam to daily. The carrier currently serves the destinations three times per week using Boeing 787-9 aircraft. The move comes after China implemented a visa-free entry policy on Dec. 1 targeting citizens from France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain. “In addition to the approaching Christmas and New Year holidays and overseas college vacations, the data from various domestic online travel booking platforms shows that traveling to and from the Netherlands and other European countries … is becoming a rapidly increasing top search option, which implies many domestic travelers want to go to Europe,” a statement from Xiamen Airlines says.

Australia’s Jetstar has announced plans to boost international capacity from Melbourne in 2024 by increasing the frequency of flights to Auckland and Christchurch, New Zealand; Bangkok and Phuket, Thailand; and Singapore. From April 1, Airbus A320 flights to Auckland and Christchurch will grow from 8X to 13X-weekly and from 3X to 5X-weekly, respectively. From June 17, Boeing 787-8 service to Bangkok will rise from 3X to 5X-weekly; Phuket from 3X to 5X-weekly; and Singapore from 6X-weekly to daily. The expansion comes ahead of the LCC’s launch of flights between Melbourne and Nadi, Fiji, on Dec. 16. Service will be three times per week.

Turkish Airlines has started flights to Osaka, Japan. As of Dec. 12, flights to Osaka Kansai International Airport from Istanbul Airport are being operated four times per week using Boeing 787-9s. “Osaka flights not only strengthen our presence in the Asia-Pacific region, but also show our dedication to connecting people and cultures around the world,” Turkish Airlines Chairman Ahmet Bolat says.

Canadian carrier WestJet has inaugurated a route between Toronto Pearson International Airport and Bonaire, the Dutch Caribbean island. Flights will operate once a week during the winter season. “Canada remains one of our top 10 markets, and this historic new connection signifies a major step in accommodating the increasing desire for tourism on our picturesque island,” says Miles Mercera, CEO of Tourism Corporation Bonaire.

Vietjet has confirmed the launch plans for flights between Hanoi and Siem Reap, Cambodia. The Vietnamese LCC will operate the route daily from Dec. 15, with the flight time of each leg totaling about 1 hr. 15 min.

Dec. 12

Transavia France is increasing its network from Lyon Saint-Exupéry Airport to 30 destinations next summer. The carrier will launch three new routes to Fez, Morocco; Tirana, Albania; and Yerevan, Armenia. Additionally, the airline will expand frequencies to five points in Algeria, four in Morocco, four in Greece and three in Portugal, Spain and Tunisia. “The openings in Yerevan, Tirana and Fez meet the demand of our customers wishing to join family and friends,” says Nicolas Hénin, deputy general director of sales and marketing at Transavia France.

Spain’s Iberia has commenced its first flight to Qatar’s capital Doha. Service from Madrid will be offered daily using Airbus A330-200 aircraft, equipped with 288 seats in a two-class configuration. This new route is the result of the agreement between Madrid Turismo by IFEMA Madrid and Iberia, which in turn opens up 49 new connections to Asia, 17 to Africa, 18 to the Middle East and 6 to Oceania, with a stopover in Doha. It is estimated to generate an economic impact for the Madrid region of €55 million ($59.4 million) in the first year.

Turkish Airlines is boosting frequencies to Birmingham Airport (BHX), England, during the northern summer 2024 season. Service from Istanbul Airport will rise from double-daily to 18X-weekly from next June, with a third daily flight operating on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays. “Customer demand from BHX to Istanbul is strong and growing stronger, so we’re pleased to be able to meet this demand with additional flights,” says Eren Ozturk, Turkish Airlines sales manager.

Indian LCC IndiGo is increasing the number of flights to Thailand with more frequencies on Mumbai-Phuket and the resumption of Bengaluru-Phuket. Flights from Mumbai will rise from daily to 13X-weekly from Jan. 5, 2024, while operations from Bengaluru will be 6X-weekly from Feb. 28. “With the addition of these flights, IndiGo will connect India to Thailand 56 times a week,” says Vinay Malhotra, head of global sales.

Norse Atlantic Airways has operated its first Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG) to Miami service. The route will operate up to four times a week using Boeing 787s. The airline began serving CDG in March 2023 with flights to New York John F. Kennedy International Airport.

Delta Air Lines is this winter season increasing the number of seats out of Miami by 27% compared with a year ago. More frequencies are being added on routes to Atlanta, Detroit, Minneapolis-St. Paul, New York John F. Kennedy, New York LaGuardia and Orlando, Florida, as it builds to 37 peak-day departures from Miami to 12 destinations.

Dec. 11

Air Arabia Abu Dhabi has inaugurated a route connecting Abu Dhabi and Colombo, Sri Lanka. Flights to Colombo’s Bandaranaike International Airport will be offered three times per week. “We recently relocated our Abu Dhabi operations to Terminal A, a state-of-the-art new facility at Abu Dhabi International Airport, and this launch further demonstrates our commitment to delivering smooth travel experiences for passengers and contributing to the growth of the travel and tourism sectors in both countries,” says Air Arabia Group CEO Adel Al Ali. Air Arabia Abu Dhabi serves 28 destinations with a fleet of 10 Airbus A320 aircraft.

Vietnam’s Vietjet has opened two new international routes: between Hanoi and Jakarta, Indonesia, and Phu Quoc and Busan, South Korea. Service to Jakarta will operate four times per week on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, while the route to Busan will be daily.

EasyJet has launched its autumn 2024 schedule, putting more than 133,000 flights on sale between Sept. 2 and Nov. 30. The LCC will provide over 68,000 flights on 485 routes between 21 airports in the UK and 137 destinations in Europe, North Africa and the Middle East. EasyJet last month launched 12 new summer routes, including London Luton and Manchester to Reus; Bristol to Malta; Liverpool, Glasgow and Belfast to Enfidha, and Belfast and Glasgow to Larnaca.

Finnair has announced plans to increase frequencies on several routes during the northern summer 2024 season. Helsinki-Dallas will rise from four to six flights per week; Helsinki-Shanghai will grow from 2X to 3X-weekly; and Helsinki-Alicante, Spain, will restart with three flights per week from April 4. From March 31, Finnair will also add five weekly Airbus A350 flights on its Helsinki to Munich route, Helsinki-London Heathrow will be double-daily using A350s and Helsinki-Amsterdam will see up to 10 weekly A330/A350 rotations.