The latest airline route news, featuring network changes, schedule alterations, codeshares and interline agreements.
Jan. 10
Wizz Air has announced a new route connecting Cluj-Napoca, Romania, to Castellon, Spain. Flights will commence on April 11, operating on Mondays and Fridays, and will shift to Tuesdays and Saturdays starting June 16. Wizz offers a network of 36 routes from Cluj-Napoca. In 2024, the ULCC operated almost 11,000 flights from the airport, carrying more than 1.9 million passengers.
Saudi Arabia’s Flyadeal has started 2025 with the launch of five new routes from Dammam, Riyadh and Jeddah. Dammam leads the expansion with 14X-weekly domestic flights to Najran, Tabuk and Yanbu. The LCC has also resumed flights from Jeddah and Riyadh to Amman. Service from Jeddah will operate six times per week, while the route from Riyadh will be 4X-weekly. As previously reported, starting Feb. 2, Flyadeal will launch 2X-weekly flights to Karachi, its first entry into Pakistan.
Kazakhstan’s Qazaq Air is introducing three new subsidized routes to Turkistan to increase air travel accessibility and support domestic tourism. Flights between Kostanai and Turkistan began on Jan. 4, operating twice a week on Mondays and Saturdays. From Jan. 13, the carrier will begin service to Turkistan from Astana and Karaganda. Both routes will operate twice a week on Mondays and Wednesdays.
Philippine Airlines (PAL) is enhancing its Cebu network by launching a Cebu-Catarman route and increasing Cebu-Siargao flight frequencies. Starting March 1, PAL will offer 3X-weekly flights linking Cebu with Catarman City, the capital of Northern Samar, using an 86-seater De Havilland Canada Dash 8 aircraft. On the same day, the airline will expand its Cebu-Siargao services by adding midmorning flights on Wednesdays and Sundays, bringing the total to 18X-weekly flights to the popular surfing destination.
Brazilian carrier Azul Linhas Aéreas has opened a new domestic service between Salvador and Lençóis. Flights will be offered twice a week on Thursdays and Sundays using ATR aircraft. “This route is very important for tourism in Lençóis and its surrounding area,” says Azul Director of Institutional Relations Cesar Grandolfo.
Jan. 9
Jetstar Asia is launching flights between Singapore Changi Airport and Labuan Bajo, Indonesia, starting March 20. The new service will operate twice a week. The LCC will become the only carrier to serve the destinations nonstop. “This is the first time Changi Airport is directly connected to this stunning destination,” says Changi Airport Group’s Executive Vice President for Air Hub and Cargo Development Lim Ching Kiat. “With the addition of Labuan Bajo, Changi Airport now has direct flights to 13 cities in Indonesia.”
Saudi Arabia’s Flynas has inaugurated its first flight between Jeddah and Djibouti, marking another milestone in its African expansion. The LCC will serve the route three times per week. An official celebration was held at King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah to mark the launch, attended by Djibouti’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Dya-Eddine Bamakhrama, and Flynas representatives.
Cathay Pacific will expand its network with the launch of flights between Hong Kong and Rome, starting June 5. The 3X-weekly summer seasonal route will mark the airline’s return to Italy’s capital, complementing its existing 5X-weekly service to Milan, which increases to daily during the summer 2025 season. The airline will use Airbus A350-900 aircraft on the Hong Kong-Rome route.
Kenya and Angola have announced plans for Kenya Airways to resume flights from Nairobi to Luanda starting in March 2025, following a meeting between Presidents William Ruto and João Lourenço at the Angolan presidential palace in Luanda. This move is seen as a step forward in bolstering diplomatic and economic ties between the two nations. In a further show of cooperation, Angola plans to waive visa requirements for Kenyan visitors, reciprocating Kenya's earlier visa-free policy for Angolans. Kenya Airways last served Nairobi-Luanda in 2020.
Thai AirAsia is bolstering its operations at Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK) with the launch of two new domestic routes to Khon Kaen and Udon Thani. The Khon Kaen route will be daily, while the Udon Thani route will have two flights per day. Both routes are set to commence on Feb. 1. "Domestic air travel continued to grow last year and Thai AirAsia has secured a high market share of 39-40%, flying out of Bangkok from both Don Mueang and Suvarnabhumi airports,” says Thai AirAsia Head of Commercial Tansita Akraritpirom. She adds that the LCC plans to introduce more routes from BKK this year “to attract new travel groups.”
Jan. 8
Air Algerie plans to resume flights between Algiers and London Stansted on April 2. Flights will operate twice a week using Airbus A330-200 and Boeing 737-800 aircraft. The airline will maintain its existing Algiers-London Heathrow route, which is currently offered four times per week, but will increase to 5X-weekly from the start of the northern summer 2025 season.
ASL Airlines France is adding a new French domestic route from April, connecting Lille and Toulon. The seasonal summer service will be offered twice a week on Fridays and Sundays. “This direct connection will offer our passengers more convenience and flexibility for city breaks, while strengthening the economic and tourist links between these two dynamic regions," says Jonathan Raimbault, commercial and program director at ASL Airlines France. The carrier also operates five routes to Algeria from Lille, serving Algiers, Béjaïa, Oran, Sétif and Tlemcen. Air France last served Lille-Toulon for a short period during summer 2020, according to OAG Schedules Analyser data.
Brazil’s GOL Linhas Aéreas has inaugurated a route between Brasilia and Buenos Aires Ezeiza Airport, Argentina. The sector will be served 5X-weekly using 176-seat Boeing 737 aircraft. The airline will face no direct competition on the route, OAG Schedules Analyser data shows. However, Aerolineas Argentinas operates a weekly service to Brasilia from Buenos Aires Aeroparque.
Jan. 7
Air Arabia is to launch its new nonstop flights to Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia. Starting Jan. 30, the new service will connect Sharjah International Airport with Addis Ababa Bole International Airport with three flights per week on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. The LCC will use Airbus A320 aircraft on the route. “This new route reflects Air Arabia’s commitment to enhancing connectivity and fostering economic and cultural ties between the UAE and Ethiopia,” Group CEO Adel Al Ali says.
EasyJet has opened a new route from Newcastle International Airport (NCL), England, to Lyon. The service will operate weekly on Saturdays throughout January and February during the ski season. “This new route not only provides our customers with even more choice to visit one of France's most vibrant cities, but it also opens up convenient connections to the French Alps,” says NCL COO Richard Knight.
Loong Air is increasing the frequency of flights between Xi’an, capital of the western Chinese province of Shaanxi, and Samarkand International Airport, Uzbekistan. The introduction of an additional frequency takes the route to 3X-weekly. The move comes as Xi’an was on Jan. 7 announced as the host destination for Routes Asia 2026.
Icelandair President and CEO Bogi Nils Bogason says the carrier expects 8% growth in its route network this year, adding that “the outlook for 2025 is promising.” The carrier plans to focus on capacity increases “during the off-peak months driving improved utilization of Icelandair’s infrastructure.” Bogason says, “Demand for travel is strong, as was for example reflected in the sales of gift certificates in 2024.” The airline transported a record of 4.7 million passengers in 2024, marking a rise of 9% on the previous 12 months.
Jan. 6
Avianca is strengthening connectivity between South America and Florida with several new routes, including a connection between Tampa and Bogota, marking Tampa's first-ever direct route to South America. The airline will also introduce flights connecting Fort Lauderdale with Medellin, Colombia, and Managua, Nicaragua, as well as Miami with San José, Costa Rica, and Guatemala City, Guatemala. With these additions, Avianca’s network will grow to 16 routes from South America to Florida. “These new routes address the needs of our customers and provide an opportunity to offer more direct flights to key destinations in both regions where we already have a strong presence,” says Avianca CEO Frederico Pedreira.
Germany’s Condor is launching a new route to Panama during the summer 2025 season, opening a 2X-weekly service between Frankfurt and Panama City. Flights are scheduled to commence on June 11 using Airbus A330-900neo aircraft. The planned addition comes weeks after the airline announced it will discontinue service from Frankfurt to several North American destinations following a German Federal Court of Justice ruling. The court overturned a longstanding measure enforced by the German Antitrust Authority that required Lufthansa to provide feeder flights to Condor’s network. Routes to Baltimore, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Phoenix and San Antonio in the U.S. are being canceled, alongside service to Edmonton and Halifax in Canada. In December 2024, Condor also pulled all service to Cuba from late April 2025, ending routes from Frankfurt to Hanana, Holguin and Varadero.
Royal Air Maroc is opening a new domestic route connecting Rabat and Dakhla. Flights will start on Jan. 15, operating twice a week on Wednesdays and Fridays. The launch of the route is in partnership with the Dakhla Oued-Eddahab region as part of efforts to improve air connectivity. As part of the agreement, the roundtrip fare on the route is capped at 2000 DH ($198) in economy class.
Air Arabia has launched a new route between Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates, and Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Flights will operate weekly on Fridays using Airbus A320 aircraft. With the addition of the new route to Tashkent, Air Arabia now offers flights from Ras Al Khaimah to eight destinations, including Cairo; Islamabad, Lahore and Peshawar, Pakistan; Jeddah, Saudi Arabia; Calicut, India; and Moscow. Additionally, the carrier operates nonstop flights to Tashkent from Sharjah and Abu Dhabi.
Brazil’s Azul Linhas Aéreas has wet-leased a Boeing 777-200 aircraft from EuroAtlantic Airways to help meet “the significant increase in demand” for flights between Brazil and Portugal. The aircraft is now operating between Sao Paulo Viracopos Airport and Lisbon Airport. EuroAtlantic says there is the “potential for additional aircraft to be added in 2025.”
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