The latest airline route news, featuring network changes, schedule alterations, codeshares and interline agreements.
Sept. 21
Ryanair will increase capacity at Riga Airport, Latvia, by 6% during the winter 2026-27 season, adding 40,000 seats and operating 16 routes with two based aircraft. The airline will increase frequencies on 10 routes, including services to Barcelona, Spain, and Milan Bergamo, Italy. Ryanair says Latvia will be the only Baltic market where it will grow this winter, while its capacity in Estonia and Lithuania will fall by 25%, which it attributed to higher airport charges. The airline also outlined a five-year proposal to double its traffic across the three Baltic states to 11 million annual seats, supported by 16 based aircraft.
Australia and Indonesia have updated their bilateral air services agreement, allowing airlines from each country to operate an additional 5,000 seats per week between the two markets. The revised memorandum of understanding is the first update to the arrangements since 2011 and also expands traffic rights beyond Jakarta and Denpasar to destinations including Lake Toba, Borobudur, Mandalika, Komodo and Likupang. The agreement also allows Australian and Indonesian airlines to operate services to and from Western Sydney International Airport. The Australian government says the changes are intended to support increased passenger services and provide airlines with greater scope to expand connectivity between the two countries.
Frontier Airlines will launch service between Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport and New York LaGuardia Airport on Nov. 20 as it continues to expand into markets previously served by Spirit Airlines. Flights will operate daily during peak holiday periods and 3X-weekly at other times. The addition will take Frontier's Detroit network to 15 nonstop destinations, 11 of which were served by Spirit before it ceased operations earlier in 2026. Frontier is also increasing frequencies from Detroit to Fort Lauderdale, Tampa, Orlando and Miami. The airline expects to offer 41% more seats from Detroit in March 2027 than a year earlier.
Ethiopian Airlines will launch 4X-weekly service between Addis Ababa and Port Harcourt, Nigeria, on Dec. 1. Flights will operate on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays using Boeing 737-8 aircraft. Port Harcourt will join Lagos, Abuja, Kano and Enugu in Ethiopian’s Nigerian network, providing connections through Addis Ababa to destinations across Africa, Europe, Asia, the Middle East and the Americas. The carrier has served Nigeria since 1960.
Air New Zealand plans to increase capacity between Auckland and Hobart, Australia, when the seasonal route returns for a sixth season in October. Flights will operate 3X-weekly for most of the season, increasing to 4X-weekly between Feb. 27 and March 20, 2027, while the operating period will be extended from Oct. 25 through the end of April. Hobart Airport says the expanded schedule will provide up to 170 flights and more than 33,000 seats, representing increases of 27% and 28%, respectively, compared with the previous season.
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