BWI Airport CEO: Copa Airlines’ New Service Opens Latin America Connections

Copa Airlines’ new service to Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI) gives Baltimore-originating passengers significantly more access to Latin America via connections at Panama City’s Tocumen International Airport (PTY), according to BWI’s top official.

“BWI Marshall has a growing international presence,” Ricky Smith, the airport’s CEO, told Aviation Week Network after a Copa Boeing 737-800 landed at BWI on June 28, inaugurating the Panamanian flag-carrier’s 4X-weekly PTY-BWI service. “Service with Copa Airlines to Panama City gives us expanded connections to the rest of Latin America, which is what's needed for this community. It opens up opportunities for tourism, for business and commerce, [and] for leisure travel, so we're excited about it.”

BWI has limited nonstop connections to Latin America, and PTY is now the most southern airport served from the Maryland airport.

According to Copa Chief Commercial Officer Dennis Cary, who arrived at BWI aboard the 737-800, flights in both directions were full on June 28 and bookings on the route have been strong so far.

“Part of our unique offering has always been the number of cities that we serve with a single connection at our hub in Panama,” Cary told Aviation Week Network, noting the Star Alliance carrier serves 80 destinations in the Americas. “We obviously see local traffic [with PTY as the final destination for passengers from BWI], but it's similar to most of our routes, where about a third of our passengers are going to [and] from Panama and two-thirds are connecting elsewhere.”

Smith said he knows of passengers utilizing the route to transfer via PTY to Trinidad. “Well, we're already hearing examples of people who are taking this flight, not necessarily to go to Panama, but to go to some of the many destinations Copa serves beyond Panama,” he said. “And that's part of the attraction of the flight—it extends our reach to Latin America in a way that I'll say that this market has been thirsty for.”

Icelandair and Play, two Iceland-based carriers, serve BWI, and British Airways operates year-round service to London Heathrow Airport, but BWI remains domestic-dominant, with Southwest Airlines operating the majority of its flights. Washington Dulles International Airport, about 60 mi. south of BWI, sees the bulk of the Baltimore-Washington region’s international flights.

Pointing to Copa’s service, Smith said: “I think anytime we're able to showcase how successful international service can be from BWI, it enhances our opportunities with other international carriers.” 

BWI becomes Copa’s 14th U.S. destination. The airline on July 6 will make Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS) the 15th U.S. airport it serves when it commences 4X-weekly service from Panama City to the Texas capital.

Though Copa has no specific plans to launch more U.S. routes beyond BWI and AUS, “we see a lot of opportunities still here in the U.S.,” Cary said. “So, over the next few years, I expect we'll add several more U.S. cities to our network ... We’ll take a look at where demand will be [strongest] and, where it makes sense for us, will add service."

Cary continued: "As you would imagine, we have a long list of [new market] opportunities to look at throughout the Americas, but the U.S. in particular has quite a number. As we bring on 18 to 20 airplanes in the next couple of years, they have to go somewhere—and certainly a part of that will be the U.S.”

Copa ended Q1 2023 with 99 aircraft in its all-737 fleet, 67 of which were prior-generation 737-800s. It is slated to add 12 737-9s to its fleet in 2023.