Routes In Brief: Rolling Daily Updates (W/C Nov. 13, 2023)

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

Nov. 17

Indian carrier Vistara has inaugurated nonstop flights between Mumbai and Frankfurt. The route will be operated six times per week using Boeing 787-9 aircraft. The German city becomes the airline’s second European destination after London Heathrow Airport. OAG Schedules Analyser data shows that Lufthansa also serves the Mumbai-Frankfurt market, flying daily aboard 787-9s.

Detroit has become Turkish Airlines’ 13th destination in the U.S. The Star Alliance member will initially serve Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport from Istanbul Airport three times per week, rising to 4X-weekly from Dec. 25. “We’re thrilled to connect Istanbul and Detroit, creating opportunities for travel, business, and cultural exploration,” Turkish Airlines Chairman Ahmet Bolat says. “As the national flag carrier of Turkiye, our beautiful country, we reach more countries than any other airline in the world, and by adding new destinations to our ever-expanding network, such as Detroit, we continue to serve our primary mission of uniting people and cultures all around the globe.”

Saudi LCC Flynas has opened a new route connecting Riyadh and Bahrain. Flights between Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport and Bahrain International Airport (BAH) will operate daily using Airbus A320neos. The route is already served by Gulf Air, Lufthansa and Saudia. Flynas will launch a second route to BAH from Dec. 7 with two flights per week from Jeddah.

Frontier Airlines on Nov. 16 commenced nonstop service from Southwest Florida International Airport (RSW) in Fort Myers to Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport and Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport. Additionally, the airline has restarted nonstop service from RSW to Long Island MacArthur Airport, and Syracuse Hancock International Airport. On Nov. 17, Frontier is also resuming nonstop service from RSW to Buffalo Niagara International Airport, increasing the ULCC’s network to 12 destinations from RSW. Elsewhere, the ULCC has inaugurated daily flights from Chicago Midway International Airport to Cancun International Airport, Mexico.

Nov. 16

Delta Air Lines and Latvian carrier airBaltic will begin codesharing on routes from Nov. 22. The partnership will see Delta place its DL code on 20 airBaltic-operated routes from its hubs in Riga, Latvia, Tallinn, Estonia, and Vilnius, Lithuania. The opportunity to codeshare follows the Latvian Civil Aviation Association obtaining a Category 1 rating from the U.S. FAA. “The collaboration with Delta, known for its expansive network and international cooperation infrastructure, holds tremendous opportunities,” airBaltic President and CEO Martin Gauss says. “It will not only attract new passengers to airBaltic, but also elevate the Baltics’ global visibility and connectivity.”

Thai AirAsia is introducing a new route between Hat Yai and Singapore, flying three times a week every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday from Feb. 1, 2024. Hat Yai is a city in Thailand's far south near the Malaysian border. “The new route will connect the Thai south’s economic center with one of the most important cities in ASEAN, bringing another travel option that saves on time and cost,” says Tansita Akrarittipirom, head of commercial for Thai AirAsia.

AirJapan, the new ANA Holdings brand for medium-haul international routes, has announced that Seoul Incheon International Airport will be its second destination. Flights from Tokyo Narita International Airport (NRT) will start on Feb. 22, 2024, using Boeing 787-8 aircraft. AirJapan will commence commercial operations on Feb. 9, offering flights from NRT to Bangkok Suvarnabhumi International Airport.

Australia’s Jetstar is to open a new domestic route from Sydney Airport to Busselton Margaret River Airport. Frequencies will be 3X-weekly from March 26, 2024, using Airbus A320 aircraft. “Our flights from Melbourne [to Busselton Margaret River] have already been incredibly popular, and once our Sydney flights launch, we’ll be carrying well over 100,000 customers to and from this captivating region annually,” Jetstar Group CEO Stephanie Tully says. On Nov. 15, Jetstar announced plans to launch a new Sydney-Osaka Kansai route, returning to the market after a 15-year absence.

Dominican Republic-based Arajet has inaugurated service to Argentina. The move marks the first nonstop connection between Santo Domingo’s Las Americas International Airport and Buenos Aires’ Ministro Pistarini International Airport. Three roundtrips per week are available using Boeing 737-8s.

U.S. carrier Avelo Airlines has launched its first route beyond the continental U.S. with flights to Puerto Rico’s San Juan Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport from both Tweed-New Haven Airport, Connecticut, and Wilmington Airport, Delaware. Avelo operates both routes 2X-weekly on Wednesdays and Saturdays, utilizing Boeing 737s.

Frontier Airlines has restarted nonstop service from Cleveland Hopkins International Airport (CLE) to Miami International Airport. Additionally, the ULCC will resume daily nonstop flights from CLE to Sarasota Bradenton International Airport in New York on Dec. 15. The move comes a week after the Denver-based airline announced the opening of a crew base at CLE from March 2024.

Nov. 15

Philippine Airlines (PAL) and Singapore Airlines (SIA) have signed a new codeshare partnership, enhancing travel options between the Philippines and Singapore, as well as to other domestic and international destinations via their respective hubs. The codeshare agreement will start on SIA’s and PAL’s flights between Singapore and Manila, the Philippines, by the fourth quarter of 2023, subject to regulatory approvals. SIA will also codeshare on PAL’s flights from Manila to 27 destinations within the Philippines, while PAL will codeshare on SIA’s flights to six destinations in Europe: Copenhagen, Frankfurt, Milan, Paris, Rome, and Zurich. Both airlines will also explore an expansion of the codeshare agreement to include SIA’s flights to additional points in Europe, as well as destinations in Australia, India, New Zealand and South Africa.

Australian carrier Bonza has launched operations from its new base at Gold Coast Airport. The LCC will progressively introduce 14 routes over November and December. Its inaugural flight departed on Nov. 15 to Townsville, Australia. Domestic service will follow to Albury, Avalon, Bundaberg, Cairns, Darwin, Gladstone, Launceston, Mackay, Melbourne, Mt. Isa, Mildura, Rockhampton and the Whitsunday Coast. Eleven out of the 14 routes are not currently serviced by any other airline.

Air Canada is boosting its Asia-Pacific network capacity beginning mid-December through to the end of summer 2024. The carrier is set to operate up to 57 weekly frequencies between Canada and Asia in winter 2023-24, increasing to up to 64 flights for summer 2024. “Air Canada's Asia services continue to reflect strong demand and we are boosting capacity to this geographic area as we deploy our international diversification strategy,” says Air Canada Executive Vice President of Revenue and Network Planning Mark Galardo.

Nov. 14

Australian LCC Jetstar has announced the first nonstop service from Melbourne Airport (MEL) to Hervey Bay in southern Queensland. Starting on June 20, 2024, the route will be offered three times per week. Jetstar’s Executive Manager Jenn Armor says Hervey Bay is a largely undiscovered vacation destination for people living in the state of Victoria, given there has never been direct flights. Jetstar already serves Hervey Bay from Sydney. “We know Melburnians love exploring Queensland, and with the strong demand we’ve seen for Hervey Bay out of Sydney, we’re expecting these new flights to be extremely popular,” she adds.

Aerolineas Argentinas plans to launch a 2X-weekly route between Cordoba, Argentina, and Asuncion, Paraguay. Flights will start in April 2024, operating twice a week on Tuesdays and Saturdays. The carrier will be the sole operator of the route.

Delta Air Lines has pushed back the planned resumption of flights between Los Angeles International Airport and Shanghai Pudong International Airport. According to OAG Schedules Analyser data, flights will now restart on July 12, 2024, having previously been scheduled to recommence on March 31. The route will operate four times per week aboard Airbus A350-900 aircraft.

Nov. 13

IndiGo has expanded its codeshare agreement with Qantas. Under the agreement, IndiGo passengers will now be able to access four new destinations via Singapore: Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney. IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers says: “For IndiGo, placing its code on another airline and connecting over a mid-point (Singapore) is only the second one of its kind. With this, we are now enabling the vast IndiGo network to connect with Qantas’ unmatched reach, [and] we create more opportunities for trade and tourism between both nations.” In 2022, Qantas and IndiGo finalized a codeshare partnership enabling Qantas customers flying on nonstop flights between Australia and India to connect to 21 destinations in India on IndiGo.

Lynx Air has operated its inaugural flight between Toronto Pearson International Airport and Tampa International Airport. Service will be four times per week on Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. “This winter, Tampa will be Toronto Pearson’s 10th-largest transborder route by seat capacity,” says Khalil Lamrabet, chief commercial officer at Greater Toronto Airports Authority. “More than 9,000 people looking to travel to Tampa flew indirectly last winter, so this service will help meet the very healthy demand that exists for the sunshine state.”

Spirit Airlines is launching nonstop service from San Antonio International Airport (SAT), Texas, to Tampa International Airport (TPA), Florida, beginning on Jan. 11, 2024. The route is the seventh added from SAT since the ULCC began serving the airport in November 2022. Spirit already flies to two other cities in Florida: Fort Lauderdale and Orlando. The latest addition to TPA will operate 4X-weekly through April 5. “We know our travelers will use this new service to Tampa,” says Jesus Saenz, director of airports at San Antonio Airport System. “Once Spirit sees that, the goal is to expand it to daily service that’s offered year-round.”

Porter Airlines has opened its daily service between Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ) and Southwest Florida International Airport (RSW) in Fort Myers, Florida. Flights between YYZ and RSW are operated by 132-seat Embraer E195-E2 aircraft.