Nov. 11
Fresh from announcing its first international route to Las Vegas (LAS), Canada Jetlines has announced a second US service. A new connection will be offered between Toronto Pearson (YYZ) and Melbourne Orlando International (MLB) in Florida. Flights are scheduled to commence on Jan. 19, 2023, running twice a week. Eddy Doyle, CEO of Canada Jetlines, said: “Canada is one of the top countries for international tourists to Central Florida and we are pleased to connect Canadians to their favorite sun-destinations as they begin to plan winter vacations.”
Korean Air will soon resume operations on more routes to China, Japan and Israel after a hiatus because of the pandemic. Starting Nov. 20, the airline will operate flights once a week from Seoul Incheon (ICN) to Shanghai Pudong (PVG) on Sundays. Service to Nanjing (NKG) will return on Dec. 7, while Qingdao (TAO) returns on Dec. 11. Both Chinese routes will be served once a week. To Japan, Korean Air will reinstate daily flights to Sapporo Chitose (CTS) and a 4X-weekly operation to Okinawa (OKA) from Dec. 1. Flights to Tel Aviv (TLV) will resume on December 26, and will operate three times a week on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
FlyOne Armenia plans to open a Yerevan(EVN)-Dubai (DXB) route. Flights will start on Dec. 16, operating twice a week on Mondays and Fridays.
Vistara has increased frequencies to Frankfurt (FRA) and Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG). The airline is now operating 6X-weekly flights between Delhi (DEL) and Frankfurt, and 5X-weekly flights between Delhi and Paris. The Indian carrier has added these flights following the addition of a third Boeing 787-9 to its fleet.
Air Serbia is to commence fights between Belgrade (BEG) and Malaga (AGP) in Spain. Flights will start on Dec. 18 and be operated twice a week on Thursdays and Sundays. Malaga becomes the fifth destination in Spain served by the airline at the present time. “We believe that Malaga will be as attractive to our passengers as Barcelona, Madrid, Palma de Mallorca, and Valencia,” said Boško Rupić, general manager, commercial and strategy, Air Serbia.
Nov. 10
Cyprus Airways has confirmed plans to operate two new routes from its base at Larnaca (LCA). Service to Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG) will be three times a week from Dec. 16, while Rome Fiumicino will be twice a week from Dec. 20. Both routes will operate year-round. “Both Paris Charles De Gaulle and Rome Fiumicino airports are important gateways for incoming tourism and business travel to Cyprus,” Cyprus Airways CEO Paul Sies said. “They are also central hubs with multiple international connection possibilities thus increasing Cyprus’ connectivity to various global markets.”
Emirates and Gulf Air have signed a unilateral codeshare partnership, starting in December. The agreement was signed on the first day of the Bahrain Airshow. Gulf Air will place its GF code on Emirates-operated flights beyond Dubai to destinations including Budapest, Prague, Warsaw, Algeria and Tunis. Waleed Al Alawi, Gulf Air CEO, said: “Our relationship with Emirates Airline has always been strong and today we are reaching a higher level of collaboration with many more opportunities in the horizon between the two carriers.”
Jetstar Asia has received approval to operate 21 additional weekly services from Singapore to five Southeast Asia cities: Bangkok, Bali, Penang, Phnom Penh and Phuket. From December, service to Bangkok Suvarnabhumi (BKK) will increase from 9 to 17X-weekly; Bali (DPS) from 9X-weekly to 2X-daily; Phnom Penh (PNH) from 6X-weekly to daily; Penang (PEN) from 6X-weekly to daily; and Phuket (HKT) from 2X-weekly to daily. “We’re seeing strong demand for air-travel in the upcoming holiday period, and we’re responding to ensure more of our customers have more options for low-fares travel during this time,” Jetstar Asia CEO Barathan Pasupathi said.
IndiGo has announced Hollongi (HGI) in northeast India as its 75th domestic destination and its 101st overall. From Nov. 28, the LCC will operate six flights per week from Mumbai and Kolkata. The Hollongi-Kolkata route will become daily from Dec. 3.
Nov. 9
Norse Atlantic Airways has released its planned summer 2023 schedule. The carrier intends to operate four routes from Oslo (OSL) to New York John F Kennedy (JFK), Fort Lauderdale (FLL), Los Angeles (LAX) and London Gatwick (LGW). The LCC will also fly from London Gatwick and Berlin (BER) to New York JFK. In October, Norse dropped routes to LAX from OSL and BER for the winter season.
Condor has operated its first flight between Frankfurt (FRA) and Johannesburg (JNB) in South Africa. Service will be on Mondays and Fridays with a flight time of about 11 hours. According to data provided by OAG Schedules Analyser, Lufthansa is the only other provider of nonstop service between Frankfurt and Johannesburg, flying daily using Boeing 747-8s.
UK regional carrier Flybe has commenced two routes from Newcastle (NCL). Belfast City (BHD) will receive daily service, while London Heathrow (LHR) will be available Monday through Friday. “We are pleased to see Flybe investing in the Northeast and we anticipate these new services, which offer even more choice to these popular domestic destinations, to be popular for business and leisure travelers alike,” NCL’s COO Richard Knight said.
Japan Airlines is increasing frequencies on four international routes. From Tokyo Haneda (HND), service to San Francisco (SFO) will rise from 4X-weekly to daily; London Heathrow will increase from 11X-weekly to 2X-daily; and Bangkok Suvarnabhumi (BKK) will also become 2X-daily, up from 10X-weekly. The SFO and LHR changes will come into effect in January, with BKK seeing a rise in February. In addition, from Dec. 1 the airline plans to take its Tokyo Narita (NRT)-Taiwan Taoyuan (TPE) service from 4X-weekly to daily.
Nov. 8
Virgin Australia and Singapore Airlines have resumed the sale of Virgin Australia codeshare flights to a host of destinations on Singapore Airlines’ network. Virgin Australia will codeshare to 42 points in 23 countries, including Ho Chi Minh City, Seoul, Amsterdam, Copenhagen, and Paris. Singapore Airlines continues to offer codeshare flights on 64 routes covering 31 destinations on Virgin Australia’s domestic and international network, including the addition of Queenstown in New Zealand. The two carriers said they would continue to work to expand codeshare flights to more destinations across the Singapore Airlines’ network in the coming weeks, subject to regulatory approval.
Air Arabia is launching three new routes to destinations in Russia. The LCC will connect Sharjah (SHJ) with Ufa from Dec. 1, Yekaterinburg from Dec. 2 and Kazan from Dec. 3. Ufa and Kazan will receive two flights per week, while Yekaterinburg will be 3X-weekly. In addition, Air Arabia Egypt is opening a nonstop route from Cairo (CAI) to Marseille (MRS) in France. Starting on Dec. 16, the route will operate twice a week using A320s.
Fresh from announcing a route to Stockholm Arlanda (ARN), Iceland’s Play has scheduled a new service to Hamburg (HAM) in Germany. The first flight from Reykjavik Keflavik (KEF) will be on May 16 and operate three times a week on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
Kazakhstan’s Air Astana will resume flights from Almaty (ALA) to Beijing Capital (PEK) on Nov. 22, with the service initially operating once a week using Airbus A321LR aircraft. The airline currently serves the China market with a 2X-weekly service from Almaty to Chengdu (CTU). All passengers traveling to Beijing are required to undergo a 10-day quarantine upon arrival in the city.
Luxembourg airline Luxair is introducing a new service between London City (LCY) and Antwerp (ANR) in Belgium. Flights will be 4X-weekly from Jan. 16, 2023, on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. Service will increase to 5X-weekly from March 29 with the addition of a Wednesday flight. Eric Dumas, Antwerp Airport CEO, said: "The relaunch of the London City route fits perfectly into the strategy of Antwerp Airport. We want to offer both tourists and business travelers a tailored flight program.”
Nov. 7
Air Serbia will launch direct flights between Belgrade (BEG) and Tianjin (TSN) in China from Dec. 9. Flights will initially operate once a week using Airbus A330s, departing Belgrade on Fridays and returning from Tianjin on Sundays. Serbia’s national carrier is re-establishing direct flights to China for the first time in 22 years, when JAT operated its last flight to Beijing. “Our ambitions in regard to flights to China do not end here,” Air Serbia CEO Jiří Marek said. “We hope that we will expand our network to other strategically important cities in the near future, such as Beijing and Shanghai."
Australian LCC Jetstar has operated its first nonstop connection between Sydney (SYD) and Seoul Incheon (ICN). The airline will operate three return services a week using 787s. It expects to carry up to 100,000 travelers each year between the two cities. From Dec. 10, Jetstar’s parent Qantas will also begin direct flights between Sydney and Seoul using A330s, marking the first Qantas scheduled service to Seoul since January 2008.
RwandAir’s first nonstop flight between Kigali (KGL) and London Heathrow (LHR) landed on Nov. 7. The airline has been operating flights to London via Brussels (BRU) for the past five years. The new nonstop service will be 4X-weekly. Simon Rickman, RwandAir UK country manager, said: “The UK is an incredibly important market for RwandAir as we know these new nonstop services will prove very popular with our customers, who will highly value our shorter journey times and increased connections to onward destinations across Africa.”
Dominican Republic-based startup Arajet has added routes to Quito (UIO) and Guayaquil (GYE) in Ecuador from Las Americas International (SDQ). The two new international destinations bring the airline’s network to 15 points in 10 countries since launching in September. Flights to Quito began on Nov. 2, with service to Guayaquil starting the following day. Both routes will be served twice a week. “We are on course to deliver 19 routes connecting 11 countries across the Americas from our home base in Santo Domingo by the end of 2022,” said Víctor Pacheco Méndez, CEO and founder of Arajet.
Emirates has resumed flights to two South American destinations which have been suspended since the onset of the pandemic. The carrier will operate a Dubai (DXB)-Rio de Janeiro Galeao ({{GIG))-Buenos Aires Ministro Pistarini (EZE) route four times per week using Boeing 777s. With the resumption of services to Argentina, which was first launched in 2012, Emirates has restored more than 90% of its pre-pandemic network. Alongside Rio de Janeiro, the airline also flies to Sao Paulo Guarulhos (GRU) in Brazil.
AirAsia X has resumed service to Tokyo Haneda (HND). The 3X-weekly route is the LCC’s first flights to Japan post-pandemic, ahead of its second route launch to Sapporo (CTS) in December.
Spain’s Air Europa plans to increase capacity to Paraguay. The airline will grow frequencies from 6X-weekly to daily from the end of March 2023. The move represents an increase of 32% compared with 2019 levels. Air Europa first launched flights to Paraguay in December 2015, connecting Madrid (MAD) and Asunción (ASU).
Batik Air will reinstate daily flights from Kuala Lumpur International (KUL) to Da Nang (DAD) in Vietnam from Dec. 6. Service will be daily with a flight time of about 2 hours and 35 minutes. Batik Air CEO Mushafiz Bin Mustafa Bakri said: “The restart of direct flights to Da Nang from Kuala Lumpur is a strong reflection of Batik Air’s continued efforts to strengthen the airline’s regional foothold.”
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