A focus on increasing frequencies to megacities in Asia, rather than adding new destinations in the continent, will be core to Finnair’s strategy over the next six years. Chief executive Topi Manner has also revealed plans to spend up to €4bn on new aircraft by 2025.
As China Eastern schedules its latest new route to Western Europe, Routesonline looks at the growth of the market and the new services set to start in the coming months.
China Southern has applied to the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) to open four new international routes, including services to Madrid and Vienna. Juneyao Airlines is also seeking to launch a seven-weekly service to Helsinki from Shanghai.
Finland’s flag carrier and largest airline is uniquely placed to increase traffic to Asia, while closer to home benefitting from Lapland’s popularity as a holiday destination.
The arrival of four new Airbus A350-900 airliners during 2017 will enable Finnair to grow its long-haul winter 2017/2018 schedule and alongside growth in its existing markets, it will also introduce four popular leisure destinations to its network. These new routes to Goa, Havana, Puerto Plata and Puerto Vallarta will be launched in the final quarter of the year and will initially operate on a seasonal basis through to the end of March 2018.
The Nordic flag carrier will temporarily suspend its flights between Helsinki and Chongqing from January 11, 2017 to May 2, 2017, as part of the airline's measures to create adequate room for pilot training for its Airbus A350 operations.
The airline launched the route on April 18, 2016 and is operating three flights a week between the two capitals using a 138-seat Airbus A319 aircraft in a dual business and economy class configuration. This summer a fourth weekly flight will also operate between June 22, 2016 and August 10, 2016.
Although it likely to be a couple of decades before the transport project is completed, subject to financial backing, a new high-speed connection between Helsinki’s Pasila station with Ulemiste station in Tallinn will impact travel dynamics between the two cities with single fares of around €36 (£26) being suggested in promotional literature.
The airline has confirmed it will add two further long-haul destinations to its network from spring 2016 with a three times weekly offering to Fukuoka in Japan and a four times weekly link to Guangzhou in China from its Helsinki Airport hub.
Finnair resumed non-stop scheduled services between its Helsinki hub and the US city of Miami in December 2014, introducing a three times weekly operation using an Airbus A340 from December 16, 2014 until March 21, 2015 and will resume the route later this year.
The aircraft will now enter the final production phase including further ground checks and flight tests before being officially handed-over to the Nordic carrier. Finnair has acquired a total of 19 A350 XWBs and will operate its fleet on premium long haul routes to Asia, beginning with services between Helsinki and Shanghai.
The flag carrier and largest airline of Finland will commence services to Billund, Edinburgh, Svalbard and Pula next year for its summer 2016 schedule.
In an interview with the Chinese media following the arrival of the A330 in China, Xu Xin, chief executive officer, Beijing Capital Airlines said that over the next five years the carrier intends to purchase at least 30 widebody aircraft to open more international routes between Chinese cities and major overseas tourist destinations.
The carrier will be the first airline in the world to operate the A350 on scheduled services to China, as Shanghai will be served daily by the next-generation Airbus aircraft from October 25, 2015. Beijing will follow with daily A350 services to commence from November 21, 2015.
The airline announced it would resume flights to Dublin last September when it also revealed summer 2015 network plans to reintroduce links between Helsinki and Athens and Malta. The Irish market was last served by the carrier in summer 2007 and it is now offering a six times weekly link through to the end of October 2015 using a 100-seat Embraer E190.
Finnair has yet to confirm its proposed operational plans for the aircraft but will use the aircraft on its busiest Asian routes from its Helsinki hub and will initially deploy the aircraft to Shanghai, before later deploying it to Bangkok and Beijing in 2015 and Hong Kong and Singapore from 2016.
Helsinki Airport is set to welcome its long-awaited train connection this July, when the Ring Rail Line opens. The new rail line will provide a convenient connection between the airport and the city centre.
The new route, flown using an Airbus A330-300, will be operate within the carrier’s joint business on transatlantic traffic with fellow oneworld alliance partners British Airways, Iberia, American Airlines and American’s merger partner US Airways. Chicago is a hub for US major American Airlines and will allow travellers codeshare connections to destinations throughout the United States.
