Routes In Brief: Rolling Daily Updates (W/C May 2, 2022)

Credit: Norse Atlantic Airways

Welcome to our rolling daily coverage of new routes alongside services that are scheduled to resume.

Do you have a story you would like us to feature? Let us know your network news.

May 6

Frontier Airlines has launched flights between Miami (MIA) and Norman Manley International (KIN) in Kingston, Jamaica. It marks the first time the ULCC has offered service to the Jamaican capital. Flights will operate three times weekly year-round. “Jamaica is benefitting from our aggressive growth in the Caribbean as we aim to bring more visitors to this highly desirable vacation paradise and make it easy for island residents to travel to destinations in the US,” said Alfredo Gonzalez, international sales manager at Frontier Airlines.


Two new routes are being opened by LOT Polish Airlines at Rzeszow (RZE). Flights to Venice (VCE) will start on June 12, operating on Sundays, followed by a domestic connection to Olsztyn-Mazury (SZY) on June 18 on Mondays and Saturdays.


Brazilian carrier Azul has started a Manaus (MAO)-Barcelos (BAZ) route, becoming the sole carrier to serve the domestic sector. Flights will be 3X-weekly, increasing to 4X-weekly from Oct. 5. Negotiations to secure the route were led by tourism association Amazonastur. President Gustavo Sampaio said Azul’s operation would increase inbound tourism, helping to stimulate employment and economic growth.


EasyJet has inaugurated a new route from Birmingham (BHX) in the UK to Malaga (AGP) in Spain. Service is four times per week on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. The airline last week also announced it would be launching a new 2X-weekly service to Nantes (NTE). Overall, easyJet is set to operate nearly four times more seats from Birmingham this summer than it did in summer 2019.


Air Arabia Abu Dhabi will begin seasonal flights to Trabzon (TZX) in Turkey from Abu Dhabi (AUH), starting June 15. Service will take place on Wednesdays using Airbus A320 aircraft.


May 5

Qantas has brought forward the return of its direct flight between Perth (PER) and London Heathrow (LHR). Nonstop daily service will resume on May 23 instead of June 19 as previously planned. The route, which originates in Melbourne (MEL), has been operating via Darwin (DRW).


SAS Scandinavian Airlines will resume flights between Copenhagen (CPH) and Hannover (HAJ) on May 13, operating up to 6X-weekly. From May 28, Hannover will welcome a new airline partner when Volotea begins a 1X-weekly Cagliari (CAG), while Air Serbia plans to resume its daily HAJ-Belgrade (BEG) route from June 3. From June 15, Hannover will also welcome the launch of Fly Erbil’s 1X-weekly Erbil (EBL) route.


German leisure carrier Condor has confirmed that it will return to Baltimore/Washington (BWI) from Frankfurt (FRA). Flights will operate three times per week on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays from June 4. "Due to the pandemic, travel to Europe from the U.S. was only accessible to a limited extent for the past two summers. As a result, we are seeing an increasing amount of pent-up demand from Americans who are now eager to visit Europe," said Mathias Friess, VP and area manager, North America.


Aeroméxico will increase frequencies from Mexico City Juarez (MEX) to Buenos Aires Ministro Pistarini (EZE) starting June 8. The airline will operate a total of 74 monthly flights with more than 18,000 available seats, which represents a growth of 20% compared to the current offer.


Allegiant Air has announced that routes from St. Cloud Regional (STC) in Minnesota to Phoenix-Mesa (AZA) and Fort Myers (RSW) will return for the northern winter 2022/23 season. The schedules to both destinations will be twice weekly.


May 4

Canadian ULCC Flair Airlines is launching two new routes to Puerto Vallarta (PVR) in Mexico during the northern winter 2022 season. Nonstop flights will operate twice a week on Wednesdays and Saturdays from Edmonton (YEG), beginning on Nov. 3. A 1X-weekly flight on Saturdays from Vancouver (YYZ) will begin two days later. “We’re here to offer affordable options to Canadians and growing our network in Mexico is an exciting step forward as we continue our international expansion,” Flair CEO Stephen Jones said.


American Airlines’ service from Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) to Grenada’s Maurice Bishop International (GND) will resume on June 4. Flights will be 1X-weekly on Saturdays. “Visitor arrivals have already started to increase as more people get back to traveling and we anticipate more travelers looking to get away during the summer months,” said Petra Roach, CEO of Grenada Tourism Authority. American also serves Grenada daily from Miami (MIA).


UK regional carrier Loganair has restarted flying between the Isle of Man (IOM) and London Heathrow (LHR). The airline will serve the route daily using 72-seat ATR 72-600 aircraft. It last operated the sector in August 2021. In addition, Loganair provides 10X-weekly Isle of Man-London City (LCY) flights. Both the London City and Heathrow routes will be flown under Loganair’s codeshare agreement with British Airways.


Egyptair has resumed flights from Cairo (CAI) to Mumbai (BOM) after a suspension of more than two years. The airline will operate the route four times per week onboard 737-800s. It becomes the sole nonstop service between Egypt and India.


TUI’s inaugural flight from Doncaster Sheffield Airport (DSA) to Cancun (CUN) in Mexico has launched. The route is the airline’s second long-haul destination from DSA in addition to the weekly Melbourne Orlando flight serving Florida. Flights between DSA and CUN are 1X-weekly using Boeing 787-8s. “This summer TUI will offer +30% more seats to passengers than before the pandemic, a testament to the strength of our partnership and the quality of the airport experience,” said Declan Maguire, head of aviation development at DSA.


May 3

Norse Atlantic Airways has opened reservations for its inaugural routes. They all serve primary US airports rather than the secondary points such as New York Stewart (SWF) and Ontario (ONT) that had been explored. The startup’s first service will connect Oslo (OSL) and New York John F Kennedy (JFK) from June 14, which will become daily from July 1. Service from Oslo to Fort Lauderdale (FLL) commences June 18 and Oslo to Orlando (MCO) on July 5, both of which will be 3X-weekly. A route between Oslo and Los Angeles (LAX) will launch on Aug. 9 and will also operate three times per week. “The introduction of affordable Norse Atlantic Airways point-to point flights between Europe and the United States, will benefit both local tourism and businesses,” CEO Bjorn Tore Larsen said. “Not only are we directly investing in the countries that we operate by employing local staff we are also supporting job creation across the wider tourism and service industry.”


Rex has reached an agreement to become Delta Air Lines’ new partner in the Australian market. The two carriers have signed a letter-of-intent for a commercial arrangement involving reciprocal interline services. The relationship is expected to begin in the third quarter of 2022. “Delta will not only connect international travelers on Rex’s trunk domestic routes but could also allow them easy access to Rex’s expansive network of over 60 routes throughout regional Australia,” Rex deputy chairman John Sharp said. Delta currently serves Los Angeles (LAX)-Sydney (SYD) daily, increasing to 10X-weekly from Dec. 18.


United Airlines is resuming flights between San Francisco (SFO) and Melbourne (MEL), beginning with 3X-weekly services from June. The restart of this route complements United's existing service between Sydney and the airline's hubs in San Francisco and Los Angeles. United began offering direct service to Melbourne from Los Angeles in 2014 and launched nonstop flights between San Francisco and Melbourne in October of 2019, prior to the onset of the pandemic.


French bee is to launch a Paris Orly (ORY)-Miami (MIA) service from December 2022, operating three times a week. The planned launch comes after the long-haul LCC began an ORY-Los Angeles (LAX) route on April 30 using one of its existing Airbus A350-900s. Flights between ORY and LAX are currently 3X-weekly, increasing to 6X-weekly in July.


Emirates landed in Bali for the first time since the suspension of flights in 2020 due to the pandemic. Flight EK398 touched down at Denpasar International (DPS) on May 1. The airline is currently operating five-weekly services from Dubai International (DXB) and will scale up its operations to the island with a daily service starting from July 1.


US seaplane operator Tailwind Air is launching a seasonal route from Boston Harbor’s Fan Pier Marina (BNH) to Provincetown Harbor on Cape Cod. The airline will also offer nonstop and one-stop flights from Manhattan’s Skyport Marina to Provincetown Harbor. Scheduled summer service begins May 25. "We are the only seaplane operator in the Northeast with scheduled commuter service, allowing a semi-private, super-fast experience to hard-to-reach popular summer destinations, while also continuing to serve our core Manhattan to Boston Harbor customers,” said Peter Manice, director of scheduled service.


Latvian airline airBaltic has opened a new base at Tampere (TMP) in Finland. Seven new routes are being launched, while the carrier will also continue its existing service from Riga (RIX). Flights to Copenhagen (CPH), Frankfurt (FRA), Malaga (AGP), Munich (MUC), Oslo (OSL) and Rhodes (RHO) have now begun, with a route to Amsterdam (AMS) opening on June 1. “We hope that the passenger demand will gradually grow, therefore we may launch additional new destinations to various business hubs and leisure destinations over time,” airBaltic CEO Martin Gauss said.

David Casey

David Casey is Editor in Chief of Routes, the global route development community's trusted source for news and information.