European Airlines Adding Transatlantic Flights for 2019 as Brexit Fears Ease
by Barbara Peterson
Norwegian Air will add two new destinations out of Boston next year. Photo: Norwegian Air
Flying to Europe next summer should get easier—and possibly cheaper—with a number of transatlantic carriers announcing new routes for 2019.
This week, Norwegian and TAP Air Portugal both revealed plans to expand their flight networks in the U.S., starting in the spring, adding new cities and increasing frequencies in some markets.
Low-cost carrier Norwegian, already one of the fastest growing carriers over the Atlantic, will add two new destinations out of Boston, with four weekly flights to Rome starting on March 31, and thrice-weekly Madrid flights on May 2. Introductory fares will start at $199.90 one-way to Madrid and $299.90 one-way to Rome.
The carrier is also adding two cities—San Francisco and Miami—to its route map on March 31, with new nonstop to London to those gateways. Those will replace current service to the U.K. from Oakland and Fort Lauderdale, respectively. Coach fares will begin at $159.90 one-way.
Norwegian is adding frequencies to a number of other U.S. cities including Denver, Los Angeles, New York, Oakland, and Fort Lauderdale.
Meanwhile, TAP Air Portugal, which had been hinting at adding new cities in the U.S., is expected to start flying nonstop from Lisbon to Washington, D.C. and Chicago in June. That will bring the number of North American gateways for the Portuguese flag carrier to a total of seven.
Fares will start at $265 one-way, the carrier said. Flights will be aboard brand new Airbus 330-900 Neo aircraft, with 168 economy seats, 96 in a roomier economy plus section, and 34 fully flat business class seats.
The expansions come as one cloud hanging over the prospects for transatlantic travel—Brexit—was resolved, at least as far as aviation is concerned: The U.S. and the U.K. have finalized a new open skies deal that will keep flights between the countries operating as normal, as the U.K. prepares to leave the European Union. That news, plus the recent drop in fuel prices, suggest a strong season for international travel in 2019, experts say.
