SLOVENIA: Adria Airways Goes Bankrupt And Ceases Operations

The collapse of Adria Airways has cost Slovenia connections to dozens of international markets, a study has revealed.

The national airline filed for bankruptcy and cancelled all flights on Monday.

Adria had previously withdrawn virtually all its flights last week.

Bankruptcy proceedings were initiated by the management of the company because of the company’s insolvency, the carrier said in a statement.

A study by ForwardKeys, the travel analytics firm, revealed that the bankruptcy resulted in the loss of direct flight connections with two dozen countries, including Czech Republic, Spain and Switzerland, all important origin markets for the country.

Adria has accounted for 60 per cent of all international seat capacity to Slovenia.

Other key source markets such as Austria, Germany and France will also be impacted, as Adria Airways accounted for 99 per cent, 87 per cent and 51 per cent of seat capacity on flights from these countries.

The full list of countries, which had direct connections to Slovenia in the past 12 months and have now lost them, comprises: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Egypt, Estonia, Georgia, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Jordan, Latvia, Macedonia, Norway, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and Ukraine.

However, the impact is less dramatic than the list suggests, because some of the routes, such as those from Estonia, Georgia and Greece are seasonal, and others, from Cyprus, Hungary, Italy, Jordan, Latvia, Romania and Ukraine are irregular.

Olivier Ponti, vice president, insights, ForwardKeys, said: Given the attractiveness of Slovenia as a destination, I expect other airlines to fill the gaps left by Adria Airways but how long it will take to get back to the previous level is anyone´s guess.

Slovenia, and its vibrant capital Ljubljana, remain accessible and well worth a visit; however, if you were counting on Adria Airways to get you there quickly, you must now allow more time.

So following the collapse of Adria Airways this week, Slovenia’s only airport in Ljubljana has lost almost half of all its air traffic.

Most flights by Adria Airways were feeder flights to Star Alliance hubs, so it is no great surprise that Lufthansa Group announced today it will launch an entire network out of Ljubljana Joze Pucnik Airport within a month.

Simple Flying first reported in June that an Adria Airways bankruptcy was increasingly likely. Adverse circumstances surrounding the Slovenian flag carrier kept growing over the summer and operations officially ceased in full earlier this week.

For years, Adria has been positioned as a feeder to Lufthansa Group hubs, serving Brussels, Frankfurt, Zurich, Vienna and Munich several times daily.

Adria Airways had such a strong relationship with Lufthansa Group that it also had feeder flights to Frankfurt and Munich from the capitals of Albania and Kosovo.

Thus, with the collapse of Adria, Lufthansa Group has been left with a loss of 216 weekly outbound and inbound flights to channel its connecting passengers.

These include 64 weekly flights to Frankfurt, which even for a giant like Lufthansa is not insignificant. 42 of these flights were from Ljubljana, 6 from Tirana and 16 from Pristina.

To fill the acute gap left by Adria in Ljubljana, several Lufthansa Group airlines are stepping in. An entire network is being formed in Ljubljana by Lufthansa’s airlines, despite the Group not having a single route to Slovenia at all at the moment.

Brussels Airlines is launching a six-times-a-week service in November. This will coincide with Wizz Air pulling out of Slovenia and no longer flying the Ljubljana to Brussels route after seven years.

Today, an announcement followed from Lufthansa Group too, that Lufthansa and Swiss will launch their own services.

Lufthansa CityLine will be flying double daily between Frankfurt and Ljubljana with its CRJ900 aircraft. Flights will depart Frankfurt every day at 09.15 am and 4.40 pm, arriving in Ljubljana at 10.30 am and 5.55 pm.

They will then depart Ljubljana at 11.05 am and 6.30 pm, returning to Frankfurt at 12.25 pm and 7.50 pm. Flights are already bookable, from Sunday 27 October, the first day of the winter schedule.

These are clearly timed to coincide with Lufthansa’s morning arrival wave into Frankfurt and evening departure wave out of it. The route is very clearly intended to be a feeder.

From Munich, the German airline will be flying daily starting Friday 1 November. Flights will depart Munich at 10.45 am to arrive at Ljubljana at 11.45 am. They will then depart Ljubljana again at 1.10 pm to return to Munich at 2.10 pm.

Swiss itself will be the first to begin flying, launching five weekly flights in just two weeks’ time. At the start of the winter schedule, on 27 October, the frequency will increase to daily.

Once the frequency increases to daily, the flights will be operated by Swiss’s A220 aircraft. Until then, presumably, because no spare aircraft are available, flights will run as five weekly with a Helvetic Airways E190.

What will be interesting to see is whether Lufthansa Group airlines expand their schedule to Ljubljana to match the capacity that Adria had on these routes.

Adria had three daily flights to Zurich all summer long, while Swiss has only scheduled a single daily rotation.

Austrian Airlines has been absent from this announcement. Adria’s two daily flights to Vienna remain nonexistent and all the feeder traffic to Austrian and Eurowings left unserved.

With Slovenia’s only airport now fully dominated by Lufthansa Group airlines, it will be interesting to see how they adapt their network over time.

It will also be interesting to see which competitors to Lufthansa Group step in to take some of the market share left vacant by Adria.

Meanwhile, bankruptcy proceedings have officially been initiated against Slovenia's Adria Airways following its cessation of operations.

Documentation issued by the district court in the city of Kranj gives creditors three months, until 3 January 2020, to declare claims against the operator.

It names Janez Pustaticnik as the manager.

Adria's latest operating licence, issued in 2011, has been revoked by the Slovenian civil aviation agency and the carrier banned from operating commercial air transport.

Star Alliance has also confirmed, as a matter of formality, that Adria Airways has left the airline group as a result of the bankruptcy.

Adria ceased to be a member of Star on 2 October, the alliance says. It says the situation is a regrettable development, given that Adria has been a member for 15 years.

But Star points out that its links with Slovenia are being maintained by new services from Lufthansa, Swiss and Brussels Airlines

Tourism Observer

USA: Hyatt And Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ To Collaborate In More Than 200 Hotels

Hyatt Hotels Corporation and Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ (SLH) today announced the ongoing expansion of Hyatt's and SLH's existing loyalty alliance, celebrating a milestone of over 200 participating SLH hotels around the world for World of Hyatt members to earn and redeem points and enjoy on-property benefits.

This latest expansion has quadrupled the number of participating SLH properties since the alliance launched in November 2018, and its expansion is expected to continue throughout 2019.

We encourage World of Hyatt members to explore these luxurious destinations around the globe, from Croatia to New Zealand, said Amy Weinberg, senior vice president, World of Hyatt.

The rapid growth of this strategic loyalty alliance is a testament to our commitment to delivering unique experiences wherever our members travel and continuing to extend the genuine care they have come to expect from Hyatt to more locations around the world.

World of Hyatt members now have access to more than 200 of SLH's luxury boutique hotels that offer new locations across growth markets for Hyatt, including Croatia, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Italy, Kenya, Mozambique, New Zealand, Portugal, St. Vincent and The Grenadines and Turks and Caicos and more.

Through this exclusive relationship, World of Hyatt members can explore sought-after destinations like Monkey Island Estate, an 18th century estate turned boutique retreat on a private island on the Thames, Berkshire; Ovolo The Valley Brisbane, a boutique oasis located in the center of Fortitude Valley, Brisbane's ultra-hip entertainment district.

Mykonos Riviera Hotel and Spa, a sun-drenched luxury resort tucked against the rocky backdrop of centuries-old Aegean cliffs; Enso Ango Fuya II, an artful Kyoto escape set across five Zen-inspired buildings; and Hotel Nantipa, a Costa Rican paradise retreat immersed in the surf culture of Santa Teresa.

This alliance has proven to be a perfect match. We are seeing a positive impact on reservations for our hotels from World of Hyatt members, said Jean-François Ferret, chief executive officer, Small Luxury Hotels of the World™.

Exposure to more than 16 million World of Hyatt members has not only helped increase reservations, but also allows us to expand our brand awareness while providing more luxury boutique hotels options for World of Hyatt members to choose from on their travel journey.

Since the World of Hyatt and SLH alliance launched in November 2018, the countries members have most visited include Italy, the UK, France, China and Greece.

World of Hyatt members can take advantage of the following loyalty benefits when booking a participating SLH hotel through a Hyatt channel:

Earning and Redemption

- World of Hyatt members earn five Base Points per $1 USD spent on eligible room revenue

- World of Hyatt members will receive their standard tier Bonus Points on eligible room revenue spend (10% Discoverist, 20% Explorist, 30% Globalist)

- Qualifying nights at participating SLH hotels will count toward earning World of Hyatt elite-tier status

- World of Hyatt members can redeem points to use for free night awards on SLH hotel reservations; each participating SLH property has been categorized into Hyatt's existing hotel award chart.

Member Benefits

Participating SLH properties will provide the following on-property benefits to all World of Hyatt members, regardless of status:

- Complimentary Wi-Fi

- Daily complimentary continental breakfast for two guests

- Room upgrade with one category at check-in if available.

- Early check-in (noon, based upon availability at check-in)

- Late check-out (2:00pm, based upon availability at check-in)
The term "Hyatt" is used in this release for convenience to refer to Hyatt Hotels Corporation and/or one or more of its affiliates.

About Small Luxury Hotels of the World

Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ (SLH) is the most desirable community of independently minded travellers and independently spirited hotels in the world.

We turned the luxury boutique hotel into a phenomenon and selected the distinctive, the diverse and the downright delightful. People, places and experiences with individual character, intimate charm and inherent class.

We've personally visited, vetted and verified over 500 hotels in more than 80 countries. We are envisioning a future where people experience the world with intention, experience its intensity and protect its integrity. Be part of the community and join us at INVITED or visit us at www.slh.com.

About Hyatt Hotels Corporation

Hyatt Hotels Corporation, headquartered in Chicago, is a leading global hospitality company with a portfolio of 19 premier brands. As of March 31, 2019, the Company's portfolio included more than 850 properties in over 60 countries across six continents.

The Company's purpose to care for people so they can be their best informs its business decisions and growth strategy and is intended to attract and retain top colleagues, build relationships with guests and create value for shareholders.

The Company's subsidiaries develop, own, operate, manage, franchise, license or provide services to hotels, resorts, branded residences, vacation ownership properties, and fitness and spa locations, including under the Park Hyatt®, Miraval®, Grand Hyatt®, Alila®, Andaz®.

The Unbound Collection by Hyatt®, Destination®, Hyatt Regency®, Hyatt®, Hyatt Ziva™, Hyatt Zilara™, Thompson Hotels®, Hyatt Centric®, Hyatt House®, Hyatt Place®, Joie de Vivre®, tommie™, Hyatt Residence Club® and Exhale® brand names, and operates the World of Hyatt® loyalty program that provides distinct benefits and exclusive experiences to its valued members. For more information, please visit www.hyatt.com.


Tourism Observer

DENMARK: Leisure Airline Primera Air Orders Up to 20 737 MAX 9s Worth More Than $950 Million

Boeing and Primera Air today announced an order for eight 737 MAX 9 airplanes, valued at more than $950 million at list prices.

The agreement also includes purchase rights for four additional 737 MAX 9s and a lease agreement for eight more airplanes from Air Lease Corporation.

The 737 MAX 9 will form the backbone of the low-cost airline’s future as it seeks to commence flights between Europe and North America.

Primera Air plans to use the MAX 9’s auxiliary fuel tanks to lower trip costs and maximize the range to accommodate flights connecting Europe to the east coast of the U.S.

The 737 MAX 9 will allow Primera Air to open up nonstop, long-haul routes from Europe to the U.S. with unmatched economics, said Andri M. Ingolfsson, President, Primera Air.

This aircraft has a lower per-seat cost than the current wide-body aircraft servicing the transatlantic and the capabilities of this aircraft type will change the economics of the industry. This will open up fantastic possibilities for growth for Primera Air in the future.

Primera Air’s commitment is a major endorsement of the 737 MAX 9 and its ability to serve new transatlantic markets, said Monty Oliver, vice president, European Sales, Boeing Commercial Airplanes.

The MAX 9 will provide Primera Air unmatched efficiency, range, reliability and operating costs while continuing to provide a premium onboard experience for its passengers.

Primera Air is an all-Boeing carrier currently operating a fleet of nine Next-Generation 737-700s and 737-800s with flights to more than 70 airports in Europe.

Primera Air is part of the Primera Travel Group that operates travel agencies and tour operating companies in Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Iceland and Estonia.

The 737 MAX family has been designed to offer customers exceptional performance, flexibility and efficiency, with lower per-seat costs and an extended range that will open up new destinations in the single-aisle market.

The MAX 8 and 9 will be followed in 2019 by the smaller MAX 7 and higher capacity MAX 200, while studies and customer discussions continue on further growing the family.

The 737 MAX incorporates the latest-technology CFM International LEAP-1B engines, Advanced Technology winglets and other improvements to deliver the highest efficiency, reliability and passenger comfort in the single-aisle market.

The 737 MAX is the fastest-selling airplane in Boeing history, accumulating more than 3,700 orders from 87 customers worldwide.


Tourism Observer

NORWAY: SAS Faces Norwegian Pilot Strike Inspite Of Agreement

Pilots working for Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) in Norway have rejected a pay offer and called for strike action, just days after the airline sealed an agreement with its Danish flight-deck crews.

SAS was facing a strike among its Danish crews, represented by the DPF union, but the planned walkout on Sept. 11 was called off after the two sides reached a three-year agreement.

However, SAS is now facing another strike threat from the Norwegian Pilot Association (NSF), which could see action from Sept. 14.

The airline said the Norwegian pilots have been offered similar conditions to their Swedish and Danish counterparts, but the proposal has been rejected.

SAS operates in a highly competitive market. We need to be able to adapt the company to the market conditions and fly when passengers want to fly.

The Norwegian pilot unions have rejected the proposal, which unfortunately has resulted in a conflict.

In the negotiations with the Norwegian pilot unions the Norwegian pilots have been offered conditions in line with the Swedish and Danish pilots, although the opposite message have been communicated from the Norwegian Pilot Association NSF.

The demands from the Norwegian pilots, which imply cost increases of 25%, are unreasonable.

We have agreed with all other employee groups within SAS, including the pilots in Denmark and Sweden, with the ambition to create a sustainable SAS for the future.

Only the Norwegian pilots remain.

We are very sorry that the pilot unions in Norway have chosen to start this conflict and we are still convinced that we will find a solution before Thursday, when the Norwegian pilot unions have given notice regarding an extended strike, which will affect the passengers and the trust in the company.



Tourism Observer

PERU: Largest Recovery Of Antiquities Returns To Peru

More than four thousand archaeological and historical pieces were exhibited last week at the Ministry of Culture, to celebrate the success by the Ministry of Foreign Relations in recovering the artifacts from Argentina, Canada, Chile, Spain and the United States.

The pieces include prehispanic pots and textiles, Colonial Cusco-school paintings, prehistoric bones, and Colonial hand-hammered macuquina coins (cobs).

The recovery is the result of several years of work, based on agreements signed by Peru with different countries on the protection and return of historical artifacts. The agreements served to build 22 different legal cases to reclaim pieces that had been found or stolen and smuggled out of the country for the lucrative antiquities market. One of the most famous processes was the Janeir Aude case in Argentina, which took 14 years to recover 4,136 artifacts, including a mummy bundle.

In total, 4,174 pieces were recovered from Argentina, 88 from the United States, 79 from Chile, two from Canada and one from Spain. It was the largest collection of recovered pieces handed over at the same time to the Ministry of Culture.

According to the Ministry of Culture, it has worked closely with the Ministry of Foreign Relations over the past five years in the recovery of antiquities throughout the world. More than 8,000 artifacts have been returned also from Germany, Australia, Bolivia, Brazil, Denmark, Egypt, France, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.

MACEDONIA: Wizz Air Expands To Macedonia

Wizz Air announced further growth to its low fare route network from Macedonia with three new Skopje services.

WIZZ will connect the Macedonian capital with Berlin Schoenefeld from 21 March 2016, while the new Skopje services to Copenhagen and Bratislava will commence in 22 and 28 March, respectively. Each new route will operate two times a week.

Bratislava and Copenhagen, the capitals and economic centers of Slovakia and Denmark are two new destinations in Wizz Air’s network of 116 airports.

Wizz Air is now offering a total of 24 routes to 11 countries from its two Macedonian airports, Skopje and Ohrid.

Wizz Air’s Tamara Mshvenieradze said: ”Wizz Air has today once again underlined its commitment to Macedonia as Skopje’s hometown airline.

We are thrilled to announce three new routes from Skopje to the capitals of Denmark, Germany and Slovakia, and we are confident that these three new routes will be as popular as the other 21 in our ever-growing Macedonian network.

Seats on the new routes went on sale today and we urge customers to snap up the lowest fares on wizzair.com, mobile website or through our smartphone apps. Our Macedonian crew looks forward to welcoming you on board your next Wizz Air flight!”

Wizz Air Adds Bratislava And Copenhagen To Its Network

The latest expansion and the flights to two new European capitals will increase the Wizz Air network to 116 airports across 38 countries as it continues its rapid growth. Its departure capacity has grown at an average annual rate of 64.4 per cent between 2005 and 2104 from just over 2.5 million seats to almost 17.5 million last year. This year capacity will grow by an estimated 24.0 per cent to over 21.5 million departure seats.

Central and Eastern European low-cost airline specialist, Wizz Air is to add two new European capital cities to its network as it expands its route network from Macedonia with three new routes from Skopje’s Alexander The Great Airport.

The carrier will launch its first flights to Bratislava, Slovakia and Copenhagen, Denmark, as well launch a new route to Berlin Schoenefeld as it reinforces its position as Skopje’s principal carrier and Macedonia’s de facto national carrier. All three routes will be operated on a twice weekly frequency with flights to Berlin commencing from March 21, 2016; Copenhagen from March 22, 2016 and Bratislava from March 28, 2016.

This will be the first scheduled route between Macedonia and Slovakia and will resurrect a link into Denmark that was last served by SAS Scandinavian Airlines over ten years ago in March 2005.

Wizz Air introduced operations in Macedonia in June 2011 with flights between Skopje and London Luton and is now offering a total of 24 routes to eleven countries from Skopje and Ohrid.

Elsewhere, Wizz Air has confirmed it will open a new base at Iasi International Airport, its sixth in Romania. The airline will station a single A320 in the largest city in eastern Romania to increase the number of routes served from Iasi to eight and will triple the seat capacity to 265,000 in 2016. The airline hopes this will stimulate the local job market in aviation and tourism sectors as consumers will have access to more low cost routes.

The new aircraft will facilitate the introduction of a three times weekly link to Bologna and twice weekly services to Catania, Larnaca, Rome Ciampino and Tel Aviv from the start of July 2016. It will also allow frequencies to Milan Bergamo to increase from two to three a week, adding to the significant growth of the Iasi – London Luton route which will grow from two to five weekly rotations from the end of March 2016.

Wizz Air first launched flights in Romania in 2007 and now offers a total of 106 Romanian routes to 16 countries from eight Romanian airports.

“We put Iasi on the map of aviation a year ago and it will now become the sixth Romanian airport where we establish base operations,” said György Abrán, Chief Commercial Officer, Wizz Air. “We have constantly expanded our operations in Romania, developed regional airports, and this announcement once again underlines our commitment to the country.”

The latest expansion and the flights to two new European capitals will increase the Wizz Air network to 116 airports across 38 countries as it continues its rapid growth. Its departure capacity has grown at an average annual rate of 64.4 per cent between 2005 and 2104 from just over 2.5 million seats to almost 17.5 million last year. This year capacity will grow by an estimated 24.0 per cent to over 21.5 million departure seats.

Analysis of OAG schedule data shows that the airline’s top five country markets – Poland, United Kingdom, Romania, Italy and Hungary – account for a 58.0 per cent share of its capacity offering.

SWEDEN: Scandinavian Airlines Targets Long-haul Growth In 2016

SAS is planning several new long-haul services to the US in 2016 but its most recent long-haul route launch was from Stockholm Arlanda to Hong Kong, which began operating on 10 September. The 8,203-kilometre route, operated by the airline’s wide-body fleet has helped to increase the ASKs offered by SAS out of Stockholm this winter by up to 20%.

Operating on the far north of Europe, and obliged for political reasons to operate three separate hubs within 600 kilometres of each other, SAS is by most measures one of Europe’s top 10 airlines, carrying over 27 million passengers in 2014. However, the Star Alliance carrier has struggled financially in recent years and came very close to collapse in late 2012. Since then things have improved, thanks to a major cost-cutting programme and the fortuitous fall in the price of fuel, so much so that the carrier has even reported a positive 3% operating margin for its most recent 12-month accounting period (to July 2015).

As the national carrier for all three Scandinavian countries (Denmark, Norway and Sweden) SAS’ three biggest bases are also the capital cities of those countries. The next busiest airports (Bergen and Stavanger) are both in Norway, helping to make it the airline’s leading country market for weekly seat capacity, ahead of Denmark, Sweden, UK, Germany and Spain. The leading non-Scandinavian airports (shown in bright green) are led by London Heathrow in sixth place.

Capacity changes at the airline’s top dozen airports has been within plus or minus 5% with the exception of Trondheim (down 9%), Stockholm Arlanda (up nearly 7%), and Gothenburg (up almost 20%). SAS’ growth in Gothenburg may be related to the benefits of competition from Ryanair which has moved to the bigger airport, and upgraded it to a designated base, following the closure of the city’s downtown airport to commercial services. Dublin features among SAS’ recent route launches…definitely a challenge to Ryanair!

Stockholm growing, Copenhagen and Oslo stagnate in 2015

Analysis of monthly ASKs (Available Seat Kilometres) at the airline’s three main bases shows that on the whole the airline has continued to add capacity to its network. In 2015, Stockholm has seen an 8% increase in its annual ASKs compared with 2014, while both Copenhagen and Oslo have seen very small reductions. In 2014 the opposite had been true, with Copenhagen and Oslo both growing faster than Stockholm.

What this graph fails to illustrate is the increase in routes offered by SAS from its main bases. According to anna.aero analysis of OAG schedule data between August 2011 and August 2015, SAS grew the number of airports served from 87 to 109, while increasing the number of routes flown from around 150 to over 230. SAS’ most recent quarterly presentation highlights this in a different way, pointing out that between July 2011 and July 2015 the airline increased the number of international routes (to outside Scandinavia) by 62%, from 112 to 181. Across the same period aircraft utilisation improved by 29%.

Stockholm’s sudden ASK growth towards the end of 2015 can partly be explained by the launch in September of a new long-haul, wide-body service to Hong Kong using the airline’s latest A330s.

Distinct seasonality profile

While most European airlines and airports see a peak in demand during the main summer months of July and August, the Scandinavian market is somewhat different. With a typically higher proportion of business traffic during most of the year, demand actually falls away during the summer holiday period of July and August even though that is typically when Scandinavians (like their Northern European colleagues in the UK and Germany) head south for guaranteed sunshine.

Dealing with seasonality is a major issue faced by most airlines and applying anna.aero’s SVID (Seasonal Variation in Demand) formula, which we normally apply to airports, to SAS’ monthly seat capacity for the last two years reveals that the carrier has managed to reduce seasonality at its Copenhagen and Oslo bases, but not in Stockholm.

US expansion driven by Norwegian threat?

Long-haul flying is set to grow in 2016 with the commencement of a new daily Stockholm to Los Angeles service starting in March, followed by new services to Miami from both Copenhagen and Oslo starting in autumn 2016. In addition there are increased frequencies this winter on routes to Chicago, New York, San Francisco and Shanghai. However, the service operated on the airline’s behalf by Privatair between the oil cities of Stavanger and Houston, will end in a couple of weeks at the end of the summer season. Instead the 737-700 will be re-configured from a 44-seat all-business class layout to a two-class 86-seat layout (with 20 business class seats and 66 economy seats) and will be used to start a new daily service between Copenhagen and Boston from the end of March 2016. Coincidentally, or not, this is a route that Norwegian plans to start operating with its 787-8s next May. Between the end of October and next March the aircraft will be used to provide some of the capacity on SAS’s existing Copenhagen-Newark service.

Over 90 new routes launched since 2011

Analysing OAG schedule data for the first week of August in both 2011 and 2015 reveals that SAS operates over 90 routes this summer that it did not four years ago. However, it has also dropped around a dozen routes that it did serve in August 2011, including four routes to Madrid, Bergen to London Gatwick and Copenhagen services to Lyon. Some of these new services operate at low frequency for just a few weeks during the peaks summer holiday season.

Airport Route (code)
Copenhagen (CPH) Alicante (ALC), Ankara (ESB), Biarritz (BIQ), Billund (BLL), Budapest (BUD), Chania (CHQ), Dubrovnik (DBV), Edinburgh (EDI), Gazipasa (GZP), Linkoping (LPI), Malaga (AGP), Montpellier (MPL), Naples (NAP), Newcastle (NCL), Palermo (PMO), Palma de Mallorca (PMI), Pisa (PSA), Prague (PRG), Pula (PUY), San Francisco (SFO), Shanghai (PVG), Split (SPU), Tel Aviv (TLV), Thessaloniki (SKG), Trondheim (TRD), Wroclaw (WRO)

Oslo (OSL) Aberdeen (ABZ), Athens (ATH), Berlin (TXL), Billund (BLL), Chania (CHQ), Edinburgh (EDI), Gazipasa (GZP), Pisa (PSA), Pristina (PRN), Pula (PUY), Salzburg (SZG), Santorini (JTR)

Stockholm (ARN) Aalborg (AAL), Alicante (ALC), Ankara (ESB), Barcelona (BCN), Berlin (TXL), Biarritz (BIQ), Billund (BLL), Bodo (BOO), Bologna (BLQ), Bristol (BRS), Cagliari (CAG), Chania (CHQ), Dubrovnik (DBV), Faro (FAO), Gazipasa (GZP), Hamburg (HAM), Kalmar (KLR), Malaga (AGP), Milan Malpensa (MXP), Olbia (OLB), Palermo (PMO), Prague (PRG), Pristina (PRN), Pisa (PSA), Pula (PUY), Riga (RIX), Tampere (TMP), Thessaloniki (SKG), Turku (TKU), Vaasa (VAA), Vilnius (VNO)

Gothenburg (GOT) Alicante (ALC), Athens (ATH), Berlin (TXL), Dublin (DUB), Gazipasa (GZP), Malaga (AGP), Nice (NCE), Palma de Mallorca (PMI), Pristina (PRN), Pula (PUY)

Bergen (BGO) Barcelona (BCN), Gazipasa (GZP), Malaga (AGP), Split (SPU)

Trondheim (TRD) Copenhagen (CPH), Malaga (AGP), Stavanger (SVG)

Stavanger (SVG) Barcelona (BCN), Gazipasa (GZP), Split (SPU), Trondheim (TRD)

Billund (BLL) Copenhagen (CPH), Gazipasa (GZP), Oslo (OSL), Stockholm (ARN)

Further route expansion for this winter includes the launch of Brussels and Paris CDG flights from Gothenburg, plus the re-allocation of Gothenburg-London Heathrow flights to London Stansted. There will also be a new service from Oslo to Vilnius. Apart from the new long-haul services previously mentioned, next summer will see the addition of new services from Stockholm to Munich and from Copenhagen to Faro, Krakow, Reykjavik/Keflavik and Vienna.

FINLAND: Finnair To Launch New Edinburgh-Helsinki Route In 2016

Finnair is set to launch a seasonal service from Edinburgh to Helsinki in 2016, offering travellers faster connections to Finnair’s network of Asian destinations.

The service begins on April 18th 2016 and will operate to October 27th 2016.

Edinburgh will be served by three flights a week operated by a Finnair Airbus A319.

“The new Edinburgh route will open up travel to Finnair’s extensive Asian network for Scottish passengers with short connections at Helsinki Airport.

“Edinburgh Airport is seeing a continuous growth in demand for international flights, recently announcing a 10.2 per cent growth year-on-year to July 2015 and we look forward to welcoming these passengers on board Finnair,” said Petri Vuori, Finnair’s vice president of global sales.

Finnair is the European launch customer for the next-generation Airbus A350 XWB aircraft.

The completely new aircraft type substantially raises the bar for passenger comfort, environmental performance and operational efficiency.

Finnair is also the first airline in the world to operate the A350 on scheduled services to China, where Shanghai will be served with a daily A350 service from October 25th 2015, followed by Bangkok and Beijing, with Hong Kong and Singapore A350 services to be added in 2016.

The Edinburgh service is one of four new routes launching in summer 2016, with the launch of services from Helsinki to Billund, Denmark; Pula, Croatia; and also the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard in the Arctic Ocean.