US Airlines Announce 37 New Transatlantic Routes for 2026

As the year 2026 approaches, 14 passenger airlines have confirmed the start of 37 new and returning transatlantic routes between the US and Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. These developments, based on data from Cirium Diio through October, are expected to significantly boost travel between these regions. However, 15 airlines have also cut 27 US transatlantic links, mainly due to the now-defunct PLAY airline. These cuts will be examined separately at a later time.

While new markets are likely to be announced later in the year, this article presents a snapshot of the current transatlantic routes as of January 5. Keep in mind that these routes are subject to change. Any mention of ‘new’ in this article refers to the stated airline’s network only.

US Airlines Expand Transatlantic Service

The most significant development is the start of Alaska Airlines’ transatlantic service. The one world carrier will launch three new routes from its Seattle hub: Keflavik, London Heathrow, and Rome Fiumicino. JetBlue, on the other hand, will introduce its longest-ever links from Boston to Barcelona and Milan Malpensa.

American Airlines will also expand its transatlantic service with new routes from Dallas/Fort Worth to Athens and Zurich, Miami to Milan Malpensa, New York JFK to Edinburgh and Tel Aviv, and Philadelphia to Budapest and Prague. These routes were previously flown by American Airlines but were discontinued in recent years.

Delta Air Lines will introduce new routes from Atlanta to Riyadh and Tel Aviv, Boston to Madrid, Nice, and Tel Aviv, New York JFK to Malta, Olbia, and Porto, and Seattle to Barcelona and Rome Fiumicino. Malta and Olbia will now have their only North America links.

United Airlines will begin the fewest transatlantic routes among the US Big Three carriers. From Newark, it will fly to Bari, Glasgow, Santiago de Compostela, and Split, while Washington Dulles will have a new route to Keflavik. Out of these, only one route is a resumption of previously operated service.

Foreign Airlines Add to Transatlantic Routes

Aer Lingus will debut flights from Dublin to Pittsburgh and Raleigh/Durham, while British Airways will start service from London Heathrow to St. Louis. Etihad Airways will also join the transatlantic market with flights between Abu Dhabi and Charlotte.

HiSky will inaugurate service from Bucharest to Chicago O’Hare, Iberia will start service from Madrid to Newark, and ITA Airways will begin operations between Rome Fiumicino and Houston Intercontinental. This will be the first time Houston has ever had non-stop flights to Rome, and the service is influenced by ITA’s Star Alliance membership and codeshare agreement with United Airlines.

LOT Polish will introduce service from Warsaw to San Francisco, Royal Air