US to See Addition of Six New Long-Haul Routes Between August and October

As summer progresses, the US is preparing for the launch of six new long-haul routes between August and October. These new links will mainly begin in October, coinciding with the switch to winter schedules for northern carriers on October 26.

Earlier this year, in May and June, the US welcomed a total of 27 and 12 new routes respectively. This included routes from Aer Lingus to Nashville and American Airlines from Chicago to Madrid. Other new routes that began earlier in the year include Delta Air Lines’ Salt Lake City to Seoul Incheon and Etihad Airways’ Abu Dhabi to Atlanta.

Six Long-Haul Routes to Begin Between August and October

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These new routes were identified using OAG data, comparing available routes from January to July with those coming between August and October. Any developments in the last two months of the year will be examined separately at a later time.

Only long-haul routes of 3,000 statute miles or more were considered, using the measurement of 2,607 nautical miles (4,828 km) which is also used by United Airlines. Any routes below this distance were excluded, such as LATAM’s reintroduction of flights from Lima to Orlando, which falls just 7% short of the requirement.

Start Date*

Route**

Airline

Operations

September 12

Seattle to Seoul Incheon

Alaska Airlines (operated by Hawaiian Airlines)

Five weekly 787-9 (the A330-200 was originally scheduled )

October 1

Bahrain to New York JFK

Gulf Air

Three weekly 787-9

October 3

Taipei to Dallas/Fort Worth

EVA Air

Initially, three weekly 787-9, but then daily from December .

October 25

Keflavik to Miami

Icelandair

Three weekly A321LR***

October 25

Atlanta to Marrakech

Delta

Mainly three weekly 767-400ER, but daily around Christmastime and the New Year

October 26

Madrid to Orlando

Iberia

Four weekly A330-300 (to be subbed at times by the A330-200)

* From the airline’s country of origin

** All are already announced, so this article provides a summary of them

*** The 757-200ER is scheduled on March 31 and April 7, but this may change

Gulf Air to Return to the US After Nearly Three Decades

Photo: Vincenzo Pace | Simple Flying

After a 28-year hiatus, Gulf Air will resume flights to New York’s JFK Airport on October 1.