May is a critical month for route launches between the US
and Europe, especially from May 20 onwards. It’s ahead of the all-important peak summer with the highest traffic and fares. Examining every service shows that 27 routes will begin this month, excluding seasonal resumptions. They include two one-offs: Global Airlines Airbus A380 service from Glasgow and Manchester to New York JFK.
- IATA/ICAO Code
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JFK/KJFK
- CEO
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Rick Cotton (Executive Director of Port Authority of NY and NJ)
Many of them will make my jam-packed Weekly Routes article. Some already have, such as the first flight ever from Denver to Rome and the first link ever between Ireland and Indiana. Others have been covered in separate articles recently, including Discover from Frankfurt to Minneapolis, KLM between Amsterdam and San Diego, and TAP Air Portugal from Lisbon to Los Angeles and Porto to Boston.
The 27 US-Europe Routes Beginning In May
They are summarized below in date order. Nearly half of the markets have not previously been served, which is especially good to see. Three European airports—Bilbao, Catania, and Faro—have not previously had US flights. They contribute to more than 50 European airports having US passenger flights this summer.
Two-thirds of the 27 routes are by US carriers, with Delta introducing seven, more than any other operator. They include Detroit to Dublin, pictured above, bringing the SkyTeam member’s Dublin network to a record five routes, joining Atlanta, Boston, Minneapolis, and New York JFK. It has up to five daily flights to the Irish capital, more than in any other year.
|
Start date |
Airline |
Operations |
Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
|
May 1 |
United |
Denver to Rome (daily 787-9) |
A brand-new city pair |
|
May 2 |
Discover |
Frankfurt to Minneapolis (four weekly A330-200/A330-300) |
New to the airline’s network. Replaced Lufthansa, with Discover passengers able to connect to Lufthansa’s network and vice versa |
|
May 3 |
Aer Lingus |
Dublin to Indianapolis (four weekly A321XLR) |
A brand-new city pair |
|
May 6 |
American |
Chicago O’Hare to Naples (daily 787-8) |
A brand-new city pair |
|
May 7 |
Delta |
Detroit to Dublin (four weekly A330-200) |
A brand-new city pair |
|
May 8 |
KLM |
Amsterdam to San Diego (three weekly 787-9) |
A brand-new city pair |
|
May 14 |
TAP Air Portugal |
Porto to Boston (four weekly A321LR) |
New to the airline’s network. Replaced Azores Airlines |
|
May 15 |
Global |
Glasgow to New York JFK (one-off A380) |
New to the airline’s network, but it is just a one-off. Glasgow last had JFK flights in 2019, when Delta operated |
|
May 16 |
TAP Air Portugal |
Lisbon to Los Angeles (four weekly A330neo) |
The market’s first nonstop flights (they were routed via Terceira until 1990) |
|
May 16 |
United |
Newark to Faro (four weekly 757-200) |
A brand-new city pair and the first time Faro has had US flights |
|
May 21 |
Air France |
Paris CDG to Orlando (four weekly A350-900) |
Last served by the carrier in 2012 |
|
May 21 |
Delta |
New York JFK to Catania (daily 767-300ER) |
A brand-new city pair and the first time Catania has had US flights |
|
May 21 |
Global |
Manchester to New York JFK (one-off A380) |
New to the airline’s network, but it is just a one-off |
|
May 21 |
SAS |
Copenhagen to Seattle (five weekly A350-900) |
Last served by the airline in 2009. It is back due to SAS now being in SkyTeam |
|
May 21 |
United |
Newark to Palermo (three weekly 767-400ER) |
A brand-new airport pair |
|
May 22 |
Delta |
Boston to Barcelona (three weekly A330neo) |
New to the airline’s network |
|
May 22 |
Delta |
Minneapolis to Copenhagen (three weekly A330neo) |
A brand-new city pair. It is beginning due to SAS now being in SkyTeam |
|
May 22 |
JetBlue |
Boston to Edinburgh (daily A321neo, not the LR) |
New to the airline’s network |
|
May 22 |
JetBlue |
Boston to Madrid (daily A321LR) |
New to the airline’s network |
|
May 22 |
United |
Washington Dulles to Nice (four weekly 767-300ER) |
A brand-new city pair |
|
May 22 |
United |
Washington Dulles to Venice (daily 767-300ER) |
A brand-new city pair |
|
May 23 |
American |
Philadelphia to Edinburgh (daily 787-8/787-9) |
Last served by the airline in 2019. It will be on a widebody for the first time |
|
May 23 |
American |
Philadelphia to Milan (daily 787-8) |
New to the airline’s network |
|
May 23 |
Delta |
Atlanta to Naples (four weekly A330-200) |
A brand-new city pair |
|
May 23 |
Delta |
Boston to Milan (four weekly A330neo) |
New to the airline’s network, last served by Alitalia (as was) in 2008 |
|
May 23 |
Delta |
Minneapolis to Rome (four weekly A330-300) |
Last served by the airline in 2016 |
|
May 31 |
United |
Newark to Bilbao (three weekly 757-200) |
A brand-new city pair and the first time Bilbao has had US flights |
These Routes Started On The Day This Article Was Written
On May 16, TAP Air Portugal introduced Lisbon to Los Angeles flights, and United took off from Newark to Faro. United had originally planned to introduce the Algarve service in 2024, but flights were delayed by a year following the FAA review of its activities, prompted by a series of operational incidents. Flightradar24 shows the inaugural round-trip service will be operated by 30.1-year-old N13113, an ex-Continental frame, as shown above. When Newark-Funchal flights start in June, United will become the first North American airline to serve five Portuguese airports.
The launch of Los Angeles flights means TAP now serves eight US airports. At 4,944 nautical miles (9,156 km), Lisbon to Los Angeles is TAP’s new longest nonstop service across its full network, overtaking Lisbon to San Francisco. However, when the first Lisbon-Terceira-San Francisco flight takes off in June (replacing Azores Airlines from Terceira to Oakland), it will become TAP’s longest route overall.
Related
TAP Air Portugal Has Started These 2 New US Routes This Week
The carrier now has up to 13 daily departures to the US.
Some 16 Of The 27 Routes Involve Southern Europe
Most of the routes in the table involve Southern Europe, with demand remaining particularly strong, especially from the US. Italy stands out, with nine additions to Catania, Milan, Naples, Palermo, Rome, and Venice. They include American between Chicago and Naples, the first time the market had been served. American will easily grow the local market by 50%+ because of nonstop flights, which is important, as booking data showed that it only had 23,000 round-trip passengers last year. Many passengers will connect to another flight at O’Hare.
Naples will now have five US routes: American from Chicago and Philadelphia; Delta from Atlanta and New York JFK; and United from Newark. In the peak month of August, there will mainly be six daily departures. Cirium Diio data shows that frequencies have risen from the prior record of four daily takeoffs in August 2024. Before the pandemic in August 2019, Naples had only a daily service. Time will tell if this considerable increase is sustainable.
