The latest airline route news, featuring network changes, schedule alterations, codeshares and interline agreements.
April 2
Air New Zealand has opened ticket sales for new trans-Tasman flights between Auckland and the new Western Sydney International Airport (WSI), with services scheduled to begin Oct. 26. The airline will operate the route 3X-weekly on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays using Airbus A320 and A321 aircraft. The flights are expected to be the first international services to operate from WSI.
India’s Akasa Air will expand its domestic network during the summer 2026 season with several new routes and frequency increases. New services include Navi Mumbai–Lucknow (2X-daily), Navi Mumbai–Kolkata (daily) and Bengaluru–Darbhanga (daily). The airline will also increase Navi Mumbai–Varanasi to 2X-daily, New Delhi–Mumbai to 5X-daily and add an additional daily frequency on the Bengaluru–Bhubaneswar route. The airline says the network expansion reflects growing demand across both major metro routes and emerging regional markets in India.
Indonesian carrier TransNusa will launch a new 2X-daily service between Jakarta and Lombok beginning April 17, 2026 using Airbus A320s. The airline says the route is aimed at supporting tourism and regional connectivity to Lombok, a key tourism destination in West Nusa Tenggara. It has also increased frequencies on its Jakarta–Yogyakarta route with an additional daily flight to strengthen domestic connectivity.
Condor has commenced a new route between Frankfurt and London Gatwick, expanding its European city network. The route operates up to 3X-daily using Airbus A320 aircraft in a two-class configuration with business and economy cabins. The German airline says the service is aimed at both business and leisure travelers and will also provide connections to Condor’s long-haul network to Africa and Asia via Frankfurt.
Ryanair has opened a new four-aircraft base in Tirana and launched 21 new routes as part of its summer 2026 expansion. The ULCC will operate 44 routes from Tirana this summer and expects traffic to grow by more than 50% to 4 million passengers annually. New routes include Alghero, Dublin, Eindhoven, Genoa, Malta, Milan and Naples. Ryanair says it plans to expand further in Albania, potentially basing up to six Boeing 737 aircraft in Tirana and growing traffic to more than 6 million passengers annually by 2030.
April 1
Fiji Airways will increase service between Nadi and Vancouver to three flights per week year-round beginning June 16 using Airbus A330s and expand its codeshare partnership with British Airways (BA) to include the route. The enhanced codeshare will allow BA passengers to book travel between the UK and Fiji via Vancouver under the BA code. “The expansion of our Vancouver services, alongside the extension of our codeshare partnership with British Airways, is a proud moment for Fiji Airways as we continue to grow our presence in North America,” says Fiji Airways Managing Director and CEO Paul Scurrah.
Wizz Air has reopened a base at Targu Mures Transylvania Airport, Romania, with one Airbus A320neo and launched nine new routes. The new services commenced at the end of March and include flights to Brussels Charleroi, Larnaca, Paris Beauvais, Dortmund, Memmingen, Milan Bergamo, Rome Fiumicino, Basel and London Luton, in addition to an existing Budapest route. Wizz Air says it will offer about 460,000 seats from Targu Mures in 2026 across 10 routes to eight countries.
Uzbekistan Airways and Air India have signed a codeshare agreement covering routes between Uzbekistan and India. Under the agreement, codeshare flights are available on the Tashkent-New Delhi, Tashkent-Mumbai and seasonal Tashkent-Goa routes, allowing passengers to book travel on a single ticket and access both airlines’ networks. Air India CCO Nipun Aggarwal says the partnership will expand travel options and strengthen air links between India and Central Asia while supporting business and leisure travel between the two countries.
Asiana Airlines has opened a new route between Seoul Incheon and Milan Malpensa. The new route began March 31 and operates 3X-weekly on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays using Airbus A350 aircraft configured with 311 seats. Asiana says the new service expands travel options to Europe and strengthens connectivity between South Korea and northern Italy.
Saudi LCC flynas plans launch daily nonstop service between Riyadh King Khalid International Airport and Al Qaisumah beginning April 20, expanding the airline’s domestic network. The carrier says the new route aligns with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 aviation growth plans aimed at improving domestic connectivity. The move follows Kuwait’s Jazeera Airways temporarily shifting operations to Al Qaisumah due to the closure of Kuwaiti airspace.
March 31
Wizz Air has based a second aircraft at Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and launched new routes to Bratislava (4X-weekly) and Gothenburg (2X-weekly) from March 29; Berlin Brandenburg (3X-weekly) from March 30; and Frankfurt Hahn (3X-weekly), Larnaca (2X-weekly) and Paris Beauvais (3X-weekly) from March 31. Separately, Wizz Air will base a third aircraft at Yerevan Zvartnots Airport, Armenia, in October and launch flights to Eindhoven service on Oct. 26 with 3X-weekly flights. The airline will also add a Brussels Charleroi service on Feb. 1, 2027, operating 3X-weekly.
Latvia’s airBaltic has begun the summer 2026 season with nine new routes, several relaunched services and frequency increases across its Baltic and Finnish bases. New routes launched March 29-30 include Riga-Kaunas, Riga-Oulu and Riga-Warsaw, while services between Riga and Belgrade have been relaunched. From Tallinn, the airline has launched new routes to Hamburg and Vienna and resumed flights to Oslo. Additional new summer routes include Riga-Antalya and Gothenburg, Tallinn-Athens and Vilnius-Zurich. AirBaltic is also increasing frequencies on several routes, including Riga-Zurich from 7X to 9X-weekly, Riga-Munich from 10X to 12X-weekly and Riga-Berlin from 9X to 10X-weekly. The airline says it will operate more than 110 routes during the summer 2026 season.
LOT Polish Airlines has launched three new year-round routes from Krakow to Rome, Barcelona and Madrid. The Rome Fiumicino route will operate up to 5X-weekly in the summer season and up to 4X-weekly in winter. Barcelona will operate up to four times per week year-round, while Krakow-Madrid will operate up to 6X-weekly throughout the year. LOT says its summer network from Krakow will include up to 11 destinations.
Air France has commenced a 2X-daily service between Paris Charles de Gaulle and London Gatwick (LGW), marking the airline’s return to the UK airport for the first time since 1996. The route is operated using Airbus A220 aircraft and provides connections via Paris to destinations across North America, Africa, Asia and South America. “It’s fantastic to see Air France now operating from London Gatwick, giving passengers even more choice for direct flights to Paris and seamless access to Air France’s extensive global network,” says Jonathan Pollard, Chief Commercial Officer at LGW.
LATAM Airlines Brasil has opened new nonstop service between Sao Paulo Guarulhos and Amsterdam, marking the airline’s ninth European destination. The route operates 6X-weekly using Boeing 787-9 aircraft configured with 300 seats. The inaugural flight operated with a 95% load factor, according to the airline. LATAM says the new service strengthens passenger and cargo connectivity between Brazil and Europe, with the aircraft able to carry an average of about 240 metric tons of cargo per week in the belly hold.
IndiGo has begun daily nonstop service between Kolkata and Shanghai, expanding the LCC’s network in mainland China. The route is operated using Airbus A320neo aircraft. With the addition of Kolkata-Shanghai, IndiGo now operates 21 flights per week to mainland China, including services to Guangzhou from New Delhi and Kolkata.
March 30
Cathay Pacific has launched new nonstop passenger service between Hong Kong and Seattle, expanding its North American network to nine destinations. The route operates five times per week using Airbus A350-900 aircraft. The move means the airline will operate close to 120 return flights per week to nine North American destinations this summer, including Boston, Chicago, Dallas-Fort Worth, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Seattle, Toronto and Vancouver.
Iberia has opened a new nonstop route between Madrid and Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR), expanding its New York market presence. The flight operates daily using Airbus A321XLR aircraft configured with 182 seats in business and economy class. With the addition of Newark, Iberia now operates 3X-daily flights between Madrid and the New York area, including two to New York John F. Kennedy and one to EWR.
Air New Zealand’s alliance partnership with Air China has been reauthorized by the New Zealand Ministry of Transport through 2031, ensuring continued cooperation on flights between New Zealand and China. The alliance, launched in 2015, supports passenger services between the two countries and provides connections via Beijing and Shanghai to more than 30 destinations across China. During peak periods such as Chinese New Year, the partnership supports up to 17X-weekly return services between New Zealand and China.
ITA Airways has resumed service to London Heathrow Airport (LHR) with flights to Rome Fiumicino. Service will be 2X-daily. The airline last served LHR in March 2024. The resumption has been made possible through cooperation with Lufthansa Group, which provided the necessary airport slots. ITA Airways will operate to 72 destinations in summer 2026 and will also launch a new Rome-Houston route on May 1, 2026, initially operating three times per week, increasing to 5X-weekly flights from June.
Wizz Air will launch three new routes from Maastricht Aachen Airport for the summer season, adding flights to Katowice and Lublin in Poland and Podgorica in Montenegro. The new routes complement the airline’s existing service to Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Separately, Wizz Air will launch a new route from Eindhoven Airport to Yerevan, Armenia, beginning Oct. 26, operating three times per week using Airbus A321neo aircraft during the winter season.
Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) has commenced daily nonstop service between Copenhagen Airport (CPH) and Istanbul Airport. The route is operated with Airbus A320neo aircraft. SAS says the new service will support tourism, trade and business travel while expanding its network from its CPH hub and improving connectivity between Scandinavia and destinations across Turkey and beyond.
Xiamen Air has launched new nonstop service between Quanzhou, China, and Cebu, Philippines. The route operates twice a week, on Tuesdays and Saturdays, using Boeing 737-800 aircraft. “The launch of the Cebu-Quanzhou route reaffirms our mandate to drive economic growth in the region through robust aviation connectivity,” says Athanasios Titonis, CEO of Aboitiz InfraCapital Cebu Airport Corp.
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