—The biggest news last week regarding overseas air service was not what was new, but what is no longer, as low-cost European carrier Primera Air went bankrupt on Oct. 1. As recently as the past couple of months, the airline announced two new bases in Brussels and Berling and new flights beginning next year between Brussels and Newark, Brussels and Berling to Boston and Washington D.C. and Berlin to New York JFK—as well as several other North American destinations. And last month, Primer announced even more new routes between Europe and the U.S. It remains to be seen if other carriers will attempt to secure the slots after administrators decide what to do with the defunct carrier’s assets.
—In the meantime, EasyJet has signed an agreement with Virgin Atlantic to join its flight connections through Worldwide by Easyjet service, which it launched in September 2017. This alliance will allow flights from Barcelona to Orlando or from Edinburgh to Las Vegas thanks to the connection of the two airlines at the London-Gatwick airport, the company said in a statement.
—Cathay Pacific Airways launched the longest link in its network on 15 September when it commenced flights between Hong Kong and Washington Dulles. It will serve the 8,139-mile connection four times weekly.
—American Airlines will launch its first direct flight between Buenos Aires and the city of Los Angeles next December 20; it will operate three times a week.
—Beginning March 31, 2019, Air France will serve Dallas-Fort Worth airport from Paris Charles de Gaulle. DFW thus becomes Air France’s 13th U.S. destination.
—The budget airline Eurowings will operate another U.S. route from the Düsseldorf hub: beginning July 3, 2019, the Lufthansa subsidiary will fly to Las Vegas three times a week. On Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, a long-haul Airbus A330 or A340 aircraft takes off in the direction of Las Vegas, then head back on Monday, Thursday and Saturday.
—Air France and its subsidiary Joon are launching a new long-haul U.S. route in the summer of 2019. As of March 31, Air France will fly from Paris/Charles de Gaulle to Dallas/Fort Worth up to five times a week.
