By John Flett
Icelandair Expands Route Network for Summer 2023
Icelandair is further expanding its North American destination network with the addition of Detroit’s Metropolitan Wayne County Airport. The carrier will begin the seasonal summer operation on 18 May 2023 with a four-times-weekly schedule with a 160-seat Boeing 737 MAX. The service will operate to and from DTW and Icelandair’s base in Reyjavik, Iceland’s Keflavík International Airport on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays until October 30, 2023.
Iceland’s geographic location mid-Atlantic gives passengers the opportunity to fly direct and remain in the country or connect with flights to more than ‘25 destinations in Iceland, Greenland, the United Kingdom, Scandinavia and Continental Europe’. In addition, the airline allows transit customers to stop over in the country for no additional airfare for up to 7 nights.
Detroit serves over 125 destinations and Chad Newton, chief executive officer of the Wayne County Airport Authority welcomed the addition of Keflavik to the airport’s list.
“Thanks to Icelandair, the beauty of Iceland is now a short flight away from Detroit,” Mr. Newton said. “At Detroit Metropolitan Airport, we know our customers have a choice when they fly. We believe nonstop flights to Iceland and the opportunity to connect to exciting cities throughout Europe are two more reasons travelers will choose DTW.”
Bogi Nils Bogason, president and chief executive officer of Icelandair Group said, “Icelandair is pleased to offer Detroit a refreshing new choice when traveling to Iceland and beyond. Icelandair’s Detroit service will allow passengers to travel to and from Europe in new, fuel-efficient planes with modern amenities, including gate-to-gate Wi-Fi and inflight entertainment available for all passengers. These new flights will not only help meet the demands of a growing Detroit but also offer more options for Midwestern business and leisure travelers connecting from the Midwest region. We look forward to welcoming Detroit aboard.”
Two European destinations that passengers from the Midwest and the rest of North America can consider for summer 2023 are Barcelona, Spain and Prague. Icelandair recently announced that flights to Barcelona, Spain would recommence with a twice-weekly service from April through October, increasing to three times weekly between the peak months of June, July and August. Prague is a new destination for the carrier and the airline’s confidence in the destination is warranting four flights per week from June 1 through the end of October.
Prague Airport Aviation Business Director Jaroslav Filip cited the value that the seasonal service will provide.
“The opportunity to welcome a new carrier at Prague Airport is always clear proof of the Czech market appeal,” Filip said. “Icelandair’s new direct connection will support not only outbound tourism to Iceland but also provide another transfer opportunity to Icelandair’s wide network of connections in North America. Thanks to this new connection, we expect to see further strengthening of tourism between the Czech Republic and the United States or Canada.”
During his career with the airline, John held multiple leadership roles and was involved in projects such as the introduction of both the 777-200 and -300 type aircraft and the development of the IFE for the 777-300. He was also part of a small team that created and published the internal communications magazines for Air New Zealand’s pilots, cabin crew and ground staff, balancing a mix of corporate and social content.
John is educated to postgraduate level achieving a Masters degree with Distinction in Airline and Airport Management. He has been the course director of an undergraduate commercial pilot training programme at a leading London university and a member of Heathrow Community Trust’s ‘Communities for Tomorrow’ panel.
John is currently living in Canada and is contracted as an external instructor for IATA (International Air Transport Association) and other aviation-related organizations.
