Norwegian apre il lungo raggio da Londra Gatwick e Paris CDG

[Cesare.Caldi]

Norwegian potenzia la sua base a londra Lgw aprendo le prime rotte di lungo raggio fuori dalla scandinavia. Nuove rotte dalla summer 2014 inoltrata per jfk lax e fll tutte operate col 787.

Norwegian possiede già una base e una importante presenza di rotte europee da Lgw che potranno quindi fare da federaggio per il lungo raggio.

Notizia completa: http://airlineroute.net/2013/10/17/dy-lgw787-s14/

 

[uncomfortable]

Re: Norwegian apre il lungo raggio da Londra Gatwick

Stando a quanto twittato da Simon Calder (giornalista di viaggi dell'Independent ed autore di diversi libri sulle compagnie low cost), le tariffe in luglio ed agosto sono intorno alle 300 sterline a/r per JFK, 359 per FLL e 379 per LAX. Direi che per l'alta stagione siamo a livelli decisamente low-cost.

 

[enrico]

Re: Norwegian apre il lungo raggio da Londra Gatwick

Ho cancellato un pò di messaggi, il thread ha ad oggetto Norwegian, NON Alitalia, NON Easyjet, NON ryanair. Grazie.

 

[flapane]

Re: Norwegian apre il lungo raggio da Londra Gatwick

510 eur l'A/R LGW-LAX con bagaglio imbarcato in pieno agosto.
Devono pur inventarsi qualcosa, date le frequenze e la posizione dell'apt, anche se i prezzi tenderanno a salire. Da LHR, i diretti partono da 1100eur (30/7 17/8).

 

[AZ209]

Re: Norwegian apre il lungo raggio da Londra Gatwick

LGW-JFK a partire da £149 one way :astonished:



Norwegian to fly London Gatwick to the United States

Published: 17/10/2013

Norwegian Airlines has announced that it will fly between London Gatwick and three points in the United States: New York JFK, Los Angeles and Fort Lauderdale. The new flights will commence in June 2014.

The new flights are:

London – Los Angeles twice a week from July 2, 2014
Norwegian will operate two weekly flights between London (LGW) and Los Angeles (LAX) – on Wednesdays and Sundays. The introductory fare is £199 one way.

London – New York three times a week from July 3, 2014
Norwegian will operate three weekly flights between London (LGW) and New York (JFK) – on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. The introductory fare is £149 one way.

London – Fort Lauderdale twice a week from July 4, 2014
Norwegian will operate two weekly flights between London (LGW) and Fort Lauderdale (FLL) – on Mondays and Fridays. The introductory fare is £179 one way.

Norwegian’s CEO Bjørn Kjos said
“There’s great demand for high quality flights at a low fare between the UK and the U.S., particularly to and from London Gatwick, where no other airline currently offers these routes. We are looking forward to welcoming many new customers on board our brand new aircraft. Launching intercontinental routes between London Gatwick and the United States is also an important part of our strategy to expand internationally and get a stronger foothold in markets outside Scandinavia.”

Mr Kjos said that the long haul flights would depend for feeder traffic from its short haul operation at Gatwick, and that passengers would be able to interline, enabling them to fly short haul from Europe into Gatwick and then onward on these US flights, including through-checking of baggage (for a charge).

Norwegian had previously announced its intention to launch seven new routes between Scandinavia and the US in spring 2014.

Those routes were:

• Stockholm to Los Angeles and San Francisco;
• Copenhagen to Los Angeles and New York;
• Oslo to Los Angeles, San Francisco and Orlando.

On the flights to Los Angeles (LAX), Oakland-San Francisco (OAK) and Orlando (MCO) Norwegian plans to use its B787 Dreamliner, although it has had problems with these (see here)

The announcement comes four months after the airline's first long-haul flights and a month after Business Traveller revealed how Norwegian has been losing its Asia Pacific price advantage to Gulf carriers (see news, July 26)

The move also means that from next year Norwegian will be the only carrier offering non-stop flights
The airline is about to hold a press conference, and we will update this story as details come in.

The flights are available on Norwegian's website, however. Norwegian is offering three flights weekly between London Gatwick and New York JFK.

A test booking in August from London Gatwick to New York JFK came in with a lead-in fare of £300.70 including taxes (£124.30) and Fuel surcharge (£50).

The news will be seen as a boost for London Gatwick. Stewart Wingate, CEO of London Gatwick, said:
“This is one of the most exciting route developments since Gatwick’s change of ownership four years ago and shows the benefits to passengers of Gatwick competing with Heathrow on routes, price and service. Norwegian’s decision to re-establish London Gatwick's links to strategic destinations in North America gives passengers, once again, real choice about how to get there and, importantly, provide options for affordable travel to popular business and leisure destinations.
norwegian.com

 

[kenyaprince]

Re: Norwegian apre il lungo raggio da Londra Gatwick

[h=1]Norwegian Air Shuttle: Asia's longhaul LCC model comes to the N Atlantic (but watch falling profits)[/h]CAPA > Aviation Analysis > Norwegian Air Shuttle: Asia's longhaul LCC model comes to the N Atlantic (but watch falling profits)
29th October, 2013

Norwegian Air Shuttle reported a fall in 3Q2013 net profit, affected by Boeing 787 disruptions and weaker demand as a result of the good northern European summer weather. Nevertheless, Norwegian continues to build for the future and announced its first UK-US trans-Atlantic routes on 17-Oct-2013.
In Jul-2014, Norwegian will launch three long-haul routes from London Gatwick to Los Angeles, New York and Fort Lauderdale, in addition to the trans-Atlantic routes operated from its Scandinavian bases. The airline is already using 787-8s on its Bangkok service.
This will be the first modern attempt to introduce the successful Asian long-haul LCC model to the North Atlantic from the UK, a concept that Ryanair's Michael O'Leary has often floated in the past. Earlier this month Qantas subsidiary Jetstar took delivery of the first of a fleet of 787-8s that it will be using on long-haul routes in Asia. SIA subsidiary Scoot will receive 787-8/9s from late 2014 and AirAsia X will use A350-900s from 2018.

[h=2]Norwegian's 3Q2013 profits fall[/h]Norwegian Air Shuttle reported a 31% year on year drop in net profit for 3Q2013 to NOK436 million (EUR53.65 million). The result was adversely affected by wet-lease costs for replacement long-haul aircraft following Boeing 787 problems and low summer bookings as a result of unusually warm weather. In spite of the weaker third quarter, the cumulative result for the first nine months of 2013 was 19% above last year, at NOK516 million (EUR63.49 million).
Norwegian Air Shuttle financial highlights 3Q2013

Source: Norwegian Air Shuttle
[h=2]Strong capacity growth continues, but load factor slips and RASK falls[/h]Norwegian’s rapid capacity growth continued, with 3Q2013 ASKs up by 31%. Load factor fell by 1ppt to 81%, while the nine month load factor figure was stable at 79%. This is still a solid load factor, especially given the relentless pace of capacity growth, but it is lower than the Association of European Airlines' (AEA) nine month figure of around 81%. Moreover, Norwegian’s load factor has been on something of a downward trend in recent years: it was more than 84% in 3Q2011 and over 85% in 3Q2007.
Norwegian Air Shuttle traffic and operating data 3Q2013

Source: Norwegian Air Shuttle
Passenger numbers increased by 16% year on year in 3Q2013 and average sector length grew by 11%. The high rate of capacity growth appears to have weighed on unit revenue, which fell 13% in the quarter, an acceleration of the 3% decline seen in 1H2013. This is partly due to longer average sector length, although this grew at a similar rate in 1H2013.
The weakness in RASK also reflects increased competition in Norwegian’s leisure markets and the warm summer weather, which affected late bookings.
Norwegian Air Shuttle ASK (million) and passenger load factor (%) 3Q2004 to 3Q2013

Source: Norwegian Air Shuttle
Norwegian Air Shuttle share of available seats sold on typical leisure routes from the Nordics*

*average for departure during the month of July
Source: Norwegian Air Shuttle
[h=2]International traffic drives revenue growth and market share gains[/h]Total revenues were up by 15% in the third quarter, driven by 21% growth in international traffic revenues. International traffic has been the main revenue driver for some years.
Norwegian Air Shuttle revenues (NOK million) 3Q2010 to 3Q2013

Source: Norwegian Air Shuttle
Norwegian again grew passenger numbers and market share at all of its main bases in 3Q2013. At its home base of Oslo, it recovered its previous 3Q peak market share of 39%, which it had last reached in 3Q2010. At Stockholm, Copenhagen, Helsinki, London Gatwick and in Spain (Malaga,Palma and Alicante), its share continues to grow consistently.
At its new Gatwick base, Norwegian accounted for 90% of the year on year growth in the total marker in the quarter and it now has a market share of 6% of passengers.
Norwegian Air Shuttle development of passenger numbers and market shares in selected markets 3Q2008-3Q2013

Source: Norwegian Air Shuttle
[h=2]Norwegian’s three new London-US routes: long-haul low-cost arrives on the North Atlantic[/h]On 17-Oct-2013, Norwegian announced three new trans-Atlantic routes from London Gatwick: to Los Angeles, New York and Fort Lauderdale, to be launched in Jul-2014. These will not be Norwegian’s first trans-Atlantic routes, but will be its first long-haul routes not to involve one of its Scandinavian bases. Like its existing long-haul routes, they will be operated with Boeing 787-8 equipment.
It operates its Dreamliner aircraft with a total of 291 seats, including 259 in economy and 32 in premium economy.
Norwegian Air Shuttle new North Atlantic routes from London Gatwick for summer 2014

Route	Launch date	Weekly freq
Gatwick-Los Angeles	02-Jul-14	2x
Gatwick-New York JFK	03-Jul-14	3x
Gatwick-Fort Lauderdale	04-Jul-14	2x

Source: Norwegian Air Shuttle
London Gatwick is already a base for Norwegian and it currently offers 25 European destinations from the airport (source; Innovata, week of 28-Oct-2013). In addition to the three new US routes, it will add five more European destinations in summer 2014 (Santorini, Corfu, Catania, Cyprusand Budapest) and increase frequencies to nine existing destinations.
[h=2]Feed at Gatwick will be a key factor for success[/h]London is the largest O&D market from Europe to the US and Norwegian may tap into latent demand there for low fares across the Atlantic. Nevertheless, long-haul operations tend to require at least some feeder traffic from elsewhere to supplement local demand. This has been an issue in the past for long-haul LCCs from Asia, even when operating into London.
Norwegian’s growing Gatwick network should help to feed its long-haul routes from its London base, where it can also benefit from the substantial short-haul networks of easyJet and British Airways (respectively the number one and number two at Gatwick). Nearly 70% of all seats operated into Gatwick are on LCCs, according to Innovata.
AirAsia X initially used Stansted for its Kuala Lumpur-London A340 service and then later moved to Gatwick. Both airports have an array of good connections possible on LCCs and AirAsia X saw significant self-connection traffic (it was high fuel prices and the aircraft type which made the route unviable).
As Norwegian CEO Bjorn Kjos says: “We have a lot of feeder flights in and out of Gatwick. Gatwick probably has the biggest network in all of Europe if you take account of all of the routes flown by easyJet and Ryanair....it is an ideal base.” The airport's CEO Stewart Wingate considers the operation a “significant game-changer". Thomson too will be operating 787s from Gatwick starting from 1-Nov-2013, so Mr Wingate has cause for optimism on that score.
Norwegian Air Shuttle routes from/to London Gatwick

Source: Norwegian Air Shuttle
Over time optimising the potential of Gatwick as a hub will require some considered tweaking of procedures. Certainly, the experience of long-haul LCCs in Asia, such as Scoot and Air Asia X, is that properly structured connections are preferable to relying on passengers self-connecting - even though a very large proportion does.
More importantly, Norwegian may lack feed at the other end of these routes. It has been reported that JetBlue may consider an interline or codeshare arrangement with Norwegian. According to JetBlue spokesperson Anders Lindstrom (TheStreet.com, 11-Oct-2013), “Norwegian is a strong and popular brand among customers with a great product, which would make them a natural fit as a partner for JetBlue.”
A partnership with JetBlue could be beneficial to Norwegian, as well as the US LCC. JetBlue already has bases at two of the three initial Norwegian US destinations from Gatwick, New York JFK and Fort Lauderdale. It also has a base at Orlando (where it will operate from Oslo in Summer 2014) and an operates from Oakland (Oslo and Stockholm).
Fort Lauderdale and Orlando would be used by Norwegian mainly for connections to the Caribbean and Latin America while New York is JetBlue's largest hub with a vast array of domestic and some international connections. Connections at Oakland would be limited to Long Beach, JetBlue's only west coast destination from Oakland and its west coast base. JetBlue also serves Los Angeles but only from the east coast, leaving no feasible connections for Norwegian. But Los Angeles is a large enough destination market to support service from the UK and Scandinavia, with connections on the European end.
[h=2]Long-haul network of 14 routes, biased towards the US, in summer 2014[/h]The new US routes will bring Norwegian's total long-haul network to 14 routes: six from Oslo, three from Copenhagen, two from Stockholm and three from London Gatwick. The bulk of its long-haul network, 12 routes, will be to the US, with just two to Asia (Oslo and Stockholm toBangkok). It will have 15 weekly round trips from New York alone from the summer of 2014.
The long-haul network is still relatively small compared with a total of 382 routes across its entire network, but Norwegian plans significant growth. According to Norwegian’s projections, long-haul should grow to account for 4% of departures, 8% of passenger and 46% of ASKs in 2015, when the long-haul fleet will rise to eight aircraft.
Norwegian Air Shuttle long-haul network summer 2014

Source: Norwegian Air Shuttle
[h=2]Norwegian's low share of the UK-US market means market power is limited[/h]Norwegian’s planned London-US operation is not large compared with the activities of existing competitors. On London to Fort Lauderdale, there are no other competitors at present, according to Innovata, although British Airways, American Airlines and Virgin Atlantic all operate to Miami(only 23 miles away). Norwegian’s planned 582 weekly seats to Fort Lauderdale in Jul-2014 compares with BA’s 4,396, AA’s 3,584 and Virgin’s 2,634 weekly seats flown in Jul-2013 (week of 1-Jul-2013, source: Innovata).
On its other two new US routes, Norwegian would have a share of seats of 3% (London to Los Angeles) and 2% (London to New York), assuming that the existing competitors’ capacity were to remain the same in Jul-2012 as in Jul-2013. Putting it in the wider context of the overall UK-US market, Norwegian’s planned capacity will be less than 1% of this market.
Moreover, Heathrow’s importance in this market has grown substantially, accounting for more than 80% of US-UK passengers in 2012, from around 60% in 2007. Schedules and connections at Heathrow are much better attuned to trans-Atlantic operations. That said, Heathrow is full and Gatwick, via Norwegian, could well attract additional demand for trans-Atlantic air travel.
Norwegian Air Shuttle weekly seat capacity on new North Atlantic routes from London versus competitor capacity

London to:	Norwegian	BA	Virgin	AA	United	Delta	Air New Zealand	Competitor airport pair
Los Angeles	582	6,594	4,424	2,170	1,904	-	2,324	LHR to LAX
New York JFK	873	18,710*	14,742*	7,668	6,692**	4,984	-	LHR to JFK, except where indicated
Fort Lauderdale	582	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Note: compares Norwegian’s planned capacity for Jul-2014 with competitor capacity for week of 1-Jul-2013
* to JFK and Newark
**Newark
Source: CAPA – Centre for Aviation, Innovata, Norwegian Air Shuttle
Share of weekly seat capacity on Norwegian’s new North Atlantic routes from London

London to:	Norwegian	BA	Virgin	AA	United	Delta	Air New Zealand
Los Angeles	3%	37%	25%	12%	11%	0%	13%
New York JFK	2%	35%	27%	14%	12%	9%	0%
Fort Lauderdale	100%	-	-	-	-	-	-

Note: compares Norwegian’s planned capacity for Jul-2014 with competitor capacity for week of 1-Jul-2013
* to JFK and Newark
**Newark
Source: CAPA – Centre for Aviation, Innovata, Norwegian Air Shuttle
[h=2]Price will be Norwegian’s USP[/h]Clearly, Norwegian will not be selling its London to US network on the strength of its schedule, nor on the breadth of its network and partnerships, but it will be targeting a mainly leisure market on the basis of low fares. This will represent its best hope of competing in a market that is dominated by the global alliances.
So, how low are its fares? Norwegian has announced introductory one way fares of GBP199 to Los Angeles, GBP149 to New York and GBP179 to Fort Lauderdale. In order to compare prices with competitors, we sampled currently available fares from the websites of each of the competitors on London to New York for the week of Norwegian’s planned route launch. While this does not necessarily give a totally robust basis for analysis of their respective pricing strategies, it does provide a useful illustration.
As of 28-Oct-2013, Norwegian's website is offering an economy class fare of GBP543 for a return trip to New York, departing on 3-Jul-2014 and returning on 10-Jul-2014. This compares with competitor prices in a tight range of GBP860 to GBP884 and represents a significant discount offered by Norwegian.
London to New York lowest round trip web fares for travel in Jul-2014 (GBP)*

Note: premium economy, rather than business class, for Norwegian
*Fares as of 28-Oct-2013 for outbound travel 3-Jul-2014, return 10-Jul-2014
Source: CAPA – Centre for Aviation, airline websites
Norwegian’s premium economy fare (it has no business class fare) is around half that of the competitors’ business class fares. Note that United is currently offering a significantly lower business class fare for this trip than the other competitors – presumably reflecting a short term promotion – but, otherwise the existing competitor fares are very similar to each other and all are well above Norwegian's.
[h=2]Lower surcharges, taxes and fees too[/h]Not only is Norwegian’s base fare in economy significantly lower than that of the competition (GBP371 versus GBP506 to GBP527), but it also imposes a lower fuel surcharge and charges less in respect of external taxes and fees, according to the breakdown of its fare provided on its website.
Lower airport and handling charges at Gatwick account for some of this, but presumably this means that Norwegian is subsidising the external charges, which are broadly identical for each of the competitors.
London to New York lowest economy round trip web fares for travel in Jul-2014, split by base fare, surcharges and taxes (GBP)*

*Fares as of 28-Oct-2013 for outbound travel 3-Jul-2014, return 10-Jul-2014
Source: CAPA – Centre for Aviation, airline websites
London to New York lowest business class round trip web fares for travel in Jul-2014, split by base fare, surcharges and taxes (GBP)*

Note: premium economy, rather than business class, for Norwegian
*Fares as of 28-Oct-2013 for outbound travel 3-Jul-2014, return 10-Jul-2014
Source: CAPA – Centre for Aviation, airline websites
Combined Landing / Terminal Charges with Baggage / Check-in (USD) for LondonGatwickAirport Off Peak, LondonGatwickAirportPeak, LondonHeathrowAirport

Source: CAPA - Centre for Aviation & Air Transport Research Society
[h=2]Norwegian’s fare will generate around half the revenue per passenger of competitors on LON-NYC[/h]In terms of the proportion of the fare kept by the airline (i.e. excluding external taxes and fees), Norwegian’s pricing of this illustrative trip will generate a bit less than half the revenue per passenger of its competitors.
The competitors’ prices for a round-trip business class fare to New York, net of external charges, are a multiple of around three times or more those of their economy fares. By contrast, Norwegian’s premium economy fare is only 2.6 times its economy fare.
London to New York lowest round trip web fares as percentage of British Airways fare Jul-2014, excluding external taxes and charges (GBP)*

*Fares as of 28-Oct-2013 for outbound travel 3-Jul-2014, return 10-Jul-2014
Source: CAPA – Centre for Aviation, airline websites
[h=2]The source of significant cost advantage: a combination of factors[/h]Given that the approach of traditional network carriers is effectively to subsidise economy passengers with highly priced business class fares, this raises questions over Norwegian’s ability to cover its costs with these low fares. The key to long-haul low-cost is to find meaningful sources of cost advantage. Airport charges can provide some differential, but not to the same extent as the use of secondary airports on short-haul intra-European routes.
Labour costs can also make a difference, and Gatwick should be a lower-cost base for Norwegian in this respect than its Scandinavian bases, where wage rates are much higher, but London is not a low wage economy in an absolute sense. The absence of legacy pension costs and a more flexible workforce than those of traditional carriers may allow Norwegian to have lower labour unit costs than British Airways, for example.
However, productivity improvements and lower cabin crew wage rates at BA in recent years reduce the potential advantage in this area. Moreover, Norwegian will reportedly not base its 787 aircraft for these routes at Gatwick, but at the US destinations, although it is not yet clear where its crew will be based. Having aircraft and crew located at different ends of a route could lead to significant crew accommodation costs, although presumably there is method in this strategy.
Aircraft operating costs can also be a source of cost advantage if the most modern, fuel efficient equipment is deployed. Norwegian has this, in the form of the Boeing 787-8, but it is not unique in operating such aircraft. BA already has four in service, United seven (and both have more on order), while both American Airlines and Delta Air Lines have ordered 787s for future delivery.
[h=2]Costs will be the key to Norwegian's success[/h]Wherever it may come from, a sustainable cost advantage will be key to Norwegian’s success, or otherwise, in operating a low fares strategy on the Atlantic.
Cost per passenger versus average sector length for selected European airlines 2012

Source: CAPA – Centre for Aviation analysis of airline company annual reports and traffic data
Current data on Norwegian’s operating costs are not directly comparable to those of the likes of BA, due to their very different average sector lengths. Nevertheless, a plot of cost per passenger versus average sector length for European LCCs and legacy carriers gives some useful pointers (see chart above).

Norwegian's cost per passenger would be well under half that of British Airways...​

If its cost per passenger were to grow along the LCC trend line as its average sector length increased,Norwegian's cost per passenger would be well under half that of British Airways, based on 2012 data.
This is by no means a given and would require Norwegian to achieve healthy load factors and efficient operations, but it does suggest it may not be beyond the realms of possibility for it to generate less than half the revenue per passenger of its competitors and still be profitable. That would be a telling advantage.
[h=2]Over to you Mr O'Leary.....[/h]If Norwegian is profitably successful in its London-US operations, might that tempt other LCCs to enter the trans-Atlantic market?
None has shown real interest in doing so any time soon. Ryanair’s Michael O’Leary has long mooted the idea of setting up a new vehicle to do this, separate from Ryanair, but he has conditioned that on waiting until aircraft prices are low enough to offer a significant ownership cost advantage.
...you can bet that both Mr O'Leary and nearby Stansted Airport, where Ryanair currently accounts for 80% of the 430,000 weekly seats, will be watching very intently...
That one of the industry’s greatest cost cutters does not yet see an opportunity to enter the long-haul LCC arena suggests that the concept is yet to be proved. But you can bet that both Mr O'Leary and nearby Stansted Airport, where Ryanair currently accounts for 80% of the 430,000 weekly seats, will be watching very intently. Getting hold of a handful of the tightly held 787s in the short term will be a challenge, even for such a big Boeing customer, and Mr O'Leary could well find himself wishing he had been prepared to take a bit more of a risk.

 

[guglia2000]

Re: Norwegian apre il lungo raggio da Londra Gatwick

Vedo che Norwegian dall'estate 2014 farà anche Catania.
Da Catania per l'estate 2014 ci saranno per Londra:
Norwegian Gatwick
Airone Gatwick
Easyjet Gatwick e Luton
BA Gatwick

Più il volo da Comiso per Stanted Ryanair... non è eccessivo?

 

[flapane]

Re: Norwegian apre il lungo raggio da Londra Gatwick

edit: errato

 

[AZ209]

Re: Norwegian apre il lungo raggio da Londra Gatwick

Vedo che Norwegian dall'estate 2014 farà anche Catania.
Da Catania per l'estate 2014 ci saranno per Londra:
Norwegian Gatwick
Airone Gatwick
Easyjet Gatwick e Luton
BA Gatwick

Più il volo da Comiso per Stanted Ryanair... non è eccessivo?

Norwegian sarà 1xw

 

[AZ209]

Re: Norwegian apre il lungo raggio da Londra Gatwick

Dal 6 Maggio al 24 Luglio DY operera' con il 787 sulla LGW-ARN

Norwegian Plans Boeing 787 London Gatwick – Stockholm Service May – July 2014

by JL
Update at 0740GMT 31MAR14

From 06MAY14 to 24JUL14, Norwegian plans to operate Boeing 787-8 aircraft on London Gatwick – Stockholm service. The Dreamliner is to operate this route twice a day, on weekdays only.

DY2852 LGW0940 – 1300ARN 788 x67
DY2856 LGW1655 – 2020ARN 788 4
DY2856 LGW1700 – 2020ARN 788 x467

DY2849 ARN0705 – 0840LGW 788 x67
DY2853 ARN1415 – 1550LGW 788 x67

 

[TW 843]

Re: Norwegian apre il lungo raggio da Londra Gatwick

Norwegian’s EU plans under threat

Author - Tom Newcombe - 29 Apr 2014

Norwegian Air’s plans to build an international long-haul airline in Ireland may be scrapped if it fails to gain backing from the U.S Department of Transportation (DOT).

Norwegian launched flights to the US and Bangkok from its Nordic base last year, and in February gained an operating licence, enabling it to base the business in the EU, where it can operate under more favourable conditions and take advantage of the Open Skies trade agreement with the US.

The airline is currently operating under a temporary licence and is awaiting a decision from DOT for a permanent licence.

The application for a permanent licence has been fiercely contested by some parts of the industry. They claim the main reason for the move is to bypass Norway’s strict labour laws, avoiding high labour costs and enabling it to employ cheaper Thai workers.

Norwegian deny this claim and said the move is to gain access to future traffic rights to and from the EU.

"An additional delay – or in the worst case, a negative decision by the US DOT – may regrettably force us to reverse our commitment to build an international long-haul airline in Ireland,” Norwegian Air chief executive Bjoern Kjos said.

Kjos also confirmed the delay in gaining the permanent licence has led to it suspending talks to purchase 20 Dreamliner planes from Boeing.

"Unfortunately, the delay in the DOT process has given us no other choice than to put our ongoing negotiations with Boeing to purchase 20 new 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft – due to be registered in Ireland – on hold until Norwegian Air International's future in the US has been decided.”

Norwegianair.com

 

[MrMav]

Re: Norwegian apre il lungo raggio da Londra Gatwick

La Norwegian lancia il suo primo Boeing 787 Dreamliner nel volo inaugurale Londra Gatwick-Los Angeles

 

[pello]

Re: Norwegian apre il lungo raggio da Londra Gatwick

La Norwegian lancia il suo primo Boeing 787 Dreamliner nel volo inaugurale Londra Gatwick-Los Angeles

[Ironic_Mode:ON]

[Ironic_Mode:OFF]

 

[MrMav]

Re: Norwegian apre il lungo raggio da Londra Gatwick

[Ironic_Mode:ON]

[Ironic_Mode:OFF]

E io che pensavo lo lanciassero con la fionda....!!!

 

[AZ209]

Re: Norwegian apre il lungo raggio da Londra Gatwick

Norwegian's LA route revives budget long-haul hopes

A Norwegian direct airline service to Los Angeles has revived hopes for a budget long-haul market.

Budget airline Norwegian started the new twice weekly service out of London's Gatwick Airport on Wednesday.
Over the next two days it will also start flying twice a week from London to Fort Lauderdale and three times a week to New York.
Norwegian made its first foray into long-haul in 2013 with routes from Scandinavia to the US and Thailand.
Norwegian says that some low season flights can be had for as low as £179 ($272) one-way to New York, however only a limited of seats are available at this price.
On Wednesday, Norwegian's website was offering flights in the height of the holiday season in July and August from £329 to £647.

Labour row

But the service, run from a new company called Norwegian Air International (NAI) in the Republic of Ireland, has been heavily criticised by US airlines and labour unions.
They say NAI is using Ireland because of its more flexible labour laws.
The Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) said the creation of Norwegian Air International "was clearly designed to attempt to dodge laws and regulations, starting a race to the bottom on labour and working conditions".
Among their complaints is NAI's use of pilots and crews from Asia to drive down costs.
Norwegian says that it always respects the regulations of the markets in which it operates and says it is hiring 300 American cabin crew and New York-based pilots for its 787 Dreamliner operation.
It said in a statement that NAI was based in Ireland to "access to future traffic rights to and from the EU (Norway is not a member of the EU)", and because being registered in Ireland gave it access to more flexible rules on financing.

Consequences

Norwegian has planned its long-haul business round fuel-efficient aircraft. It has a fleet of 787 Dreamliners with four more due for delivery before the end of 2014.
If the Norwegian long-haul budget model works it could have far reaching consequences for the development of travel and how airports are used.
The new generation of fuel efficient aircraft could mean more passengers flying "point-to-point" rather than via large hub airports such as Heathrow, Schiphol or Charles de Gaulle.

By Richard Westcott, BBC Transport Correspondent. @BBCWestcott

There is an argument that these new routes are so significant, they could change the course of the runway debate in Britain.
Right now, Gatwick and Heathrow are in the middle of a dog fight over who should be allowed to expand.
Gatwick reckons that a low-cost carrier offering long-haul flights is a sign of the future. A future where more of us fly directly to our destination, rather than transfer via a big, hub airport, like Heathrow. In which case, they argue, we might as well build the new runway at Gatwick because it's cheaper and far fewer people will suffer from the extra noise.
But there's a snag here. This all seems to assume that the low-cost carriers are desperate to start flying us to the States, or to those gold rush cities in Asia and South America.

Yet Gatwick's biggest customer, Easyjet doesn't agree. Their boss, Carolyn McColl, told the BBC only last month: "We have no intention to do long-haul because we think it's a different kind of business."
She also said it was "high risk" to change the airline's short-haul strategy.
The man leading the Airports Commission, Sir Howard Davies, once told me that his most important and most difficult challenge was to predict how we'll all be flying in the future. Will we use hubs or will we fly direct? His answer could determine who gets the next runway, but we won't hear it for another year.

Failures

Long-haul budget airline travel started in 1977 with Britain's Sir Freddie Laker and Skytrain. His venture went into liquidation in 1982, hit by recession and cut-price competition from the big airlines.
In 2007, Malaysian music executive Tony Fernandes tried again with AirAsia X flying out of Kuala Lumpur. But five years later he was forced to pull out of the flights to Delhi, Mumbai, London, and Paris, saying he had been caught out by high fuel prices, taxes, and weak travel demand.
Norwegian's main market is across Europe, North Africa and the Middle East. It carried 2.1 million passengers in May, an increase of 12% compared with the same month last year.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-28127489

 

[MrMav]

Re: Norwegian apre il lungo raggio da Londra Gatwick

Norwegian launches a new long-haul route between Copenhagen and Bangkok


Norwegian continues to expand is long-haul operation by launching a new route between Copenhagen and Bangkok.

Norwegian launches yet another long-haul route. On 30th October, Norwegian-passengers can fly non-stop between Copenhagen and Bangkok. The new route will operate twice a week and ticket sales start today. Norwegian already offers direct routes between Bangkok and Oslo and Stockholm.[/B]
Norwegian continues to expand is long-haul operation by launching a new route between Copenhagen and Bangkok.

Norwegian launches yet another long-haul route. On 30th October, Norwegian-passengers can fly non-stop between Copenhagen and Bangkok. The new route will operate twice a week and ticket sales start today. Norwegian already offers direct routes between Bangkok and Oslo and Stockholm.

The new long-haul route is part of Norwegian’s global strategy:
“For too long, the long-haul market has been dominated by high fares and restricted flexibility. We believe that everyone should afford to fly, also long-haul,” says Norwegian’s CEO Bjørn Kjos.

Norwegian’s long-haul operations
In 2013 Norwegian commenced its long-haul operation by becoming the only low-cost carrier to offer flights between Europe and the US. Norwegian will have a fleet of 17 Dreamliners, whereof seven are currently in service and one more will be delivered in 2014. The company is planning to expand its long-haul fleet with even more 787 Dreamliners.

Norwegian offers long-haul flights between the following destinations:

Routes from New York (JFK): Oslo (OSL), Stockholm (ARN), Copenhagen (CPH), Bergen (BGO) and London (LGW)

Routes from Fort Lauderdale (FLL): Oslo (OSL), Stockholm (ARN), Copenhagen (CPH) and London (LGW)

Routes from Los Angeles (LAX): Oslo (OSL), Stockholm (ARN), Copenhagen (CPH) and London (LGW)

Routes from San Francisco (OAK): Oslo (OSL) and Stockholm (ARN)

Routes from Orlando (MCO): Oslo (OSL)

Routes from Bangkok (BKK): Oslo (OSL), Stockholm (ARN) and Copenhagen (CPH

 

[AZ209]

Re: Norwegian apre il lungo raggio da Londra Gatwick

Lettera degli aa/vv basati negli USA al Presidente Obama:

Norwegian’s U.S. Based Flight Attendants Send Strong Message to President Obama
http://media.norwegian.com/en/#/pre...end-strong-message-to-president-obama-1119260

 

[AZ209]

Re: Norwegian apre il lungo raggio da Londra Gatwick

Nuova infornata di rotte di lungo raggio sia da LGW che dalle basi scandinave di CPH, ARN e OSL verso i Caraibi e Las Vegas.

Norwegian continues to expand its long-haul network with new direct routes. Starting November 2015, Norwegian will launch a non-stop service between London Gatwick and the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico. As of May 2015, Pula in Croatia will be a new destination from London Gatwick. The airline is also adding more weekly flights between London Gatwick and New York.

“The response we’ve had on our intercontinental destinations has been overwhelming and it is obvious that affordable fares were scarce before Norwegian entered the market. This makes it even more enjoyable to add more destinations to our route map of more than 100 destinations. We are looking forward to welcoming new and returning customers on our new routes between London Gatwick and the Caribbean,” said Norwegian’s Chief Commercial Officer Thomas Ramdahl.

“We are also adding more weekly flights between New York and London Gatwick, and Los Angeles and London Gatwick because of the great response. Pula in Croatia is also a new destination from London Gatwick this summer,” he added.

Norwegian has a long-haul and a short-haul base for cabin crew and pilots at London Gatwick. The routes across the Atlantic will be operated by the Gatwick-based crew and Norwegian’s US-based crew.

An excellent starting point for island hopping in the Caribbean

Norwegian’s new Caribbean destination from Gatwick will be popular among sun- and adventure seekers; Puerto Rico is an excellent starting point for island hopping. The introductory fare from London Gatwick to Puerto Rico is £269 one way.
"Puerto Rico is more than ready to broaden its horizons in the European market and we are very excited to welcome Norwegian's new service to San Juan. Puerto Rico offers an outstanding variety of options making it an attractive a five-star Caribbean destination accessible to British and Scandinavian travelers. We are certain that Norwegian’s five weekly flights will significantly boost and diversify the tourism industry in Puerto Rico. We look forward to a productive partnership with Norwegian,” stated Ingrid I. Rivera Rocafort, Executive Director of the Puerto Rico Tourism Company.
Today, Norwegian also launches direct flights between Scandinavia and Puerto Rico, as well as flights between the largest of the U.S. Virgin Islands, St. Croix, and Copenhagen. Las Vegas is also a brand new destination; the airline will now offer flights between Stockholm/Copenhagen and Las Vegas.

New routes:

Caribbean – San Juan, Puerto Rico
London Gatwick – two weekly departures on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Start date: November 4, 2015
Copenhagen – one weekly departure on Fridays. Start date: November 6, 2015
Stockholm – one weekly departure on Tuesdays. Start date: November 3, 2015
Oslo – one weekly departure on Sundays. Start date: November 1, 2015

Caribbean – St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands
Copenhagen – one weekly departure on Fridays. Start date: November 9, 2015

Las Vegas
Copenhagen – one weekly departure on Tuesdays. Start date: November 10, 2015
Stockholm – one weekly departure on Saturdays. Start date: October 31, 2015

Pula – Croatia
London Gatwick – one weekly departure on Sundays. Start date: May 24, 2015

Added frequencies on existing routes:

New York
London Gatwick: Norwegian will offer daily flights between London Gatwick and New York (JFK) as of November, 2015

Los Angeles
London Gatwick: Norwegian will offer three weekly flights between Los Angeles and London Gatwick this winter season
Oslo: Norwegian will offer flights between Los Angeles and Oslo all year round

http://media.norwegian.com/en/#/pressreleases/norwegian-launches-new-routes-to-the-caribbean-and-croatia-from-london-gatwick-1145983

 

[AZ209]

Re: Norwegian apre il lungo raggio da Londra Gatwick

Continua lo sviluppo del LR Norwegian da LGW. New entry sara' BOS (4xw da maggio 2016)

Norwegian announce a new route from London Gatwick to Boston, operating four times per week from May 2016
http://media.norwegian.com/en/#/pre...ica-and-announces-new-route-to-boston-1190505

 

[DusCgn]

Re: Norwegian apre il lungo raggio da Londra Gatwick

Ci dovrebbero essere dei voli L/H anche da Parigi dal prossimo anno.
Barcellona e Roma anche nel radar, ma al momento non ci sono aeromobili abbastanza.

Norwegian Air Shuttle targets long haul via UK

Norwegian Air Shuttle has revealed plans to set up a UK subsidiary as the low-cost airline sets its sight on further expansion in the long-haul market.
Bjorn Kjos, chief executive at Norwegian, told the Financial Times the airline was in the process of obtaining a UK operating licence, which would enable it fly to new destinations in Africa, India and South America.

High quality global journalism requires investment. Please share this article with others using the link below, do not cut & paste the article. See our Ts&Cs and Copyright Policy for more detail. Email ftsales.support@ft.com to buy additional rights. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/686fa236-2589-11e5-bd83-71cb60e8f08c.html#ixzz3fOOLX7XD

But the move could also help Norwegian overcome opposition from the US to its transatlantic expansion, according to industry experts.
Europe’s third-biggest low-cost airline is in the middle of a lengthy dispute with Washington regulators over its proposals to operate flights from Europe to the US using aircraft registered in Ireland.
Both US airlines and trade unions have lobbied hard against granting Norwegian permission to fly into the US under these arrangements, claiming the carrier is seeking to use an Irish operating licence to sidestep Norway’s high labour costs when hiring crew.
A UK operating licence for Norwegian — which already operates flights from London’s Gatwick airport to four US destinations — could help defuse the US row, said two analysts who declined to be named. The licence would also enable Norwegian to take advantage of Britain’s bilateral traffic agreements with India as well as countries in Africa and South America.
While US regulators have so far failed to give permission to Norwegian’s Irish subsidiary to operate flights to the US, Mr Kjos said the airline will get the green light “sooner or later”.
“The US airlines hate Norwegian because we are flying with low fares,” he said. “They are trying to protect their turf by all means.”
A former fighter jet pilot and author of crime novels, Mr Kjos has shaken up the Scandinavian market with much of the same chutzpah and publicity grabbing antics that Ryanair’s Michael O’Leary has used in Ireland and the UK.
The Norwegian carrier has expanded rapidly in recent years, and is seeking to challenge the dominance of Ryanair and easyJet in the European low-cost market. It has also become the latest low-cost airline to attempt to crack the long-haul market — a move which has seen some other carriers struggle or fail.
Norwegian on Thursday celebrates one year of flying from Gatwick to the US. It outlined plans to increase the frequency of its flights from Gatwick to New York to a daily connection from October.
Mr Kjos said Norwegian also plans to operate long-haul flights from Paris as early as next year. The airline is considering long-haul flights from Barcelona and Rome, although Mr Kjos admitted it does not yet have sufficient aircraft.
Norwegian has eight of Boeing’s Dreamliners and orders for a further nine of these passenger jets.
A spokeswoman for Norwegian said: “The reason for establishing a UK company is for access to bilateral traffic rights, enabling us to offer new destinations. However, if we do obtain ... permission for the UK air operating company it would allow us to be more flexible in our operation, with the use of our aircraft and crew.”

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/686fa236-2589-11e5-bd83-71cb60e8f08c.html#axzz3fOO4fMPQ