The Spanish capital will join Sichuan Airlines’ regular schedule in Europe beginning April 27th, with a new route from Chengdu. According to its website, the Chinese airline will fly four times per week with Airbus A350-900 aircraft configured for 331 or 337 passengers, being the only operator on this service.

Madrid will be Sichuan’s fourth destination on the European continent, following Istanbul, Rome and St. Petersburg. Other cities, such as Frankfurt and Helsinki, are usually part of the schedule in Europe with freighter flights to/from China using Airbus A330-300(P2F) planes. Spain will be a new market for the Chinese carrier.

Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday

• 3U 3803  Chengdu Tianfu TFU 01:40 · 08:50 MAD Madrid
• 3U 3804  Madrid MAD 11:05 · 05:00+1 TFU Chengdu Tianfu

In accordance with our database, el aeropuerto de Madrid-Barajas (Madrid-Barajas airport) has an important connectivity with China, being linked to seven cities in the country.

Beijing

• Air China: 12 weekly flights · Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner

Chengdu · effective April 27th

• Sichuan Airlines: 4 weekly flights · Airbus A350-900

Chongqing

• Hainan Airlines: 2 weekly flights · Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner

Hangzhou

• Beijing Capital Airlines: 3 weekly flights · A332/A333

Shanghai

• China Eastern Airlines: 7 weekly flights · Airbus A350-900

Shenzhen

• Hainan Airlines: 2 weekly flights · Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner

Wenzhou

• China Eastern Airlines: 2 weekly flights · Airbus A350-900

Edelweiss incorporates its first Airbus A350

At 15:13 local time on March 14th, Edelweiss Air’s first Airbus A350-900 landed at Zurich Kloten International Airport from Lourdes Tarbes on a ferry flight.

The aircraft, registered HB-IHF, becomes the first of six A350-900s that the carrier plans to incorporate by mid-2027, with the aim of replacing its current five Airbus A340-300s, which have an average age of 21 years.

Regarding the A350 HB-IHF, it is six years old, and returns to operate with an airline after four years. Between 2019 and 2021 it had flown for LATAM Brasil, but was withdrawn from the fleet due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Edelweiss Air fleet

• Airbus A320-200: 14
• Airbus A340-300: 5
• Airbus A350-900: 1

Ethiopian to commence flights to Porto

Ethiopia’s main airline has announced the launch of a new route to Europe starting July 2nd, which will operate from Addis Ababa International Airport with a stopover in the Spanish capital.

Ethiopian Airlines will fly the Addis Ababa – Madrid – Porto service with Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft, configured for 270 passengers (24 Business and 246 Economy), four times weekly.

Porto will become Ethiopian’s first destination in Portugal.

Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday

• ET 740  Addis Ababa ADD 23:10 · 05:55+1 MAD Madrid
• ET 740  Madrid MAD 06:55+1 · 07:15+1 OPO Porto

Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday

• ET 741  Porto OPO 19:55 · 21:10 MAD Madrid
• ET 741  Madrid MAD 23:10 · 07:25+1 ADD Addis Ababa

Currently, based on our database, Athens, Brussels, Copenhagen, Frankfurt, Geneva, Istanbul, London Gatwick, London Heathrow, Madrid, Manchester, Marseille, Milan, Oslo, Paris Charles de Gaulle, Rome, Stockholm, Vienna, Warsaw and Zurich are its destinations in Europe.

Ato Mesfin Tasew, Group Chief Executive Officer of Ethiopian Airlines, commented on the new service: “We are thrilled to expand our network to Porto, Portugal, a vibrant city with rich cultural heritage and economic significance. This new route underscores our commitment to providing our passengers with more travel options and seamless connectivity.

We look forward to welcoming our passengers on board and offering them the exceptional service that Ethiopian Airlines is known for.”

Turkish adds flights to Cambodia

Effective December 10th, Turkish Airlines will begin flights between Istanbul and Phnom Penh, to be provided via the Thai capital on both legs. As per its press release, the company will serve three times a week using 299-seat Airbus A330-300s with two classes.

Wednesday, Friday and Sunday

• TK 52  Istanbul IST 22:05 · 11:15+1 BKK Bangkok
• TK 52  Bangkok BKK 12:50+1 · 14:20+1 PNH Phnom Penh

Monday, Thursday and Saturday

• TK 53  Phnom Penh PNH 18:40 · 20:10 BKK Bangkok
• TK 53  Bangkok BKK 21:40 · 04:55+1 IST Istanbul

Commenting on the new route, Turkish Airlines Chairman of the Board and Executive Committee, Prof. Ahmet Bolat, said: “As Turkish Airlines, we continuously expand our network in Asia and strengthen our connections with strategic destinations in the region. The launch of Phnom Penh flights marks a significant step forward in this goal. Our flights to Cambodia will create new opportunities for both tourism and business. Additionally, as the only European carrier flying to this destination, we will further solidify our leadership in the region.”

Condor resumes services within Germany

At 10:38 local time on March 1st, Condor’s inaugural flight to Berlin Brandenburg departed Frankfurt, and 20 minutes later the first operation to Hamburg took off from FRA.

For the first time in many years, the carrier will perform domestic services within Germany, which it will offer on Airbus A320-200s and Airbus A320neo aircraft seating 180 passengers.

Frankfurt – Berlin

Daily

• DE 4086  Berlin BER 08:10 · 09:20 FRA Frankfurt (BER 07:40 · 08:50 FRA Sunday)
• DE 4095  Frankfurt FRA 08:20 · 09:25 BER Berlin

Daily

• DE 4094  Berlin BER 16:50 · 18:00 FRA Frankfurt
• DE 4087  Frankfurt FRA 19:15 · 20:20 BER Berlin

Frankfurt – Hamburg

Daily

• DE 4180  Hamburg HAM 08:15 · 09:20 FRA Frankfurt
• DE 4179  Frankfurt FRA 08:20 · 09:25 HAM Hamburg

Daily

• DE 4178  Hamburg HAM 16:55 · 18:00 FRA Frankfurt
• DE 4181  Frankfurt FRA 19:15 · 20:20 HAM Hamburg

“With our city flights, we are adapting our flight schedule to the needs of our guests,” says Peter Gerber, CEO Condor. “Berlin and Hamburg are cities that are popular destinations for both business and leisure travel. We are also opening up further connecting options for our guests: After all, the Condor long-haul network from Frankfurt of course also offers our guests from Berlin and Hamburg many attractive destinations.”

As of March 30th, Condor will begin operations between Frankfurt and Munich, with two daily frequencies on Airbus A321neo aircraft for 212, 215, 223 or 230 passengers.

We review other highlights from the European market

Aegean

Aegean Airlines has confirmed the order of eight additional Airbus A321s, reaching a total of 58 Airbus aircraft ordered since 2018. The eight additional Airbus A321s are A321neo, joining four Airbus A321neo LRs, 21 Airbus A320neo and other 25 Airbus A321neo.

So far, 34 aircraft have been delivered to Aegean from the total order, while the remaining 24 will be incorporated over the next few years. In 2025, the Greek airline added a new A320neo, and plans to receive four more soon.

Aegean Airlines fleet

• Airbus A320-200: 28
• Airbus A320neo: 20
• Airbus A321-200: 4
• Airbus A321neo: 14

Dimitris Gerogiannis, AEGEAN’s CEO, commented: “The expansion of our investment plan with the additional order of 8 new Airbus A321neo aircraft is essential for achieving our growth objectives and further enhancing the competitiveness of our operations. It is also clear that we have a strong preference for the larger-capacity and extended-range version of the A321neo type, which will soon represent two-thirds of our Airbus fleet. We thank Airbus for their outstanding partnership, and we once again promise our passengers that we will make the best possible use of our new aircraft, bringing all the creativity and dedication of our team to deliver new services, new destinations, and even better travel experiences.”

airBaltic

Air Baltic Corporation AS announced that it will have a major expansion at Amsterdam starting March 30th, doubling frequencies on two of its routes and increasing from 14 to 21 weekly flights on another service. 

The airline operates Airbus A220-300 aircraft configured for 145 or 149 passengers in single class.

• Riga (RIX) – Amsterdam (AMS): from 14 to 21 weekly flights
• Tallinn (TLL) – Amsterdam (AMS): from 7 to 14 weekly flights
• Vilnius (VNO) – Amsterdam (AMS): from 7 to 14 weekly flights

airBaltic is the leading operator in the Baltic – Netherlands market.

Martin Gauss, President and CEO of airBaltic: “As the leading airline in the Baltic States, we are committed to providing the best global connectivity from the region to destinations worldwide. Amsterdam is one of the most popular destinations in our network, and by closely monitoring market trends and passenger demand, we recognize that increasing flight frequency is a strategically important step for the Baltic region. This expansion will also provide customers with greater connectivity options and attract more tourists from around the world.”

Animawings

Beginning July 21st, Animawings will commence its services between Bucharest and Dublin, thus entering the Irish market. The Romanian carrier will fly Airbus A220-300s with the following schedule:

Monday, Wednesday and Friday

• A2 658  Bucharest OTP 18:20 · 20:10 DUB Dublin
• A2 659  Dublin DUB 21:00 · 02:40+1 OTP Bucharest

“In the last 10 years, Dublin has become a highly sought-after and appreciated destination among customers, especially Romanians living or working in Ireland. We are happy to be able to serve a large diaspora through our flights, now even better connected with family and friends back home. Animawings maintains its objective of being a company with a Romanian soul, which contributes to facilitating the connections of Romanians abroad with their birthplaces and loved ones”, commented Marius Pandel, shareholder of Animawings.

Aurigny

The Guernsey-based airline will expand its operations by summer 2025, with the launch of three new routes to be performed using 72-seat ATR 72-500 aircraft.

Aurigny will serve Alicante, Bastia and Nice as follows:

• Nice (NCE): 1 weekly · June 14th
• Alicante (ALC): 1 weekly · July 5th
• Bastia (BIA): 1 weekly · August 16th

Flights will be on Saturdays.

Brussels Airlines and Air Europa

During almost 25 days, an Air Europa Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner has flown the Brussels – New York JFK route for Brussels Airlines. The aircraft, with registration EC-MTI, replaced Brussels Airlines’ Airbus A330-300s, which normally serve between the two cities, from February 22nd to March 15th.

Brussels Airlines currently operates five weekly frequencies to John F. Kennedy International Airport using the 295-seat Airbus A330-300 jets.

Daily except Tuesday and Wednesday

• SN 501  Brussels BRU 10:35 · 14:20 JFK New York
• SN 502  New York JFK 19:25 · 07:40+1 BRU Brussels

New York is Brussels Airlines’ only destination in the Americas.

Bulgaria Air

On March 15th at 02:03 local time, Bulgaria Air’s new Airbus A220-300, registered LZ-OSL, arrived in Sofia from Montreal Mirabel International Airport via Oslo on a ferry flight. This is the first aircraft to be introduced by Bulgaria Air in 2025.

The company reaches 17 airplanes in its fleet, including Airbus A220s, Airbus A319s, Airbus A320s and Embraer 190s. Based on our database, the fleet averages eight years of age.

Bulgaria Air fleet

• Airbus A220-300: 7
• Airbus A319-100: 1
• Airbus A320-200: 5
• Embraer 190: 4

Corendon

Charter flights to Piestany from Türkiye, operated by Corendon Airlines.

The carrier will initiate services to the Slovakian city from May 24th, operating with Boeing 737-800 aircraft seating 189 passengers in single class, as announced by AeroRoutes. At the time of publication, these charters will be carried out until the end of June.

At present, Piešťany Airport has no regular or charter flights scheduled, averaging two to three daily flights between non-scheduled or freighter services, as can be seen in the arrivals and departures section of our website.

Euroairlines

The Spanish charter carrier plans to commence a new seasonal route between Belgium and the Dominican Republic effective December 9th, to be offered with Airbus A330s from World2Fly, another European charter airline.

Sunday

• Q4 1010  Brussels BRU 14:30 · 18:30 PUJ Punta Cana
• Q4 1011  Punta Cana PUJ 20:30 · 14:30+1 BRU Brussels

Eurowings

Starting in November, Eurowings will have a major expansion in the Middle East, adding new routes from Germany and increasing frequencies on existing services.

As announced by the airline through a press release, these will be the new features:

• Berlin (BER) – Abu Dhabi (AUH): 3 weekly · November 3rd
• Cologne (CGN) – Jeddah (JED): 3 weekly · November 3rd
• Berlin (BER) – Jeddah (JED): 2 weekly · November 4th
• Hannover (HAJ) – Dubai (DWC): 3 weekly · November 4th
• Stuttgart (STR) – Jeddah (JED): 2 weekly · November 5th
• Berlin (BER) – Dubai (DWC): up to 11 weekly flights
• Cologne (CGN) – Dubai (DWC): from 3 to 4 weekly flights
• Stuttgart (STR) – Dubai (DWC): from 4 to 6 weekly flights

“Eurowings will be flying to Dubai 24 times a week in future,” says Eurowings CEO Jens Bischof: ”This is an indication that our connections to the booming Gulf region are among the most popular and successful routes in our winter flight schedule. We want to continue this success story with the expansion at the Berlin, Hanover, Cologne/Bonn and Stuttgart locations.”

We will comment on schedules and frequencies in our Africa and Middle East report.

FlyOne Armenia

The Belgian capital will join FlyOne Armenia’s regular schedule beginning March 30th, with a new route from Yerevan, the capital of Armenia. Services will be conducted twice-weekly on 180-seat Airbus A320-200s.

Thursday and Sunday

• 3F 545  Yerevan EVN 16:05 · 19:20 BRU Brussels
• 3F 546  Brussels BRU 20:20 · 03:10+1 EVN Yerevan

FlyOne Armenia will compete with Brussels Airlines on this route (flight SN 2899/2900 – every Saturday).

ITA

As of March 31st, ITA Airways will start services between Milan Linate and Munich, which it will provide on 125-seat Airbus A220-100s. The Italian airline will offer the following schedule:

Daily except Sunday

• AZ 450  Milan Linate LIN 07:30 · 08:35 MUC Munich
• AZ 451  Munich MUC 09:35 · 10:40 LIN Milan Linate

Daily except Saturday

• AZ 452  Milan Linate LIN 17:30 · 18:35 MUC Munich
• AZ 453  Munich MUC 19:35 · 20:40 LIN Milan Linate

ITA Airways’ codeshare flights with five airlines of the Lufthansa Group (Lufthansa, SWISS, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines and Air Dolomiti) will commence on March 30th.

KM Malta Airlines

Istanbul, new KM Malta Airlines destination.

For the first time, the company will operate between Malta and Türkiye, to be performed four times a week on Airbus A320neo aircraft with a capacity of 180 passengers, effective June 2nd.

MLA – IST

• KM 784  Malta MLA 06:00 · 09:35 IST Istanbul (Monday and Tuesday)
• KM 786  Malta MLA 16:25 · 20:00 IST Istanbul (Wednesday and Thursday)

IST – MLA

• KM 785  Istanbul IST 10:35 · 12:15 MLA Malta (Monday and Tuesday)
• KM 787  Istanbul IST 21:10 · 22:50 MLA Malta (Wednesday and Thursday)

David Curmi, Chairman of KM Malta Airlines, said: “This exciting development further reinforces KM Malta Airlines’ commitment to providing passengers with enhanced travel opportunities. With Istanbul serving as a major global hub, this route will open doors to more destinations while strengthening trade and tourism ties between Malta and Türkiye.”

LOT

LOT Polish Airlines will add a new service from Barcelona beginning in June.

The airline will fly the Warsaw Radom – Barcelona route with 186/189-seat Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft, on a weekly basis. According to its website, operations will be year-round.

Saturday

• LO 2213  Radom RDO 07:15 · 10:25 BCN Barcelona
• LO 2214  Barcelona BCN 11:25 · 14:25 RDO Radom

Warsaw Chopin is LOT’s only BCN route, which it provides on Boeing 737-800s, Boeing 737 MAX 8s and Embraer 195s. In addition, it operates between Warsaw Chopin and Madrid by 737s.

Lufthansa

After nearly three years, the German airline returns to Izmir with seasonal flights from Munich.

Lufthansa will operate five times per week using 174-seat Airbus A320-200 aircraft until mid-September.

Daily except Tuesday and Thursday

• LH 2646  Munich MUC 22:30 · 02:00+1 ADB Izmir
• LH 2647  Izmir ADB 03:50 · 05:30 MUC Munich (daily except Wed/Fri)

The first flight will be on July 4th.

Norwegian

Effective June 30th, Norwegian will expand its schedule between the UK and Denmark, with the launch of the new London Gatwick – Billund route, to be operated year-round.

Daily except Saturday

• D8 3535  London LGW 15:35 · 18:10 BLL Billund
• D8 3534  Billund BLL 19:10 · 19:55 LGW London

“Norwegian and Billund Airport have had a strong partnership for many years, and we see great potential for growth in this region. With Ryanair’s recent exit, we now have a unique opportunity to strengthen our presence in Billund and Western Denmark. The new route to London Gatwick is just the first step, and we are continuously evaluating opportunities to expand our offerings from Billund,” says Sara Neergaard, Director of Communications & Public Affairs at Norwegian Denmark.

Qatar Airways

Qatar will reach three daily frequencies on the Doha – Berlin route, currently conducted 18 times weekly. The airline serves Boeing 787-8 and Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner with 254 and 311 seats, respectively.

DOH – BER

• QR 79  Doha DOH 02:20 · 07:25 BER Berlin
• QR 81  Doha DOH 08:55 · 14:00 BER Berlin
• QR 83  Doha DOH 15:45 · 20:50 BER Berlin

BER – DOH

• QR 80  Berlin BER 09:40 · 16:20 DOH Doha
• QR 82  Berlin BER 16:30 · 23:10 DOH Doha
• QR 84  Berlin BER 22:30 · 05:10+1 DOH Doha

Flight QR 83/84 will increase to daily from July 10th.

Berlin, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg and Munich are Qatar’s destinations in Germany.

Ryanair

By summer 2025, the low cost carrier will open several routes to/from Scandinavia beginning in June, to be carried out with Boeing 737-800 and Boeing 737 MAX 8-200 aircraft.

• Gothenburg (GOT) – Corfu (CFU): 2 weekly · June 1st
• Gothenburg (GOT) – Thessaloniki (SKG): 2 weekly · June 1st
• Gothenburg (GOT) – Pula (PUY): 2 weekly · June 2nd
• Stockholm (ARN) – Cagliari (CAG): 2 weekly · June 2nd
• Stockholm (ARN) – Marseille (MRS): 2 weekly · June 2nd
• Gothenburg (GOT) – Dubrovnik (DBV): 2 weekly · June 3rd
• Gothenburg (GOT) – Milan (MXP): 3 weekly · June 3rd
• Stockholm (ARN) – Zakynthos (ZTH): 1 weekly · June 3rd
• Stockholm (ARN) – Trieste (TRS): 2 weekly · June 4th

SAS

Scandinavian Airline System will resume operations to Lebanon following more than a year.

The Nordic carrier announced that it will fly to the country’s capital from Copenhagen and Stockholm starting June 6th and the 17th, respectively. Among both routes, SAS will provide five frequencies a week by Airbus A320neo planes seating 174 passengers.

Copenhagen – Beirut

Monday, Wednesday and Friday

• SK 2827  Copenhagen CPH 21:10 · 02:25+1 BEY Beirut

Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday

• SK 2828  Beirut BEY 03:25 · 06:50 CPH Copenhagen

Stockholm – Beirut

Tuesday and Saturday

• SK 2967  Stockholm ARN 21:20 · 02:55+1 BEY Beirut

Wednesday and Sunday

• SK 2968  Beirut BEY 03:55 · 07:40 ARN Stockholm

“We know that many of our customers have been looking forward to the return of our Beirut flights. These routes are particularly important for those traveling to see family and friends, and we are delighted to once again offer a direct and convenient connection,” says Henrik Winell, Vice President Network at SAS.

Transavia France

Bordeaux – Toulon, Transavia’s new route in France.

Operations will be performed twice-weekly on 189-seat Boeing 737-800s starting July 9th, which will run during summer 2025.

Wednesday and Saturday

• TO 7388  Bordeaux BOD 19:45 · 21:05 TLN Toulon

Thursday and Sunday

• TO 7389  Toulon TLN 06:45 · 08:05 BOD Bordeaux

TwinJet

TwinJet, a French airline based in Aix-En-Provence, will launch services between Nice and Venice from March 31st, as announced by AeroRoutes.

These flights will be conducted two times a week using Beechcraft 1900s with a capacity of 19 passengers.

NCE – VCE

• T7 6915  Nice NCE 11:30 · 12:50 VCE Venice (Monday)
• T7 6915  Nice NCE 14:30 · 15:50 VCE Venice (Friday)

VCE – NCE

• T7 6916  Venice VCE 15:10 · 16:30 NCE Nice (Monday)
• T7 6916  Venice VCE 16:30 · 17:50 NCE Nice (Friday)

As per our database, TwinJet has 13 B1900s in its fleet.

Volotea

Beginning July 6th, Volotea will fly between Paris Beauvais and Bastia with 186-seat Airbus A320-200 aircraft. The Spanish airline will be the only operator on this route.

BIA – BVA

• Bastia BIA 13:50 · 15:35 BVA Paris Beauvais (Thursday)
• Bastia BIA 08:45 · 10:30 BVA Paris Beauvais (Sunday)

BVA – BIA

• Paris Beauvais BVA 16:10 · 17:55 BIA Bastia (Thursday)
• Paris Beauvais BVA 11:05 · 12:50 BIA Bastia (Sunday)

Air Corsica and Air France serve to Bastia from Paris Orly, both on Airbus A320s.

Wizz Air

For summer 2025, Wizz Air will have a major expansion in Sibiu (Romania) with six new routes to be served by Airbus A320-200 jets.

• Hamburg (HAM): 3 weekly · August 1st
• Vienna (VIE): 3 weekly · August 1st
• Basel (BSL): 3 weekly · August 2nd
• Frankfurt (HHN): 2 weekly · August 2nd
• Rome (FCO): 3 weekly · August 2nd
• Madrid (MAD): 2 weekly · August 3rd

New aircraft added by European airlines

• Aer Lingus

• Air France

• Bulgaria Air

• DHL (AeroLogic)

• Icelandair

• ITA Airways

• Ryanair (Buzz) (x2)

• Smartwings

• Swiss International Air Lines

• Transavia France

• Turkish Airlines

• Wizz Air Malta (x2)

Other reports we have published

• Asia and Oceania
• Africa and Middle East
• United States and Canada
• Latin America

Cover photo: Laurence Liu – JetPhotos (Chengdu Shuangliu – ZUUU – China)