Airlines To Launch 50 New Routes In June

Dhaka: Virgin Australia, United Airlines, and Delta Air Lines are among the carriers expanding their long-haul networks in June by launching new international routes.

Virgin Australia will start flights to Doha for the first time this month, extending its international presence through a strategic partnership with Qatar Airways, which acquired a 25pc stake in the airline last September.

The airline will launch daily service from Sydney to Doha from June 12, followed by flights from Brisbane on June 19 and Perth on June 26, using Boeing 777-300ERs wet-leased from Qatar Airways. A route from Melbourne follows in December.

June also marks a first for United Airlines, which will begin its first-ever nonstop service to Greenland. Starting June 5, the airline will operate a 2X-weekly flight between Newark Liberty International Airport and Nuuk, Greenland's capital, using 737-8 aircraft. The move follows the opening of Nuuk's new 2,200-m (7,218-ft.) runway last November.

Delta Air Lines is returning to the transpacific market from Salt Lake City this month with nonstop service to Seoul Incheon. The route operates from June 12 with Airbus A350-900neo aircraft and will be daily. It will become Delta's fifth route to Seoul alongside flights from its hubs in Atlanta, Detroit, Minneapolis-St. Paul and Seattle.

The carrier previously operated scheduled service to Tokyo Narita from Salt Lake City until September 2011, according to U.S. Transportation Department data. However, the airport has been without nonstop flights to the Asia-Pacific region ever since.

Taiwan's Starlux Airlines continues its U.S. expansion with a new route to Ontario International Airport in Southern California. Beginning June 2, the Taipei-based carrier will operate 4X-weekly flights using A350-900 aircraft, becoming the second carrier to serve Taipei-Ontario nonstop alongside China Airlines.

Ontario is the airline's fourth destination in North America, joining Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle. The addition of a second destination in the greater Los Angeles area will target the large Taiwanese population living there.

Figures from the 2020 census report indicate that there were approximately 263,000 Taiwanese Americans residing in south California, of which 167,000 were in greater Los Angeles.

Other new routes commencing in June include Ethiopian Airlines' expansion to Hyderabad, India, which starts June 16. The carrier will offer three flights per week from Addis Ababa, using 737-8 equipment.

Royal Jordanian is also returning to India with the launch of service to Mumbai from Amman beginning June 19. The route will be served 4X-weekly using A320neos.

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