The 15 Most Exciting Airline Routes Coming To The US In 2019
In this post, I am covering the most exciting airline routes coming to the United States in 2019. I will also explain the significance of them and will discuss the cabin interiors of each flight. For a future airline route to make it into this post, the flight has to meet the following criteria:
- The flight needs to begin in 2019.
- The flight needs to be a route that isn’t currently being flown (unless the route is exceptional in a different way).
- The flight needs to be a medium-long haul flight. That means that the flight has to be over 7 hours total flight time.
- Per the name of this post, the flight needs to arrive/depart from a destination within the United States.
I will format this post in list format and will count down from the 15th most exciting intercontinental route coming to the US to the most exciting route coming to the US. This list is highly subjective, although I hope to do my best regarding the reasoning for why the route is exciting. Also, if you wanted to be technical, I am highlighting 16 routes in this post, but I am combining the Air Italy routes to LAX and SFO in one mention as the routes cover the same length, are on the same plane, and start within a week of each other.
The Top 15 Airline Routes Coming To The United States in 2019
15 – Boston to Edinburgh on Delta:
Delta Aircraft in Boston
| Airline | Delta Air Lines |
| Flight Route | Boston Logan International Airport – Edinburgh Airport |
| Type of Aircraft | Boeing 757-200 |
| Start Date | May 23, 2019 |
| Number of Weekly Flights | Daily; Summer Seasonal Service |
| Flight Length | Around 3,070 Miles |
| In-Flight Experience | The aircraft is one of Delta’s internationally configurated Boeing 757-200s. That means that it has 16 fully flat seats in a 2-2 configuration in business class and has economy class in a 3-3 configuration. There is also a section of economy class that has extra legroom, labeled Delta Comfort +. All seats have personal on-demand entertainment. |
| What Makes This Flight Special | This is the first flight ever between Edinburgh and Boston. I do find it a bit surprising that there has never been a direct flight between the two cities, given that Boston is so close to Europe, and Boston is a logical connecting place to many locations in the US. |
14 – Chicago to Lisbon on TAP Portugal:
| Airline | TAP Portugal |
| Flight Route | Chicago O’Hare Airport – Lisbon Airport |
| Type of Aircraft | Airbus A330-200/A330-900neo |
| Start Date | June 1, 2019 |
| Number of Weekly Flights | 5x Weekly; year-round service |
| Flight Length | Around 4,000 Miles |
| In-Flight Experience | While the flight is currently scheduled to be operated by the A330-200, multiple sources report that the flight will be operated by the A330-900, which TAP Portugal is the launch customer of; it would then be Chicago’s first A330neo route. If the A330-200 variant than business class operates it will be in an alternating 1-2-1/2-2-1 configuration; if the A330-900neo operates it, it will be in a 1-2-1 configuration. Both of the aircraft would have flat-bed seats in business class. Economy class on both planes would be in a 2-4-2 configuration and would have personal on-demand entertainment. |
| What Makes This Flight Special | This is the first time that an airline is flying from Lisbon to Chicago. But perhaps the most exciting part of the new route isn’t the route itself but is the fact that TAP Portugal operates it. No, TAP isn’t a world class airline by any definition, although it does have fantastic fares and award availability. Booking through United, there are plenty of business class saver awards to Europe through the TAP flight, which is a rarity on many routes. Also, business class fares on TAP are much lower than the competition, with fares sometimes as low as $1,000 one-way! |
13 – Philidelphia to Berlin-Tegel on American:
The Berlin Skyline (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)
| Airline | American Airlines |
| Flight Route | Philidelphia International Airport – Berlin Tegel Airport |
| Type of Aircraft | Boeing 767-300 |
| Start Date | June 7, 2019 |
| Number of Weekly Flights | 4x Weekly; Summer Seasonal Service |
| Flight Length | Around 4,050 Miles |
| In-Flight Experience | Business class will feature flat-bed seats in a 1-2-1 staggered configuration with the Thompson Vantage seat model. However, the seats are unique because there is no built-in entertainment system – passengers receive iPads with downloaded content. Economy class is in a 2-3-2 configuration. What makes economy worth avoiding is that there is no in-flight entertainment system (not even stream to your device entertainment), so if you do fly on this route, make sure that you have a plan to entertain yourself for the duration of the flight! |
| What Makes This Flight Special | After the demise of Air Berlin, the city of Berlin didn’t (and still doesn’t) have many transatlantic flights; the only year-round flight to the US from there is United’s flight to Newark. This flight represents the first destination in the US to have direct flights to Berlin since 2017 and is American’s first flight ever to the city of Berlin, which is surprising, given that it’s the largest city in Germany. The flight is excellent news for American Airlines flyers who until this flight would have always had to connect to fly to Berlin. This flight does seem to be mainly geared towards tourists, given that it operates only during the summer. |
12 – Seattle to Hong Kong on Cathay Pacific:
| Airline | Cathay Pacific |
| Flight Route | Seattle-Tacoma International Airport – Hong Kong Airport |
| Type of Aircraft | Airbus A350-900 |
| Start Date | March 31, 2019 |
| Number of Weekly Flights | 4x |
| Flight Length | Around 6,500 Miles |
| In-Flight Experience | The flight features Cathay’s standard long-haul onboard product, with reverse herringbone seats in a 1-2-1 configuration in business class. Premium economy has recliner seats in a 2-3-2 configuration, and economy class is in a 3-3-3 configuration. All seats feature personal on-demand entertainment. |
| What Makes This Flight Special | Until this year, Delta Air Lines operated flights from Seattle to Hong Kong, which they canceled due to unprofitability. It really surprised me that Cathay actually never started flying to Seattle before next year March, due to the great size of Seattle, and the fact that the route isn’t that long. Also, I do believe that this is the first route flown by the Airbus A350 to come to Seattle. |
11 – Boston to Honolulu on Hawaiian Airlines:
Honolulu Skyline (Photo: Carol M. Highsmith/Wikimedia Commons)
| Airline | Hawaiian Airlines |
| Flight Route | Boston Logan Airport – Honolulu Airport |
| Type of Aircraft | Airbus A330-200 |
| Start Date | April 4, 2019 |
| Number of Weekly Flights | 5x Weekly |
| Flight Length | Around 5,100 Miles |
| In-Flight Experience | This flight will feature Hawaiian Airlines’ relatively new in-flight cabins, which feature 18 fully flat business class seats in a 2-2-2 configuration. Economy class is in a 2-4-2 configuration, and also has an “extra legroom economy” section with additional legroom. Personal entertainment screens are also available at every seat. |
| What Makes This Flight Special | This route is the one and only domestic route on my list but qualifies as a long-haul flight due to the extremely long flight duration. Hawaii is a very large tourist destination, so the flight makes a lot of sense as to be able to connect New England and Boston with Hawaii, which otherwise would have needed one stop to get to. Boston is the third East Coast destination to have direct flights, after New York and Washington DC. |
10 – Austin to Frankfurt on Lufthansa:
A Lufthansa Boeing 747-400 Taking Off in Boston
| Airline | Lufthansa |
| Flight Route | Austin–Bergstrom International Airport – Frankfurt Airport |
| Type of Aircraft | Airbus A330-300 |
| Start Date | May 3, 2019 |
| Number of Weekly Flights | 5x Weekly |
| Flight Length | Around 5,300 Miles |
| In-Flight Experience | The aircraft will be fitted in a four-class configuration. First class is fitted with flat-bed eight open suites in a 1-2-1 configuration, while business class has thirty fully flat-bed seats in a 2-2-2 configuration. Premium economy has twenty-one recliner seats in a 2-3-2 configuration while economy class is in a 3-3-3 configuration. All seats feature personal on-demand entertainment, and WiFi is available for purchase. |
| What Makes This Flight Special | Before 2017, there was no such thing as a transatlantic flight to Austin. Last summer, you could have spotted a daily British Airways 747 and a Norwegian Air 787 both arriving from London. Austin is hugely expanding, and so has their airport, with both Frontier, Southwest, and Spirit launching focus cities there. The new Lufthansa route marks the third transatlantic flight out of Austin. The flight will give people from Austin an extremely large network of flights that they can connect to on Lufthansa, only with one stop. |
9 – Philidelphia to Bologna on American:
An American Airlines Boeing 757-200
| Airline | American Airlines |
| Flight Route | Philidelphia International Airport – Bologna Airport |
| Type of Aircraft | Boeing 767-300 |
| Start Date | June 6, 2019 |
| Number of Weekly Flights | 4x Weekly; Seasonal Service |
| Flight Length | Around 4,200 Miles |
| In-Flight Experience | Business class will feature flat-bed seats in a 1-2-1 staggered configuration with the Thompson Vantage seat model. However, the seats are unique because there is no built-in entertainment system – passengers receive iPads with downloaded content. Economy class is in a 2-3-2 configuration. What makes economy worth avoiding is that there is no in-flight entertainment system (not even stream to your device entertainment), so if you do fly on this route, make sure that you have a plan to entertain yourself for the duration of the flight! If you don’t live in Philidelphia and you want to go to Bologna and you have to connect anyways, I would recommend not taking this flight as there isn’t any entertainment at all, which can be a shame for such a long flight. |
| What Makes This Flight Special | This will be the first transatlantic nonstop flight to Bologna ever. This is fantastic news for people who want to visit Bologna or the northern region of Italy from the US because until now, there has never been a nonstop flight from the US there. The flight does make a bit of sense, as Bologna itself is a large destination for tourists. |
8 – Washington Dulles to Tel Aviv on United:
A United Airlines Boeing 777-200 at Washington Dulles Airport
| Airline | United Airlines |
| Flight Route | Washington Dulles International Airport – Tel Aviv Ben Gurion Airport |
| Type of Aircraft | Boeing 777-200 |
| Start Date | May 22, 2019 |
| Number of Weekly Flights | 3x Weekly Flights |
| Flight Length | Around 5,900 Miles |
| In-Flight Experience | The route will be operated by a United Boeing 777-200, which will be retrofitted with their new in-flight products. That means that the aircraft will have the new fabulous Polaris seats (1-2-1 configuration) and will also have United’s new Premium Economy (2-4-2 configuration) product, Premium Plus. Overall, the aircraft is great, except for economy class, which is in a highly dense 3-4-3 configuration. Additionally, there are personal entertainment screens at every seat. |
| What Makes This Flight Special | Overall, I am not surprised at the future route at all. In fact, I was a bit surprised that there hasn’t in the past ever been a flight connecting the two cities. Washington DC does have a relatively large Jewish population, which would warrant a direct flight to Tel Aviv. Washington DC joins New York, Newark, Boston, San Francisco, and Los Angeles as US cities with direct flights to Israel. |
7 – Newark to Naples on United:
| Airline | United Airlines |
| Flight Route | Newark Liberty International Airport – Naples Airport |
| Type of Aircraft | Boeing 767-300 |
| Start Date | June 6, 2019 |
| Number of Weekly Flights | 7x Weekly; Summer Seasonal Service |
| Flight Length | Around 4,400 Miles |
| In-Flight Experience | The flight will feature United’s old business class product, have thirty fully flat bed seats in a 2-1-2 configuration. However, there is a chance that select flights will be operated by one of United’s 767s with their new Polaris business class product, which is in a 1-1-1 configuration. Economy class is in a 2-3-2 configuration, and features an Economy Plus section, with extra legroom. All seats feature personal on-demand entertainment. |
| What Makes This Flight Special | This flight actually isn’t the first transatlantic flight from Naples; Meridiana (before their rebranding into Air Italy) operated a flight from Naples to New York, which has since been canceled. This will be the only transatlantic flight (at this time) to Naples, and will be the first ever flight on United to go there. This is United’s third destination that they serve in Italy. I also am not very surprised at this route, given that Naples is a pretty big tourist destination. |
6 – Miami to Casablanca on Royal Air Maroc:
| Airline | Royal Air Maroc |
| Flight Route | Miami International Airport – Mohammed V International Airport (Casablanca) |
| Type of Aircraft | Boeing 787-8 |
| Start Date | April 3, 2019 |
| Number of Weekly Flights | 3x Weekly; Year Round Service |
| Flight Length | Around 4,320 Miles |
| In-Flight Experience | Business Class features 18 fully flat bed seats in a 2-2-2 configuration. However, the seats are in a pretty odd configuration, as when two seats right next to each other recline, one lies flat much higher than the other into an ottoman that is higher than the other. Economy class is in a 3-3-3 configuration and features no extra legroom section. All seats are equipped with personal on-demand entertainment. |
| What Makes This Flight Special | This is not only the first flight from Miami to Morocco but is also the first direct flight to all of Africa from Miami! Also, Miami marks Royal Air Maroc’s third US destination after New York JFK and Washington Dulles. The flight does make sense to me, as Casablanca is a tourist destination. Also, since Royal Air Maroc is joining Oneworld next year, passengers will be able to connect to American Airlines flights (also a Oneworld member). |
5 – Charleston to London on British Airways
| Airline | British Airways |
| Flight Route | Charleston Airport – London Heathrow Airport |
| Type of Aircraft | Boeing 787-8 |
| Start Date | April 4, 2019 |
| Number of Weekly Flights | 2; Summer Seasonal Service |
| Flight Length | Around 4,070 Miles |
| In-Flight Experience | The flight features British Airways’ standard mediocre business class product. The aircraft has thirty fully flat bed seats in an alternating forward and rear facing layout in a 2-3-2 configuration. The aircraft also features twenty-five recliner seats in premium economy in a 2-3-2 configuration, and economy class is in a 3-3-3 configuration. All seats are equipped with personal on-demand entertainment. |
| What Makes This Flight Special | I was really surprised when British Airways announced this route, as Charleston is not the first city you think of when you think transatlantic flights; it probably is one of the last ones you think of. This flight is both the first long-haul commercial flight from Charleston and South Carolina. I really don’t get why BA launched the flight. Yes, Charleston is a pretty big tourist destination, but I wouldn’t think that a whole transatlantic flight would be launched out of the city. However, I guess a short seasonal route with two weekly flights isn’t exactly very high risk for the airline. Nevertheless, this flight is great news for everyone in Charleston wishing to fly to Europe. |
4 – Milan to San Francisco/Los Angeles on Air Italy
| Airline | Air Italy |
| Flight Route | San Francisco/Los Angeles to Milan-Malpensa |
| Type of Aircraft | Airbus A330-200/Boeing 787-8 (Future) |
| Start Date | April 3, 2019 (LAX), April 10, 2019 (SFO) |
| Number of Weekly Flights | 4x Weekly (Both Routes) |
| Flight Length | Around 6,000 Miles (LAX), Around 5,900 Miles (SFO) |
| In-Flight Experience | Business Class features 24 angle-flat seats in a 2-2-2 configuration. However, the angle is very slight and is barely noticeable when the seat is in bed mode. Economy class is in a 2-4-2 configuration and features personal on-demand entertainment. |
| What Makes This Flight Special | If you haven’t heard of Air Italy, it’s not a surprise given that they were created this year. Well, that’s not exactly true as they existed as Meridiana until Qatar Airways bought 49% stake in them at the beginning of this year. They have massive expansion plans, with 20 737s and 30 787s on order, and aim to become Italy’s national carrier, in competition with Alitalia. Air Italy has a great soft product in their premium class, largely due to the influence of Qatar Airways. As for the two routes, these are the first flight from both Los Angeles and San Francisco to Milan and is the first direct flight from San Francisco to Italy at all. |
3 – Philidelphia to Dubrovnik on American:
| Airline | American Airlines |
| Flight Route | Philidelphia International Airport – Dubrovnik Airport |
| Type of Aircraft | Boeing 767-300 |
| Start Date | June 7, 2019 |
| Number of Weekly Flights | 3x Weekly; Summer Seasonal Service |
| Flight Length | Around 4,600 Miles |
| In-Flight Experience | Business class will feature flat-bed seats in a 1-2-1 staggered configuration with the Thompson Vantage seat model. However, the seats are unique because there is no built-in entertainment system – passengers receive i-pads with downloaded content. Economy class is in a 2-3-2 configuration. What makes economy worth avoiding is that there is no in-flight entertainment system (not even stream to your device entertainment), so if you do fly on this route, make sure that you have a plan to entertain yourself for the duration of the flight! If you don’t live in Philidelphia and you want to go to Dubrovnik and you have to connect anyways, I would recommend not taking this flight as there isn’t any entertainment at all, which can be a shame for such a long flight. |
| What Makes This Flight Special | This is the first transatlantic flight from Dubrovnik to the US and is also the first nonstop flight from all of Croatia to the US. I am very impressed with this route, as Dubrovnik really isn’t the first city you’d expect to have a transatlantic flight from. However, given that it is a huge tourist destination, tourists from the US will be pleased that they don’t have to connect in a European megahub such as Frankfurt or London anymore to be able to fly to Croatia. |
2 – Pittsburgh to London on British Airways:
A British Airways Boeing 787-9 in London
| Airline | British Airways |
| Flight Route | Pittsburgh Airport – London Heathrow Airport |
| Type of Aircraft | Boeing 787-8 |
| Start Date | April 2, 2019 |
| Number of Weekly Flights | 4x Weekly |
| Flight Length | Around 3,700 Miles |
| In-Flight Experience | The flight features British Airways’ standard mediocre business class product. The aircraft has thirty fully flat bed seats in an alternating forward and rear facing layout in a 2-3-2 configuration. The aircraft also features twenty-five recliner seats in premium economy in a 2-3-2 configuration, and economy class is in a 3-3-3 configuration. All seats are equipped with personal on-demand entertainment. |
| What Makes This Flight Special | Pittsburgh has been longing for long-haul flights for years now. Ever since they lost their US Airways hub, Pittsburgh has been at a loss in terms of the number of flights, despite the city’s significant size. They recently got flights to Reykjavik on WOW Air, although the flight will be suspended in January, and seasonal Condor flights to Frankfurt. The city of Pittsburgh even spent millions of dollars just to get China Eastern to fly there for two flights in total in hopes that they could get a long-term flight. Well, Pittsburgh’s full service year-round transatlantic dreams just came true with BA launching a flight to Pittsburgh. The flight will offer connectivity to Europe that passengers from Pittsburgh have never had, and will (possibly) prompt more tourism to the city from Europe. |
1 – Seattle to Singapore on Singapore Airlines:
| Airline | Singapore Airlines |
| Flight Route | Seattle Tacoma International Airport – Singapore Changi Airport |
| Type of Aircraft | Airbus A350-900 |
| Start Date | September 3, 2019 |
| Number of Weekly Flights | 4x Weekly |
| Flight Length | Around 8,100 Miles |
| In-Flight Experience | The flight will operate on one of Singapore Airlines’ Airbus A350-900s, although not one of the A350ULR aircraft that they use to fly to Newark. That means that Business Class will feature 42 seats in a 1-2-1 configuration. However, business class seats are a little bit awkward as one needs to flip the seat over to convert to a bed, and then sleep to the side towards the window where the foot cubby is while the actual seat and the television both are fully forward facing. The flight will also have 24 recliner seats in Premium Economy in a 2-3-2 configuration and will have 187 economy seats in a 3-3-3 configuration. All seats are equipped with personal on-demand entertainment. |
| What Makes This Flight Special |
To top off my list, I have also by far the longest flight on the list, at over 8,000 miles. Seattle will be Singapore Airlines’ fourth destination to have nonstop flights to Singapore, after San Francisco, Newark, and Los Angeles. The flight will allow people from Seattle to have access to Singapore Airlines’ vast route network throughout Southeast Asia, allowing one-stop flights not available before. Also, Singapore Airlines partners with Alaska Airlines, so travelers will have access to Alaska’s extensive network from Seattle. |
What do you think is the most exciting route coming to the US in 2019?
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