The Irish city of Cork is to get its first ever nonstop transatlantic flights starting next year – as long as budget carrier Norwegian Air International gets approval from US regulators.
The carrier, which will be an Irish based subsidiary of Norwegian Air, plans to fly from Cork to Boston from next May four or five times a week and then to New York in 2017.
It all hinges on whether the US Department of Transportation finally approves its contentious application for a foreign carrier permit.
The application has faced strong opposition from US carriers and flight crew unions over claims NAI is trying to circumvent Norwegian labor laws by establishing a low cost division in Ireland.
Norwegian’s main unit already serves the US from Scandinavia and London Gatwick.
"Norwegian is leading the way in offering affordable transatlantic travel and with the new generation aircraft we have on order, we now have exciting plans to offer low-cost flights from Cork to Boston in 2016 and Cork to New York in 2017," said CEO Bjorn Kjos.
"We are delighted to offer a long-awaited service from the US to Cork and the southern parts of Ireland which will create huge business, leisure and tourism opportunities. Only DoT approval for NAI will unlock the door for these exciting new routes, creating more competition, more choice and better fares for business and leisure passengers."
