Flag carrier Icelandair has launched its 18^th direct route to North America. The new non-stop seasonal service between Nashville and Reykjavik took flight with four flights a week scheduled until the end of October. The seven-hour flight operated on Boeing 737 Max jets, runs on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. Nashville’s largest air carrier, Southwest Airlines, recently launched an interline agreement with Icelandair to connect travelers with transatlantic itineraries. Customers can book connecting flights through both Nashville and Denver on Icelandair.com, and third-party websites, with flights beginning May 12. Southwest will offer up to 180+ peak-day departures later this year from Nashville, to the nearly 90 North American airports Southwest serves nonstop from Middle Tennesee. Tomas Ingason, Icelandair Chief Commercial Officer: “We’re very excited to start this new service, and we have already had a great reception.” “This new connection links Music City to Iceland and also to our nearly 40 destinations across Europe.” Doug Kreulen, president and CEO of BNA: “This partnership not only strengthens Music City’s role as a global gateway but also creates new opportunities for travelers, businesses, and tourism. The new route launch comes on the heels of Aer Lingus’ new flight launch to Nashville from Dublin.

Icelandair notched records for passenger traffic and load factor last month. In March it transported a record 312,000 passengers, a 5% increase compared to last year thanks to a 5% increase in capacity. Load factor was 83.5% with on-time performance at 84%. Revenue in March was in line with expectations. Also, sold block hours in charter flights increased by 50%. Bogi Nils Bogason, President and CEO of Icelandair: “We continue seeing strong traffic numbers. This highlights that we offer a compelling and competitive product to passengers year-round.” “Booking status in the market to Iceland for the summer season is stronger than at the same time last year from all markets – N-America, Europe and beyond. Encouragingly, demand in the market from Iceland also remains considerably stronger than last year.” The airline recently expanded its airline partnership with JetBlue, allowing TrueBlue loyalty members to redeem miles for Icelandair flights. Icelandair also said the Saga Premium product sales continue to grow and Saga Club loyalty program has now grown to two million members.

Icelandair has earmarked sunny South Florida s its next US gateway. Miami will become its newest destination, with three flights a week, on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, from October 25. The eight-hour seasonal flights will be operated on Icelandair’s new Airbus A321LR aircraft. Miami becomes Icelandair’s 19^th destination in North America and the second in Florida after Orlando. Bogi Nils Bogason, Icelandair CEO said: “We are thrilled to be opening a new gateway from Europe to sunny Florida via Iceland.” “Miami will fit well into our route network, with convenient connections via Iceland to our 34 destinations in Europe”  

Icelandair has just taken delivery of the first Airbus aircraft in the airline’s history. It became the newest Airbus operator with the handover of an A321LR aircraft, which is the first of three scheduled for delivery before summer 2025. Leased from SMBC Aviation Capital Limited, the delivery is part of the airline’s fleet renewal. The A321LR will be the successor of Icelandair’s Boeing 757, which has been the backbone of the airline’s fleet for decades. The aircraft will seat 187 passengers, 22 in Saga Premium and 165 in Economy. The A321LR has a range of up to 4,000 nautical miles (7,400 kilometers), allowing the aircraft to operate to all destinations in the Icelandair network previously served by the 757. The A321LR is also expected to be up to 30% more fuel efficient than the B757, which will boost the airline's sustainability efforts. Bogi Nils Bogason, Icelandair CEO said: “The addition of Airbus aircraft to our fleet will unleash great opportunities in the coming years, not only for Icelandair but also for Iceland as a tourist destination and a connecting.”

Icelandair has inked another new airline codeshare partnership. It has announced an expanded collaboration with Portuguese airline TAP. TAP flies to 90 destinations around the world, including Europe, Africa and South America, while Icelandair’s route network spans 60 destinations in Europe and North America. Both airlines have stopover programs, offering passengers the opportunity to experience the airlines’ home countries for longer between connecting flights at no additional airfare. The airline codeshare partnership will come into effect in the coming weeks and customers of both airlines will be able to connect between the airlines’ networks in one ticket with their luggage checked to their final destination. Bogi Nils Bogason, CEO Icelandair said: “We are excited to add TAP to our impressive list of codeshare partners. We recently started services to Lisbon and by sharing a code with TAP, we will be able to greatly increase connectivity. Luís Rodrigues, CEO of TAP Air Portugal added: “We believe that this partnership with Icelandair will enrich the portfolio of travel choices and destinations we offer to customers throughout our network.” “As we partner with Icelandair, we will be able to offer seamless flight journeys to Iceland. We look forward to working together.”   

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Icelandair saw a 10% increase in passenger traffic last month, carrying 458,000 customers. The load factor was 83% while on-time performance was 86.6%, up by 5.6% year-over-year. This is the highest load factor rate since 2009. Year-to-date, Icelandair has transported 3.6 million passengers, 8% more than last year. Bogi Nils Bogason, President and CEO of Icelandair: “It is pleasant to see continued increase in the number of passengers and outstanding on-time performance in September.” The airline continues to expand its route network with new destinations and strategic partnerships. In summer 2025, it will introduce Nashville, Tennessee as a new destination, and later this month, begins services to Lisbon, Portugal. In September, Icelandair announced a partnership with Southwest Airlines, as the Dallas based carrier’s first airline partner. “The importance of strong partners cannot be underestimated for our business as around 10% of total revenues are derived from partnerships and as high as 40% of revenues on individual routes,” Bogason added. "We are excited to further expand our global partnership network and offer our customers an even wider range of destinations.” 

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Icelandair will become Southwest Airlines first official airline partner. In a bid to boost connectivity beyond its transatlantic network, Icelandair inked a Memorandum of Understanding with Southwest Airlines. The bilateral partnership is expected to begin in 2025. The partnership will allow customers to easily connect between the two airlines’ networks. Icelandair will become Southwest’s initial airline partner. This will help extend Icelandair’s market reach. Icelandair’s route network currently consists of 34 destinations in Europe and 17 in North America, including Baltimore-Washington, the initial North American gateway between Icelandair and Southwest Airlines. Bogi Nils Bogason, Icelandair President and CEO: “We are very excited to add Southwest to our partnership portfolio and are honored to be chosen as their initial airline partner.” “The partnership will unlock many exciting travel options for our customers, and our extensive network in Europe will open up for Southwest customers.” Ryan Green, Southwest EVP, Commercial Transformation: “Icelandair will become our initial partner, enabling Southwest to further our global reach beyond the nearly 120 destinations we serve in North America.” 

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Icelandair has rolled out a special package deal for 2024 holiday packages. Running until 7 January, UK customers can bag a deal inclusive of a three-night stay, return flights, and two inclusive tours from £479pp. The tours are the Golden Circle tour and Sky Lagoon. This deal is for return Icelandair economy flights from either London, Manchester or Glasgow to Reykjavik. It includes 23kg checked bag allowance. The hotels forming part of the deal include several convenient and centrally located options near the centre of Reykjavik. The package includes breakfast and is based on 2 adults sharing a double or twin room. The full-day Golden Circle tour features Iceland’s top natural sights like the Gullfoss waterfall, the Geysir geothermal area and Þingvellir National Park. Sky Lagoon is an immersive wellness experience to try Sky Lagoon's seven-step Ritual: lagoon, cold pool, sauna, cold mist, sky scrub, steam room, and shower. The offer’s travel period is from January to May 2024.  UK holidaymakers can book at the Icelandair website while Irish customers can book here.

Flag carriers Icelandair and Turkish Airlines have signed an airline codeshare agreement. The two airlines will offer their respective customers seamless connections and expand the number of destinations on both carriers' networks. Icelandair passengers in North America and Iceland can connect eastbound via Turkish Airlines' network to Istanbul. Turkish Airlines passengers will be able to connect westbound via Icelandair's network to Iceland and Canada. The airline codeshare agreement was inked at this week’s IATA's AGM in Istanbul. It allows the airlines' passengers to travel on a single booking with luggage checked through to the final destination. Turkish Airlines CEO, Bilal Ekşi said: "With this agreement we aim to enhance travel options and bring benefit to both airlines from a commercial perspective."