Reykjavik has been the Icelandic hub for budget transatlantic flights long before the days of Sir Freddie Laker’s Skytrain.
So it’s no surprise that newcomer Play will expand its wings next year to operate flights between the UK, Baltimore and Boston.
Back in August the carrier had applied to the US Department of Transportation for a permit to start flights to the US in 2022, and Play has now confirmed that flights from the UK will depart London Stansted for Baltimore (Washington DC) on April 20 and to Boston on May 11.
There will be four flights to each US destination with convenient transfer times at Reykjavik. Exact flight schedules are not yet available.
It is almost certain that Play will have feeder flights to Reykjavik from the other points it serves in mainland Europe.
One-way fares to either destination start at £169 and there’s a £139 introductory fare for bookings made between December 16 and December 24.
Play launched in 2019, and is a no-frills airline so expect to pay extra for amenities which conventional carriers would provide free of charge.
It had originally planned to begin flights to the US in 2020, but these were delayed following the onset of Covid-19.
However as readers will know the transatlantic marketplace is fierce which is one reason which led to the demise of Iceland’s Wow Air two years ago.
In addition, assuming this airline launches US services in 2022, Play will face competition from Norse Atlantic.
Yes I agree the latter does not intend (at time of writing) to serve the same destinations, but visitors tend to move around after they arrive in the US.
Play will be one of the growing number of carriers using narrow-body aircraft to operate across the Atlantic. It will be deploying A320 neo aircraft.
