Features

Airlines planning to resume some flights in June

4 Jun 2020 by Seher Asaf
United Airlines flight attendant wearing face masks

Airlines in many parts of the world cancelled the majority of their flights in recent months as they struggled to cope with both a drastic decline in travel demand and government restrictions. Now, a few carriers are planning to resume some cancelled flights in June as countries move towards containing the Covid-19 crisis.

Here are some of the airlines planning to restore some of their capacity next month (we will keep updating this as schedules develop):

Air China

Air China is planning to operate 24 international routes between June 1 and July 1, the carrier said in a statement posted on its website. It has added two additional routes to its June schedule, compared to May. These are routes linking Beijing Capital with Madrid and Manila.

The airline said it will fly the following routes in June:

North America 

  • Beijing Capital-Los Angeles
  • Beijing Capital-Vancouver

Europe

  • Beijing Capital-Paris
  • Beijing Capital-Copenhagen
  • Beijing Capital-Minsk
  • Beijing Capital-Madrid
  • Beijing Capital-Stockholm
  • Beijing Capital-Warsaw
  • Beijing Capital-Vienna
  • Beijing Capital-Moscow
  • Beijing Capital-Athens
  • Shanghai Pudong-Frankfurt
  • Shanghai Pudong-London Heathrow

Asia

  • Beijing Capital-Phnom Penh
  • Beijing Capital-Yangon
  • Beijing Capital-Delhi
  • Beijing Capital-Dubai
  • Beijing Capital-Islamabad-Karachi
  • Beijing Capital-Bangkok
  • Beijing Capital-Manila
  • Beijing Capital-Seoul
  • Shanghai Pudong-Tokyo-Narita
  • Chengdu-Kathmandu
  • Chengdu-Singapore

Air France

Air France is planning to increase its flight schedules during June.

At present, the airline is serving 43 destinations, just 3 to 5 per cent of its usual schedule, mostly maintaining a skeleton service to the French regions and links with key destinations in Europe and worldwide, to both transport passengers and goods.
The airline says that it intends to gradually resume its flights, with an increase in the number of frequencies and destinations, especially to/from metropolitan France, the French Overseas Departments, and Europe. The increases are subject to travel restrictions being lifted.

Air France to increase flights in June

Alitalia

Alitalia has announced plans to ramp up services next month, including the resumption of its nonstop Rome-New York routes from June 2.

In total the airline will operate 30 routes to 25 airports (15 in Italy and ten abroad), offering around 36 per cent more flights than in May.

Alitalia to resume services from Rome to London and New York

American Airlines

American Airlines has the following updated Europe schedules

Origin Destination Schedule change
JFK London (LHR) Service resumes June 7, 2x per week
LAX LHR Service resumes July 7
ORD Athens (ATH) Service resumes June 5, 5x per week
ORD Dublin (DUB) Service resumes June 5, 5x per week
ORD LHR Service resumes June 4, 5x per week
PHL LHR Service resumes July 7
RDU LHR Service resumes July 7

Updated Latin America schedules

Origin Destination Schedule change
JFK Buenos Aires (EZE) Service resumes July 7
JFK São Paulo (GRU) Service resumes July 7
MIA EZE Service resumes June 4
MIA Rio de Janeiro (GIG) Service resumes July 7
MIA GRU Service resumes June 4
MIA Santiago (SCL) Service resumes June 4

British Airways

According to Routes Online, British Airways is planning the following long-haul operations in June.

(NB:  this was before the announcement of a proposed 14-day quarantine the UK Government is said to be planning. We will update this section as and when more details are revealed).

London Heathrow – Boston 1 daily 787-8
London Heathrow – Chicago O’Hare 1 daily 787-9
London Heathrow – Delhi 1 daily 787-8
London Heathrow – Hong Kong 6 weekly 777-300ER
London Heathrow – Johannesburg 1 daily 777-300ER
London Heathrow – Lagos 787-9 operates alternating days
London Heathrow – Los Angeles 1 daily 787-9
London Heathrow – Montreal 1 daily 787-8
London Heathrow – Mumbai 787-9 operates alternating days
London Heathrow – New York JFK 2 daily 747-400/777-200ER
London Heathrow – San Francisco 1 daily 787-8
London Heathrow – Sao Paulo Guarulhos 1 daily 777-300ER
London Heathrow – Singapore 777-200ER operates alternating days
London Heathrow – Tel Aviv 1 daily A350-1000XWB
London Heathrow – Tokyo Haneda 787-9 operates on alternating days
London Heathrow – Toronto 1 daily 787-8
London Heathrow – Washington Dulles 1 daily A350-1000XWB

BA also currently lists London Heathrow – Beijing Daxing (from 14JUN20) and London Heathrow – Shanghai Pu Dong schedule for June 2020, however only the following booking class open for reservation: A / C / E / B. Both routes scheduled as alternating days service.

Brussels Airlines

Brussels Airlines is planning to resume its operations as from 15 June. The Belgian home carrier plans to start with a reduced flight offer that will be built up in a phased approach according to the market demand and to the travel restrictions.

The carrier says that the complete destination portfolio and flight offer will be communicated in the days to come and will cater to the needs of the corporate as well as the leisure market, including a range of destinations in – amongst others –  Germany, Switzerland, Greece, Portugal and Spain.

Cathay Pacific

Cathay Pacific and its regional wing Cathay Dragon intend to increase their flying capacity from 3 per cent to 5 per cent between June 21 and June 30.

Between June 21 and June 30, Hong Kong’s flag carrier said it will operate five flights per week to London (Heathrow), Los Angeles, Vancouver, Sydney; three flights per week to Amsterdam, Frankfurt, San Francisco, Melbourne, Mumbai and Delhi; and daily flights to Tokyo (Narita), Osaka, Seoul, Taipei, Manila, Bangkok, Jakarta, Ho Chi Minh City and Singapore.

Daily flights to Beijing and Shanghai (Pudong) will be operated by “Cathay Pacific or Cathay Dragon”. Cathay Dragon will also operate a daily flight to Kuala Lumpur.

These flights are “subject to government travel restrictions”, said the carrier in a statement posted on its website.

Delta

The US carrier has added about 100 daily flights in June compared to May, according to a spokesperson from Delta.

Below is Delta’s June schedule showing Trans-Atlantic and Trans-Pacific routes:

Trans-Atlantic

  • Atlanta to Amsterdam (daily)
  • Atlanta to Frankfurt (less than daily)
  • Atlanta to Lagos (less than daily*)
  • Atlanta to London-Heathrow (less than daily)
  • Atlanta to Paris-Charles De Gaulle (less than daily)
  • Detroit to Amsterdam (daily)
  • Detroit to London-Heathrow (less than daily)
  • New York-JFK to Amsterdam (less than daily)
  • New York-JFK to Paris-Charles De Gaulle (less than daily)
  • New York-JFK to Tel Aviv (less than daily)

Trans-Pacific 

  • Detroit to Seoul-Incheon (daily)
  • Detroit to Shanghai (daily*)
  • Seattle to Seoul-Incheon (less than daily)
  • Seattle to Shanghai (daily*)
  • ​Seattle to Tokyo-Haneda (less than daily)

*The airline said its restart of passenger flights to China is subject to government approval.

Here’s a full list of all the routes Delta plans on flying in June:

Delta publishes updated June flying schedule

Easyjet

Easyjet is planning to resume some services in June

Easyjet to resume domestic UK and French services in June

Emirates

Emirates has announced its plan to operate scheduled flight services from 21 May to nine destinations: London Heathrow Frankfurt, Paris, Milan, Madrid, Chicago, Toronto, Sydney and Melbourne (subject to government approval).

The airline will also offer connections in Dubai for customers travelling between the UK and Australia.

Travellers will only be accepted on these flights if they comply with the eligibility and entry criteria requirements of their destination countries. This includes an approval from the Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship (ICA) for UAE residents who wish to return to Dubai.

Emirates now offering flights back to Dubai – with restrictions

Etihad Airways

Etihad Airways has yet to announce its June schedule, but see this piece:

Etihad offers special flights to Abu Dhabi from 14 destinations

KLM

KLM is flying a much-reduced schedule. As an indication, its target for May is the resumption of 15 per cent of its flights, compared to the period before the Covid-19 outbreak.

Its European network is as follows (all daily flights, subject to change): Aberdeen, Barcelona, Berlin, Billund, Birmingham, Brussels, Bucharest, Budapest, Copenhagen, Dublin, Düsseldorf, Edinburgh, Frankfurt, Geneva, Gothenburg, Hamburg, Helsinki, Lisbon, London Heathrow, Madrid, Manchester, Milan Malpensa, Munich, Oslo, Paris, Prague, Rome, Stockholm, Stuttgart, Vienna, Warsaw, Zürich.

KLM says “The strongly reduced European network is configured to connect with as many flights as possible in the intercontinental network. Routes will gradually be reopened, but may change weekly, depending on measures being taken by the authorities at the destinations.”

A considerable number of the intercontinental flights are currently being operated on a cargo-only basis, but according to the airline’s latest update, there are still some passenger flights, including Los Angeles, Chicago O’Hare, Atlanta, New York JFK, Mexico City, Toronto, Curacao, Sao Paulo, Singapore, Tokyo Narita, Osaka Kansai, Seoul Incheon, Hong Kong. The frequency of the flights varies from once weekly to daily.

Korean Air

Korean Air is planning on resuming several international routes next month, according to South Korean news agency Yonhap News Agency.

The carrier is planning on resuming flights to 19 international routes on June 1, including routes to Washington, D.C., Seattle, Vancouver, Toronto, Frankfurt, Singapore, Beijing and Kuala Lumpur, according to the news agency.

Business Traveller Asia-Pacific has reached out to the airline for more details on the routes it plans to resume.

LATAM

During June, LATAM Airlines Brazil will operate four international routes from São Paulo to Frankfurt, London, Madrid and Miami.

LATAM Airlines Group will operate from Santiago, Chile to both Miami and São Paulo, a hub through which customers can also fly to Frankfurt, London and Madrid.

Domestically, LATAM Airlines Brazil will operate 74 routes, while LATAM Airlines Chile will reach 12 destinations that include La Serena, Copiapó, Temuco and Easter Island. Similarly, the affiliates in Peru and Ecuador are working to resume their domestic flights in June, with the Colombian affiliate expecting to reestablish service in July, as permitted by local authorities.

Lufthansa Group

Lufthansa Group has announced an expansion of service from the start of June, with a total of 106 destinations across its Lufthansa, Eurowings and Swiss subsidiaries.

You can read the details here

Lufthansa Group to resume flights from Birmingham, Dublin, Edinburgh and Manchester

Philippine Airlines

Philippine Airlines (PAL) will gradually resume both domestic and international flights on select routes starting June 8, the carrier said in a statement posted on its website on May 31.

PAL said it will operate “limited” international services on routes to the US, Canada, Guam, Vietnam, mainland China, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Taipei, Singapore, Japan, the UAE, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

The carrier will also fly repatriation flights to Australia, Singapore and the UK.

As for its domestic flying schedule, PAL said it will operate domestic flights on “reduced levels” on some routes to and from Manila (Ninoy Aquino International Airport) and “occasionally” from other hub airports.

Here is the full schedule.

Qantas

Qantas and Jetstar will increase their domestic and regional flights for June and July, as travel restrictions start to ease in Australia.

The additional services will see capacity increase from five per cent of pre-Coronavirus levels, to 15 per cent by the end of June. The Qantas Group says this equates to more than 300 more return flights per week.

Qantas, Jetstar increase domestic flights as restrictions ease

Qatar Airways

Qatar Airways says it will increase operations to a total of 80 destinations by the end of June, “in line with the expected relaxation of entry restrictions around the world”.

The Gulf carrier is currently flying to just over 30 destinations, and in what it calls a “phased rebuilding” of its network, the airline said it intends to increase this to 52 destinations by the end of this month, before adding a further 30-odd routes by the end of June.

Qatar Airways to increase flights to 80 destinations by end of June

Ryanair

Ryanair is planning to reinstate some 40 per cent of its flight over the course of the summer, beginning in June.

Ryanair plans return to 40 per cent of schedule in July

Swiss

SWISS will partially restart its flight operations in June and plans to operate up to 190 flights from Zurich and Geneva to 41 European destinations. The ramp-up will follow in stages, and the range of flights available will gradually be increased over the weeks ahead.

SWISS will resume services to various Mediterranean destinations, including Malaga, Barcelona, Madrid and Valencia in Spain and Brindisi, Florence, Naples and Rome in Italy. Connections to Scandinavia are also being increased with flights to Gothenburg in Sweden and Copenhagen in Denmark. SWISS will also be adding further major European destinations to its programme, such as Paris (France), Brussels (Belgium) and Moscow (Russia). The existing services to Amsterdam (Netherlands), Athens (Greece), Berlin (Germany), Lisbon (Portugal), London (UK), Porto (Portugal) and Stockholm (Sweden) will be expanded.

SWISS will also be offering its long-haul customers new intercontinental direct connections in June, in addition to its three weekly services to New York / Newark (USA). The airline of Switzerland plans to offer flights from Zurich to New York JFK (4 times weekly), Chicago (twice weekly), Singapore (once weekly), Bangkok (once weekly), Tokyo (twice weekly), Mumbai (three times weekly), Hong Kong (twice weekly) and Johannesburg (once weekly). Swiss WorldCargo, SWISS’s air cargo division, will carry additional cargo on these flights to support the global supply chains. The flight times of the intercontinental connections have thus been adjusted to ensure that passengers with connecting flights enjoy optimised connection possibilities.

SWISS plans to further expand its services over the summer months, and will do so closely in line with the travel needs and preferences of the Swiss population. SWISS will continue to monitor closely the development of travel restrictions worldwide.

Turkish Airlines

Turkish Airlines is planning a gradual resumption of flights from June and will take four months to return to near full operation, according to a report from Reuters.

Turkey’s flag carrier has suspended all international flights due to low demand and travel restrictions amid the coronavirus crisis, but the carrier is now planning to fly to 19 countries next month, according to the report which cites a draft plan from the airline. The airline plans to increase the number of destinations to 99 countries in September, but this may be subject to change, added the report.

The carrier also plans to resume 60 per cent of domestic flights in June, according to the draft plan.

Business Traveller Asia-Pacific has reached out to the airline for confirmation and more details on what routes it plans to fly.

Turkish Airlines plans to resume some flights in June: report

Ukraine International Airlines

Ukraine International airlines expects to resume operations from June 15, 2020 providing the best case scenario of entry/exit restrictions for both Ukrainian and foreign nationals are lifted from that date

The carrier then intends to operate medium-haul international point-to-point flights “capable of demonstrating substantial passenger load without transit feeding”. It will also resume domestic operations.

At stage two, as soon as passenger traffic is regenerated, the airline will restore minimal international route network.

Right after Ukraine International resumes operations, the airline plans to operate 14 aircraft, gradually increasing the number up to 28.

The long-haul fleet will be optimized with due allowance for the necessities of stage one. Later on, based on the traffic and market landscape (namely drop in demand for long-haul aircraft), the carrier will decide on extending its widebody fleet.

Long-haul operations may be resumed after critical feeding flights are re-introduced to the schedule – in or about April 2021.

To perform efficiently on the post-pandemic market, Ukraine International introduces changes to its base product. The airline plans to facilitate its fare policy, cut down business class capacity, increase the sales share via the website, and offer customers full-cycle service on the website providing passengers with an opportunity to make changes in their bookings.

United

United Airlines is planning to resume four flights to Beijing, Chengdu, and Shanghai, according to a report from Forbes.

According to the report, the American carrier said in an employee memo that it is planning to “pencil in four China routes in the June schedule” and that it will “continue to workout the feasibility of restarting passenger service to China.”

When asked to confirm whether United plans to resume the China routes, a spokesperson from the airline said the following in an email sent to Business Traveller Asia-Pacific: “We continue to evaluate the feasibility of resuming service to China if and when passenger service is permitted but we have not made any announcements about restarting service at this time.”

Vietnam Airlines

Vietnam Airlines from June 2020 is resuming international service, with its Hanoi-Seoul Incheon and Ho Chi Minh City – Seoul Incheon routes, according to Routes Online.  Due to travel restrictions, the airline is only accepting reservations for departure from Vietnam, added the website.

Singapore Airlines

Singapore Airlines (SIA) and SilkAir are increasing the number of destinations in their network, as well as frequencies on some existing services, in June and July 2020.

Reinstated scheduled services include flights to Adelaide, Amsterdam, Auckland, Barcelona, Brisbane, Cebu, Christchurch, Copenhagen, Hong Kong, Medan, Melbourne and Osaka. A full list of all the destinations the airline is flying to can be found here.

Singapore Airlines reinstates flights for some destinations in June and July

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