​Norwegian’s first routes from Northern Ireland take-off

Press release -

​Norwegian’s first routes from Northern Ireland take-off

Airline launches only direct transatlantic flights to US East Coast

Norwegian launched the only direct transatlantic flights from Belfast International Airport today with two never-before-seen routes to the US East Coast.

Earlier this year Norwegian announced the brand new transatlantic flights from Northern Ireland to smaller airports of Stewart International and Providence on the US east coast, which offer good access into the New York, Boston and New England areas but carry significantly lower landing charges, allowing Norwegian to offer some truly affordable fares.

Today (1st July), Europe’s third largest low-cost airline, will commence Northern Ireland’s first direct service to Stewart International Airport, New York and Providence Airport, Rhode Island offering travellers affordable travel to the US with fares available from just £129 one-way.

Norwegian CEO Bjorn Kjos said: “We are delighted to launch Northern Ireland’s only direct route to the US East Coast. Travel should be affordable for all so these new transatlantic flights offer more choice and lower fares that will allow as many passengers as possible to fly. We also look forward to welcoming thousands of American travelers into Northern Ireland over the coming weeks, ensuring our new routes also offer a huge boost to Irish tourism, business and hospitality.”

Graham Keddie, Managing Director, Belfast International Airport: “This is a truly momentous day for Belfast International Airport. We are delighted to be launching two transatlantic services today to New York Stewart Airport and Providence Airport with Norwegian.
These routes restore the much needed New York link that United abandoned and also, for the first time ever, services into the Boston area. We are confident that both of these routes will be successful and we look forward to working with Norwegian to develop more services in the future."

Norwegian’s new transatlantic flights are Northern Irelands first direct low-cost services to the US east coast. For passengers travelling to Stewart International, a new direct shuttle service into central New York City is now in place. The new service, operated by Coach USA, has been timed to meet Norwegian’s flight arrivals at Stewart Airport, allowing passengers to take a direct journey into central Manhattan.

For passengers flying to Providence Airport, a range of road, rail and bus links make Boston just 90 minutes away, with key New England areas such as Cape Cod, Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard also within reach. Full details on other tourist attractions served by the new routes are available here.

Norwegian customers flying from Belfast who are members of its free-to-join loyalty programme, Norwegian Reward, can earn and spend CashPoints and receive rewards after every sixth flight which can reduce the cost of all Norwegian flights.

Norwegian carries more than 30 million yearly passengers to more than 150 global destinations. Norwegian has been voted the Best Low-Cost Long-Haul Airline for three consecutive years at the renowned SkyTrax Awards, and the Europe’s Best Low-Cost Airline for five consecutive years.

More information visit www.norwegian.com/uk

ENDS

Notes to editors

Fares are per person based on lowest one-way fare including taxes and charges

Flight schedule

Belfast – 5 transatlantic flights per week from £129 one way:

Stewart Intl (New York) – x 3 weekly flights (Sat, Tue, Thu). Depart Belfast 16:20, arrive Stewart 19:05

Providence (greater Boston) – x 2 weekly flights (Sat & Tue). Depart Belfast 14:40, arrive Providence 16:50

Topics

Norwegian in the UK:

  • Norwegian carries 5.2 million UK passengers each year from London Gatwick, Edinburgh, Belfast, Birmingham and Manchester Airports to 50 destinations worldwide
  • Norwegian is the third largest airline at London Gatwick, with 4.6 million yearly passengers, and with more than 800 UK-based pilots and cabin crew
  • In 2014, Norwegian introduced the UK’s first low-cost, long haul flights to the U.S. - the airline now flies to 7 U.S destinations with fares from just £139 one way
  • Norwegian is the only airline to offer free inflight WiFi on UK flights to more than 30 European destinations
  • The airline has one of the youngest aircraft fleets in the world with an average age of 3.6 years, including next-generation Boeing 787 Dreamliners and Boeing 737-800s
  • Norwegian has been voted ‘Europe’s best low-cost carrier’ by passengers for four consecutive years at SkyTrax World Airline Awards from 2013-2016, along with being awarded the ‘World's best low-cost long-haul airline’ in both 2015 and 2016

Contacts

For journalists only

For journalists only

Press contact Norwegian Press Office +47 815 11 816
Marketing/sponsorhip requests: marketing@norwegian.com

Marketing/sponsorhip requests: marketing@norwegian.com

Press contact Marketing/sponsorship requests: marketing@norwegian.com

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Lars Garde (Captain), Diana Menzes (Cabin Crew) Robert Bjorkholm (Co-pilot) and Graham Keddie (MD Belfast International Airport)
  • Lars Garde (Captain), Diana Menzes (Cabin Crew) Robert Bjorkholm (Co-pilot) and Graham Keddie (MD Belfast International Airport)
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Lars Garde (Captain), Robert Bjorkholm (Co-Pilot) and Graham Keddie (MD Belfast International Airport)
  • Lars Garde (Captain), Robert Bjorkholm (Co-Pilot) and Graham Keddie (MD Belfast International Airport)
  • License: Creative Commons Attribution
    With a Creative Commons license, you keep your copyright but allow people to copy and distribute your work, provided they give you credit. You permit others to copy, distribute, display and perform the work, as well as make derivative works based on it.
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Norwegian.com

The Norwegian group is a leading Nordic aviation company, headquartered at Fornebu outside Oslo, Norway. The company has over 8,200 employees and owns two of the prominent airlines in the Nordics: Norwegian Air Shuttle and Widerøe’s Flyveselskap. Widerøe was acquired by Norwegian in 2024, aiming to facilitate seamless air travel across the two airline’s networks.

Norwegian Air Shuttle, the largest Norwegian airline with around 4,700 employees, operates an extensive route network connecting Nordic countries to key European destinations. In 2023, Norwegian carried over 20 million passengers and maintained a fleet of 87 Boeing 737-800 and 737 MAX 8 aircraft.

Widerøe’s Flyveselskap, Norway’s oldest airline, is Scandinavia’s largest regional carrier. The airline has more than 3,500 employees. Mainly operating the short-runway airports in rural Norway, Widerøe operates several state contract routes (PSO routes) in addition to its own commercial network. In 2023, the airline had 3.3 million passengers and a fleet of 48 aircraft, including 45 Bombardier Dash 8’s and three Embraer E190-E2's. Widerøe Ground Handling provides ground handling services at 41 Norwegian airports.

The Norwegian group has sustainability as a key priority and has committed to significantly reducing carbon emissions from its operations. Among numerous initiatives, the most noteworthy is the investment in production and use of fossil-free aviation fuel (SAF). Norwegian strives to become the sustainable choice for its passengers, actively contributing to the transformation of the aviation industry.

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