Finnair prepares to scale up its network

Finnair is preparing to join the Summer 2020 operations party, with plans to scale up their network for season.

 Finnair Airbus A350-900 Marimekko – Image, Economy Class and Beyond

The ramp-up will begin in July.  Let’s look at the ramp-up plan from their base of Helsinki Vantaa Airport

Long-haul

Starting in July

• Nagoya (Japan)
• Osaka (Japan)
• Tokyo-Narita (Japan)
• Singapore
• Seoul (South Korea)
• Bangkok (Thailand)
• Beijing (China)
• Shanghai (China)
• Hong Kong

Starting in August

• Delhi (India)
• New York-JFK (USA)

Starting in November

• Tokyo Haneda (Japan).

Winter Holiday Season Flights

• Miami (USA)
• Krabi (Thailand)
• Phuket (Thailand)

Europe

Double-Daily Services

• London-Heathrow
• Paris-
• Amsterdam

Starting in July:

• Berlin
• Brussels
• Budapest
• Copenhagen
• Dublin
• Düsseldorf
• Edinburg
• Frankfurt
• Gothenburg
• Geneva
• Hamburg
• Malaga
• Manchester
• Moscow
• Munich
• Oslo
• Paris
• Prague
• Riga
• Tallinn
• Stockholm
• St Petersburg
• Vilnius
• Vienna
• Zürich

Starting in August

• Barcelona
• Milan
• Madrid
• Rome
• Warsaw

During the summer holiday season, Finnair will also operate individual flights to some of the holiday destinations in Southern Europe.

The flights from Europe to Finland are timed to connect with the flights to Asia.

Within Finland

Starting in July

• Kuopio
• Mariehamn
• Oulu, Rovaniemi
• Turku
• Vaasa

Starting in August

• Ivalo
• Kittilä

Starting in September

• Kuusamo
• Tampere

In total, Finnair’s service levels will rise to approximately 20% of normal capacity in July, up from 5% in the April-June period, finally heading to 30% by August.

Long haul routes will utilise Airbus A350-900 aircraft, whilst smaller aircraft (such as the Embraer fleet) will be used on the shorter routes, scaling up where needed. Newer Airbus A320 will be used in favour of older aircraft too.

Once the service is up and running, it will be monitored based on demands and travel restrictions.

In Quotes

Finnair Chief Commercial Officer Ole Orvér said

”We expect aviation to recover gradually, starting in July”,

”Our intention is to operate approximately 30% of our normal amount of flights in July, and we will also start long-haul flights to our key Asian destinations. We will then add routes and frequencies month by month as demand recovers.”

The green shoots of a recovery

It seems Europe is continuing to recover, with airlines falling over themselves to offer services for those who have essential travel, as well as those who want a bit of leisure too.

Of course, the issue of national quarantines remain – and some countries are set on it.

That could be the real challenge to letting airlines resume commercial service again.

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