“With non-stop service from RDU to Paris-Charles de Gaulle, there are more destinations within easy reach of the Research Triangle Region,” said Raleigh-Durham Airport Authority Chairman Michael Weeks. “This new route will provide greater capacity for the hundreds of travelers already heading overseas each day from RDU through other gateways.”
In addition to providing more non-stop service to Europe, the route to Paris-Charles de Gaulle will allow connecting passengers to access 89 new cities not accessible through London-Heathrow.
Connections in Charles de Gaulle include key cities such as: Osaka, Japan and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, as well as several cities within China and the capitals of many African nations. The route also offers extensive connectivity to cities throughout France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Sweden and Switzerland.
“The opportunities created by this flight will be far-reaching for the businesses in our community,” said Robb Teer, Vice Chairman of the Airport Authority. “Having non-stop service to Paris and one-stop service to so many new international destinations will certainly raise North Carolina’s profile in the world.”
This new service will supplement American Airlines' daily flight to London by offering a different set of connections than possible through Heathrow Airport. Statistics show that more than 500 passengers travel to and from RDU to international destinations each day — mostly through other American gateways.
RDU had non-stop service to Paris-Orly from the late 1980s until 1993. Connectivity from Orly was limited and that flight ended as American Airlines downsized its hub operations at RDU.
JetBlue Adds New Boston Service
JetBlue recently announced it will add a second daily flight to Boston beginning May 1. Flight 1225 will depart Boston at 8:50 p.m. and arrive at RDU at 10:41 p.m. It will remain overnight at the airport and depart for Boston at 7:05 a.m. and arrive at 8:58 a.m.
The additional service will make it easier for same day business travel to Boston. Currently, airlines serving RDU offer 12 daily nonstop flights to Boston.
In more air service news, Southwest Airlines will add one frequency each to Las Vegas and Orlando in March and one frequency each to Chicago and Nashville in May. The four frequencies were reduced in January but are being reinstated in the spring schedule.
With the changes, Southwest, which will celebrate its 10th anniversary at RDU in June, will offer 33 daily departures from RDU. |
