Exciting New Airline Routes for June 2016 and Beyond

Each month, airlines around the world launch and announce dozens of new flight routes and service changes — and today, TPG Senior Editor Kaeli Conforti shares just a few of the latest flights that will take to the skies this month or in the near future. Keep in mind that exact flight details (e.g., flight schedules, aircraft and more) may change based on travel dates.

NEW ROUTES LAUNCHED IN JUNE 2016

Los Angeles (LAX) – Auckland (AKL) on American Airlines (launched June 23)

Details — Last week, American Airlines launched daily nonstop service between Los Angeles and Auckland, New Zealand. The best part: You'll be making the nearly 13-hour flight in a shiny new 787 Dreamliner and have access to comfy lie-flat seats if you're flying in business.

Schedule (daily):

• AA83 Los Angeles (LAX) 10:40pm Departure ⇒ Auckland (AKL) 6:35am (+2) Arrival
• AA82 Auckland (AKL) 1:20pm Departure ⇒ Los Angeles (LAX) 6:30am Arrival

New Domestic Routes on Southwest (launched June 5)

Details — Southwest expanded its network by adding new service to several cities around the US this month.

New Routes:

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• Albuquerque (ABQ) – Austin (AUS)
• Buffalo/Niagara Falls (BUF) – Denver (DEN)
• Charleston (CHS) – Denver (DEN)
• Cleveland (CLE) – St. Louis (STL)
• Dallas (Love Field, DAL) – Burbank (BUR)
• Dallas (Love Field, DAL) – Pensacola (PNS)
• Denver (DEN) – Norfolk/Virginia Beach (ORF)
• Long Beach, CA (LGB) – Oakland (OAK)
• Kansas City (MCI) – Pensacola (PNS)
• Oakland (OAK) – Reno/Tahoe (RNO)
• Oakland (OAK) – St. Louis (STL)
• Portland, OR (PDX) – St. Louis (STL)

New York (JFK) – Edinburgh (EDI) on Delta (launched May 26)

Details — Delta just launched new daily nonstop service between New York and Edinburgh, Scotland, with year-round flights operated by Boeing 757-200ER aircraft — except during the busy summer months, when a 767-300ER will be used (now through September 5). The carrier also plans to add a new nonstop route from JFK to Glasgow (GLA) starting May 25, 2017.

Schedule (daily)

• DL409 New York (JFK) 10:50pm Departure ⇒ Edinburgh (EDI) 10:50am (+1) Arrival
• DL209 Edinburgh (EDI) 1:10pm Departure ⇒ New York (JFK) 3:49pm Arrival

Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP) to Rome (FCO) and Reykjavik (KEF) on Delta (launched June 2 and May 26, respectively)

Details — Rome just got a whole lot closer to the midwest thanks to Delta's new nonstop route between Minneapolis-St. Paul and FCO. The carrier also recently launched daily nonstop service between MSP and Reykjavik, Iceland (KEF).

Schedule (daily):

• DL90 Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP) 5:35pm Departure ⇒ Rome (FCO) 10:10am (+1) Arrival
• DL91 Rome (FCO) 11:55am Departure ⇒ Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP) 3:56pm Arrival
• DL260 Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP) 9:55pm Departure ⇒ Reykjavik (KEF) 9:00am (+1) Arrival
• DL261 Reykjavik (KEF) 8:30am Departure ⇒ Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP) 10:00am Arrival

San Francisco (SFO) to Singapore (SIN) on United (launched June 1)

Details — Earlier this month, United launched new daily nonstop service between San Francisco and Singapore's Changi Airport, making it the longest 787 Dreamliner flight in the world — a whopping 8,446 miles each way. TPG Editor-in-Chief Zach Honig tested out the route a few weeks ago — click here to read his review of the inaugural flight.

Schedule (daily):

• UA1 San Francisco (SFO) 10:55pm Departure ⇒ Singapore (SIN) 6:15am (+2) Arrival
• UA2 Singapore (SIN) 8:45am Departure ⇒ San Francisco (SFO) 9:15am Arrival

Washington, DC (IAD) and New York (EWR) to Barcelona (BCN), Lisbon (LIS) and Athens (ATH) on United (launched May 25)

Details — Want to go to Europe this summer? United launched several nonstop flights from Washington-Dulles and Newark to Barcelona, Lisbon and Athens, so start packing!

Schedule (daily):

• UA140 Washington, DC (IAD) 5:40pm Departure ⇒ Barcelona (BCN) 7:45am (+1) Arrival
• UA141 Barcelona (BCN) 11:15am Departure ⇒ Washington, DC (IAD) 2:30pm Arrival
• UA168 Washington, DC (IAD) 10:15pm Departure ⇒ Lisbon (LIS) 10:35am (+1) Arrival
• UA167 Lisbon (LIS) 12:15pm Departure ⇒ Washington, DC (IAD) 3:35pm Arrival
• UA124 Newark (EWR) 5:50pm Departure ⇒ Athens (ATH) 10:30am (+1) Arrival
• UA125 Athens (ATH) 12:15pm Departure ⇒ Newark (EWR) 4:15pm Arrival

NEW ROUTES ANNOUNCED IN JUNE 2016

Norwegian Will Offer Flights From Fort Lauderdale to the French Caribbean

Details — After much success with last year's wintertime flights between the northeastern US and the French Caribbean, Norwegian will launch twice weekly flights from Fort Lauderdale (FLL) to Guadeloupe (SFC). While the exact schedule hasn't been released yet, the carrier says the new route will be available on Wednesdays and Saturdays as of December 17.

Singapore Airlines Will Fly Between San Francisco (SFO) and Singapore (SIN) Later This Year

Details — Perhaps in response to United's newly launched nonstop route between SFO and SIN (mentioned above), Singapore Airlines announced its own daily nonstop service between the two cities — aboard its stunning A350 aircraft — beginning October 23.

Schedule (daily):

• SQ31 San Francisco (SFO) 10:45am Departure ⇒ Singapore (SIN) 6:40pm (+1) Arrival
• SQ32 Singapore (SIN) 8:30am Departure ⇒ San Francisco (SFO) 8:05am Arrival

United Will Fly 787-9 Dreamliners to Tel Aviv (TLV) from San Francisco (SFO) Every Day

Details — You'll soon be able to fly daily between San Francisco and Tel Aviv, Israel, aboard United's 787-9 Dreamliner thanks to the carrier's new daily nonstop service — up from its current 3x weekly service — starting October 8.

Schedule (daily):

• UA954 San Francisco (SFO) 8:00pm Departure ⇒ Tel Aviv (TLV) 8:10pm (+1) Arrival
• UA955 Tel Aviv (TLV) 1:00am Departure ⇒ San Francisco (SFO) 6:05am Arrival

Fly from Las Vegas (LAS) to London (LGW) on Norwegian

Details — Great news: Flights from Sin City to London just got a little more affordable. Low-cost carrier Norwegian will fly from Las Vegas to London's Gatwick airport starting October 31. Passengers can enjoy nonstop service between the two cities Mondays and Thursdays aboard the carrier's Boeing 787 Dreamliner.

Schedule (2x per week, Mondays and Thursdays):

• DY7108 Las Vegas (LAS) 6:00pm Departure ⇒ London-Gatwick (LGW) 10:50am (+1) Arrival
• DY7107 London-Gatwick (LGW) 12:10pm Departure ⇒ Las Vegas (LAS) 3:00pm Arrival

Fly to Cuba on Several Major US Carriers Starting This Fall

Details — Earlier this month, the US Department of Transportation approved the proposed routes of six major US airlines, allowing flights between the US and Cuba to begin this fall on American Airlines, Frontier, JetBlue, Silver Airways, Southwest and Sun Country. While Americans can't fly directly into Havana yet, you can fly into other Cuban cities like Camaguey (CMW), Cayo Coco (CCC), Cayo Largo (CYO), Cienfuegos (CFG), Holguín (HOG), Manzanillo (MZO), Matanzas (VRA), Santa Clara (SNU) and Santiago de Cuba (SCU) instead.

Swiss Announces Service from Zurich (ZRH) to Miami (MIA), Delays 777 Service from Zurich (ZRH) to San Francisco (SFO)

Details — As they say, good things come to those who wait. While Swiss recently announced a delay in adding the 777 to its Zurich to San Francisco flight — originally scheduled for August 30, 2016 — the carrier also plans to launch service between Zurich and Miami starting October 30. The new route will be operated by a Boeing 777-300ER aircraft until March 24 when its wintertime service ends.

Schedule (daily):

• LX65 Miami (MIA) 7:50pm Departure ⇒ Zurich (ZRH) 11:00am (+1) Arrival
• LX64 Zurich (ZRH) 1:15pm Departure ⇒ Miami (MIA) 6:00pm Arrival

Which of these new routes are you most excited about?