New Icelandic budget airline Play eyes US expansion by spring 2022
This post contains references to products from one or more of our advertisers. We may receive compensation when you click on links to those products. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. For an explanation of our Advertising Policy, visit this page.
Play, the newest attempt at an Icelandic low-cost airline experience, isn’t wasting any time when it comes to expansion plans.
The airline has already added routes to London Stansted (STN), Berlin (BER) and Tenerife (TFS) from its hub at Reykjavík Airport (KEF), and now it’s setting its sights on U.S. flights by spring of 2022.
Sign up to receive the daily TPG newsletter for more travel news!
“We will launch the U.S. operation, and the model is simply to connect the East Coast of the U.S. and Canada to select cities in Europe,” Play CEO Birgir Jónsson told Simple Flying. “And that’s something that we will see happening, I would say, [in] March, April, [and] May.”
The majority of the North American cities Play intends to fly to include popular destinations such as New York, Boston, Washington, D.C., and Toronto. The airline will also offer routes to other cities, which will be announced at a later time. Tickets for Play’s U.S. destinations could go on sale as early as November.
Related: 7 reasons why flying Play was a great experience
The company is looking to get a foothold in existing markets using its low-cost model, rather than trying to create new markets. Also, it wants to get as much use out of its aircraft as possible. It’s one reason why the company has no plans to expand to the West Coast and cities such as Los Angeles.
Play’s operational strategy is to offer long-haul flights at a low cost, and to do that, it wants to keep its planes on a 24-hour loop. Flying to LAX would prevent its aircraft from being able to return to Europe in that time frame.
“We want to be able to use our afternoon flights to go to the U.S. and have them back in the morning to fly European routes,” said Jónsson.
The carrier seems eager to avoid the missteps from its predecessor, Wow Air. That Icelandic budget airline had a similar business model that ultimately failed.
The nascent airline is off to a promising start. Its initial flights to London’s Stansted Airport (STN) were booked at 60% capacity, an impressive number given that we’re still in a pandemic that has upended travel. The company even earned lots of attention for its snazzy, non-gender-specific uniforms for its flight crews.
Now we’ll have to see if it can pull off its plans to expand across the Atlantic.
Featured photo by Ben Smithson/The Points Guy.
Sign-up Successful!
Welcome to The Points Guy!
Earn 90,000 bonus miles and 10,000 Medallion® Qualification Miles (MQMs) after you spend $3,000 in purchases on your new card in the first three months of card membership. Offer ends 11/10/2021.
With Status Boost™, earn 10,000 Medallion Qualification Miles (MQMs) after you spend $25,000 in purchases on your Card in a calendar year, up to two times per year getting you closer to Medallion Status. Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases and purchases made directly with hotels, 2X Miles at restaurants and at U.S. supermarkets and earn 1X Mile on all other eligible purchases. Terms Apply.
- Limited Time Offer: Earn 90,000 Bonus Miles and 10,000 Medallion® Qualification Miles (MQMs) after you spend $3,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 3 months. Offer expires 11/10/2021.
- Earn up to 20,000 Medallion® Qualification Miles (MQMs) with Status Boost® per year. After you spend $25,000 in purchases on your Card in a calendar year, you can earn 10,000 MQMs two times per year, getting you closer to Medallion® Status. MQMs are used to determine Medallion® Status and are different than miles you earn toward flights.
- Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases and purchases made directly with hotels.
- Earn 2X Miles at restaurants worldwide, including takeout and delivery and at U.S. supermarkets.
- Earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases.
- Receive a Domestic Main Cabin round-trip companion certificate each year upon renewal of your Card. *Payment of the government imposed taxes and fees of no more than $75 for roundtrip domestic flights (for itineraries with up to four flight segments) is required. Baggage charges and other restrictions apply. See terms and conditions for details.
- Enjoy your first checked bag free on Delta flights.
- Fee Credit for Global Entry or TSA Pre✓®.
- Enjoy an exclusive rate of $39 per person per visit to enter the Delta Sky Club® for you and up to two guests when traveling on a Delta flight.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees.
- $250 Annual Fee.
- Terms Apply.
- See Rates & Fees
Disclaimer: The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser. Responses have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser’s responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.
Editorial Disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airlines or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.