Starting September 15, Norwegian will end all transatlantic flights between Ireland and North America due to the prolonged and indefinite grounding of the Boeing 737 Max, which operated the routes.
The six affected routes include those from Dublin, Cork and Shannon in Ireland and New York Stewart International Airport, Providence T. F. Green International Airport and John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport in Toronto.
“Since March, we have tirelessly sought to minimize the impact on our customers by hiring (wet leasing) replacement aircraft to operate services between Ireland and North America. However, as the return to service date for the 737 Max remains uncertain, this solution is unsustainable,” a spokesperson for Norwegian said in a press release.
Recent reports by The Wall Street Journal said that the grounded Boeing 737 Max might not fly again until next year. Norwegian isn't the only airline reeling in the wake of the grounding. American Airlines extended its 737 Max cancellations through November 2; however, in a statement, the airline said that it “remains confident” the aircraft will be recertified this year. United Airlines has also previously announced it expects to cancel more than 8,000 flights on 14 Max 8s through November 3 because of the grounding of its Boeing 737 Max planes. Around the same time, Southwest Airlines, which has more 737 Max aircraft than any other carrier, said it does not expect the plane back before October 1 and has canceled about 150 flights a day.
Air Canada has grounded its 737 Max fleet even longer—through January 8, 2020.
Norwegian adds that it is ensuring that customers can still get to their destination by rerouting them onto other Norwegian services. Customers, if they no longer wish to travel, will be offered a full refund.
In 2017, Norwegian launched transatlantic flights from Dublin, Cork and Shannon to the East Coast of North America.
Visit www.norwegian.com.
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