Press release -

Norwegian soars to 500,000 UK passengers on low-cost long-haul flights

- Norwegian CEO: “Half a million passengers can’t be wrong – this proves low-cost long-haul can succeed”

Low-cost airline Norwegian has reached 500,000 UK passengers on its ground-breaking low-cost long-haul flights to the U.S.

Norwegian first launched low-cost long-haul flights from Gatwick Airport in July 2014 and is still the only airline offering direct low-cost transatlantic travel to UK passengers. Norwegian now offers low-cost flights to 7 U.S. destinations from the UK – New York, Los Angeles, Boston, San Francisco Oakland, Orlando, Fort Lauderdale and Puerto Rico – with fares from £135 one way.

Passenger Sam Holden, 29, from Dorchester this week became Norwegian’s 500,000th long-haul passenger as he boarded a flight from Gatwick to Boston. To celebrate the milestone, crew members presented Sam and his girlfriend with a free pair of Premium tickets for any Norwegian long-haul flight.

Passenger Sam Holden said: “I’m delighted to be Norwegian’s lucky passenger number 500,000! I plan to fly between the UK and US quite a lot over the next year so Norwegian’s low-cost flights are a great way to get to the States without breaking the bank.”

Norwegian uses state-of-the-art Boeing 787 Dreamliners on its transatlantic flights and the airline has further new Dreamliner aircraft on order that will more than quadruple its current long-haul fleet. Norwegian has also obtained a UK Operating License, allowing access to bilateral traffic rights to a series of new long-haul markets in the future including Asia, South America and Africa.

Norwegian CEO Bjorn Kjos said: "The cost of flying to America has been too high for too long and our transatlantic flights show there is huge demand for quality, affordable long-haul travel. Half a million UK passengers can’t be wrong and this milestone proves that low-cost long-haul travel can succeed.

“In less than two years our long-haul operation has taken-off with UK passengers, with new routes and additional flights being added all the time. This is only the beginning – with new aircraft orders and traffic rights to a range of new markets, we have ambitious plans to continue offering passengers high-quality low-cost travel.”

Gatwick Airport Chief Financial Officer Nick Dunn said: “Norwegian has led the low-cost long-haul revolution for UK passengers – half-a-million passengers have already discovered this for themselves, benefitting from significantly cheaper long-haul fares and more choice at Gatwick.

“The revolution continues with flights to Boston and Oakland and shows no sign of slowing up with a record number of long-haul routes from Gatwick due to be launched in the coming year.”

Earlier this year, Norwegian launched a record number of seats on its transatlantic routes, with 425,000 seats available on direct flights between the UK and U.S.

Norwegian is Europe’s third largest low-cost carrier. In the UK, Norwegian has grown to become the third-largest airline at Gatwick and also operates from Manchester, Birmingham, and Edinburgh. In 2015, Norwegian flew 3.9 million UK passengers to more than 40 destinations.

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Norwegian in the UK:

  • Norwegian first launched UK flights in 2003 and now operates from London Gatwick, Edinburgh, Birmingham and Manchester Airports to more than 40 destinations worldwide
  • Norwegian is the third largest airline at London Gatwick, with 3.9 million yearly passengers, and with more than 700 pilots, cabin crew and staff working from its Gatwick base
  • In 2014, Norwegian introduced the UK’s first low-cost, long haul flights to the U.S. - the airlines now flies to 7 U.S destinations with fares from just £135 one way
  • Norwegian is the only airline to offer free inflight WiFi on UK flights to more than 30 European destinations
  • The airline has one of the youngest aircraft fleets in the world with an average age of four years, including next-generation Boeing 787 Dreamliners and Boeing 737-800s
  • Norwegian has been voted ‘Europe’s best low-cost carrier’ by passengers for three consecutive years at SkyTrax World Airline Awards, and was also the first airline to be awarded the ‘World's best low-cost long-haul airline’ in 2015 by SkyTrax

Contacts

For journalists only

For journalists only

Press contact Norwegian Press Office +47 815 11 816
Marketing/sponsorhip requests: marketing@norwegian.com

Marketing/sponsorhip requests: marketing@norwegian.com

Press contact Marketing/sponsorship requests: marketing@norwegian.com

Norwegian.com

The Norwegian group is a leading Nordic aviation company, headquartered at Fornebu outside Oslo, Norway. The company has over 8,200 employees and owns two of the prominent airlines in the Nordics: Norwegian Air Shuttle and Widerøe’s Flyveselskap. Widerøe was acquired by Norwegian in 2024, aiming to facilitate seamless air travel across the two airline’s networks.

Norwegian Air Shuttle, the largest Norwegian airline with around 4,700 employees, operates an extensive route network connecting Nordic countries to key European destinations. In 2023, Norwegian carried over 20 million passengers and maintained a fleet of 87 Boeing 737-800 and 737 MAX 8 aircraft.

Widerøe’s Flyveselskap, Norway’s oldest airline, is Scandinavia’s largest regional carrier. The airline has more than 3,500 employees. Mainly operating the short-runway airports in rural Norway, Widerøe operates several state contract routes (PSO routes) in addition to its own commercial network. In 2023, the airline had 3.3 million passengers and a fleet of 48 aircraft, including 45 Bombardier Dash 8’s and three Embraer E190-E2's. Widerøe Ground Handling provides ground handling services at 41 Norwegian airports.

The Norwegian group has sustainability as a key priority and has committed to significantly reducing carbon emissions from its operations. Among numerous initiatives, the most noteworthy is the investment in production and use of fossil-free aviation fuel (SAF). Norwegian strives to become the sustainable choice for its passengers, actively contributing to the transformation of the aviation industry.

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