The national carrier Finnair plans to add three new weekly flights to its route between Helsinki-Vantaa and New York this summer. The additional flights are a continuation of the company’s Asian strategy.
“The intention is to appeal to people who travel from the United States towards Asia”, explains Finnair President and CEO Jukka Hienonen.
In addition to the normal daily departure, between the beginning of June and mid-September an extra flight will be added to the programme on three days a week. It will take off from Helsinki-Vantaa towards evening and from New York late at night.
In its marketing Finnair has emphasised that the route between New York and many large Asian cities passes by Helsinki. For example, a direct flight between New York and Hong Kong takes 18.5 hours. An intermediate landing in Helsinki would only add around 2.5 hours to the total travelling time, but would give the passengers a welcome chance to stretch their legs.
With the present timetables, this type of transit travelling is not possible. The waiting time at Helsinki-Vantaa International would be too long for the type of high-end business travellers Finnair is reaching for.
Another reason for the move is the branch and the company’s general situation, Hienonen explains. “Right now the situation is so bloody difficult that one has to try something new. One must not just tread water.”
Next summer’s new flights are only an experiment, without extensive marketing strategies aimed directly at consumers.
The needed aircraft and staff capacity will be obtained from the company’s Indian traffic. A less than sensational Mumbai connection will be suspended for the summer.
