Iceland’s Wow Air to Launch Low-Cost Flights Between Delhi and Europe, N. America

Iceland’s transatlantic airline Wow Air has announced the launch of its services from Delhi to multiple destinations in North America and Europe via the country’s capital Reykjavik from December 2018. Fares will start at Rs 13,499, the airline announced on May 16, PTI reported.

The budget carrier is confident that the fares of its tickets, which are on sale now, will convince travelers that the journey is worth a small detour. For instance, it will fly from London to New Delhi via Iceland, taking four and a half hours longer in air than a direct flight, with the flight to Reykjavik from London taking three hours, while the second leg of the journey to New Delhi will take 10 and a half hours.

Similarly, the flight to New York, with a couple of hours of stop-over at Reykjavik, would take about 20 hours.
Since Iceland falls on the regular route taken by carriers who fly out of India to the United States, flying via Reykjavik would be the shortest one-stop flight.

The one-way Rs 13,499 fare would be available for flights from New Delhi to London, and North American cities such as New York, Los Angeles, Boston, Chicago, and Toronto, with a stop-over in Reykjavik. The introductory fare under the “Wow basic” includes all taxes. However, it excludes meal and check-in baggage, which will be charged separately.

“While the Wow basic introductory fare will be priced at Rs. 13,499 with taxes, the ‘Wow premium’ fares at the other end will be priced from Rs. 46,599 onwards including taxes. The other two fare options are ‘Wow plus’ and ‘Wow comfy,” the airline’s founder and chief executive officer Skuli Mogensen said, according to the report.

Wow Air will operate five days a week to India, flying an Airbus A330 Neo. It currently operates in 39 destinations across Europe and North America, including London, Paris, New York, Toronto, Baltimore, San Francisco and Chicago.

Describing the routes the airline is taking as its new phase of cross-continental expansion, Mogensen was optimistic about the success of the airline in India.

He pointed out that about 20,000 Indians travel to North America on a daily basis and 80 per cent of them travel with a stop-over.

He was also confident that the “fares can absorb the rising crude oil prices unless it breaches the $100 mark.”