Yesterday saw Icelandic carrier PLAY announce the launch of a brand new service to Glasgow, adding further connections to Iceland and the U.S.
Launching on May 26, 2023, the route will operate on a four-times-per-week basis, running on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays.
Jonsson: PLAY Continues To Expand Network…
Commenting on the new route to Glasgow was PLAY CEO Birgir Jónsson, who said the following:
“As we continue to expand our network, PLAY is proud to announce the addition of Glasgow to our growing list of destinations.”
“With our focus on affordability and convenience, passengers can experience our on-time performance and safe, reliable service while exploring Scotland’s vibrant city.”
“We are excited to bring a new travel option to passengers, connecting them directly to and from Keflavik to Glasgow and to and from our routes across North America.”
The U.S Connectivity Question for Glasgow…
The reason why Glasgow will benefit from further U.S. connectivity with PLAY is down to the model that the Icelandic carrier operates.
As it stands, the airline operates to the following destinations in America:
- Boston
- Washington D.C.
- Baltimore
- New York
PLAY also operates services to Toronto in Canada, meaning that for the East Coast of the U.S. & Canada, Glasgow stands to benefit from such connecting passengers.
PLAY Continuing Strong Momentum…
The Glasgow route announcement comes off the back of PLAY continuing its strong momentum, as seen in its February 2023 results.
63,949 passengers were handled by the airline, offering a load factor of 76.9%, with 31% of passengers traveling from Iceland, 37% traveling to Iceland, and 32% connecting passengers.
PLAY was also keen to note that routes to and from Paris and London experienced strong load factors of 90%, with the expectation that Glasgow will do the same.
Jónsson expanded on this by saying the following:
“We are proud to report a record sales month in February, with strong booking and revenue trends for the months ahead, as well as seeing a surge in demand to and from Iceland.”
“Our unit revenue has continued to rise, even with a significant increase in capacity, which is a true indicator of the increasing strength of PLAY’s brand and the effectiveness of our commercial activity.”
“These very positive trends strengthen our positive outlook and give us confidence in our performance for the year.”
“We do, however, recognize the challenging nature of seasonal fluctuations in demand in this industry, and we are managing our capacity accordingly.”
“The nature of our market is such that the financial results of the year are decided in the all-important spring and summer months (Q2 and Q3) while the winter (Q1 and Q4) always brings weaker demand and lower yields.”
“In general, the year begins on a very positive note for PLAY.”
“The booking flow is very strong, average revenue per passenger and general yields are growing while the flight operation continues to deliver outstanding on-time performance.”
“These positive indicators give me great confidence that we are heading into a strong spring and summer seasons, and I´m sure that our great team of people will continue to do a great job of building PLAY into a strong and successful airline.”
Overall…
It remains clear that PLAY is definitely in a strong position to continue its growth expansion plans, and Glasgow is another piece of the puzzle within this.
As the airline continues to grow its network, so does the fleet. The airline expects to have a fleet of 10 Airbus A320/A321neo aircraft by the Summer.
For now, all eyes are on PLAY to see how they perform in the Summer season.
