Is British Airways about to launch flights to Kansas City?

British Airways has let it slip that it is about to announce a new route to the United States.

Because, let’s be honest, the existing 26 routes to the United States aren’t nearly enough ….

Who wouldn’t prefer the 27th most important US city instead of, say, Bangkok, Abu Dhabi, Seoul, Osaka, Kuala Lumpur, Muscat or other dropped routes? Realistically, of course, many of these routes are difficult until the restrictions on Russian airspace are lifted.

The big question is where?

I’m not a routes expert, but the good people over at Flyertalk have proposed a short list which includes:

• Providence
• Hartford (soon to gain Aer Lingus flights)
• Raleigh-Durham (taking over from American Airlines)
• Indianapolis (past rumours of BA being interested)
• Minneapolis-St Paul (a Delta route)
• Louisville
• Detroit
• Cincinnati
• Cleveland
• Columbus
• Salt Lake City
• Fort Myers
• Jacksonville

Why is Kansas City looking possible?

The smart money, however, seems to be pointing at Kansas City, Missouri.

There is a very high chance that British Airways is being offered a big wad of cash to open the route. There are a lot of US cities without any direct flights to Europe, and this is a big issue when it comes to attracting inward investment.

Aer Lingus is a past master at this. Routes Online reported that Aer Lingus will receive $3 million over a three-year period for operating its new Cleveland service. Divide $3 million over three years by four flights per week and that’s a handy $5,000 per return trip.

This local TV news report suggests that Kansas City officials met with British Airways in Bergen in May, at the annual Routes conference, to pitch for flights. Missouri’s state budget includes $5 million allocated for a ‘transatlantic flight loan guarantee incentive’.

There are, apparently, already 400 people per day who are taking transatlantic flights from Kansas City. At the moment all 400 have to change aircraft on the way.

Other points in favour of Kansas City are its role as a host city for the 2026 World Cup and the upcoming opening of a new terminal at Kansas City International Airport.

More news as we get it ….

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