Norse Atlantic launches another FOUR US routes from Gatwick – now flying to seven cities

Six months after launching regular flights from Gatwick to New York, low-cost transatlantic airline Norse Atlantic is aggressively stepping up its services from the UK to the US.

Two weeks ago we covered two new routes to Florida – Orlando and Fort Lauderdale.

Norse has followed up today with a further four US routes.

Here are the new destinations from London Gatwick:

• Washington DC – launches on 1st June with up to six flights per week

• Los Angeles – launches on 30th June with daily flights

• San Francisco – launches on 1st July with three flights per week

• Boston – launches on 2nd September with five flights per week

With seven US routes, Norse now overtakes British Airways to be the largest operator of flights to the United States from London Gatwick.

What is it like flying Norse Atlantic?

You can read our review of flying Premium on Norse Atlantic from Gatwick to New York here.

You can also see how Norse Atlantic’s premium economy compares to British Airways and Virgin Atlantic here.

The good news is that Norse flies a fleet of Boeing 787 Dreamliners, Boeing’s newest long haul aircraft. This means bigger, electronically dimming windows and a lower cabin altitude, which reduces the effects of jetlag.

In Premium, you can expect a small cabin of 56 seats in a 2-3-2 layout. Norse Atlantic has the largest leg room of any UK carrier, with a seat pitch of 43″ and a deep recline of 12″. Based purely on leg room and seat space, Norse Atlantic in Premium is head and shoulders above British Airways and Virgin Atlantic.

The economy experience is tighter, with rows of nine-abreast seating. If you book the cheapest fares, you’ll only get one small underseat bag included in your fare, with additional options available for a fee. Norse also offers two fares – Economy Classic and Economy Plus – which bundle benefits such as seat selection, a meal service and a checked bag.

The bottom line is that Norse Atlantic is a low cost carrier, so you should expect to pay more for any extras you may want or need. Think of it as a longhaul Ryanair flight, albeit with arguably the best Premium cabin across the Atlantic.

Conclusion

The future looks promising for Norse. Whilst it is easy to question why it should succeed where Norwegian failed, using exactly the same aircraft, there are two things which definitely tip the balance towards Norse:

• the 787 fleet is now well established and reliable – Norwegian, along with many other airlines, had huge issues with fleet reliability due to early problems with the engines which in turn led to huge costs for compensation payments and ad-hoc charter aircraft

• fares are substantially higher than pre-covid – the new Boston route is advertised as ‘from’ £370 return before seating and baggage charges, whereas we would often see flights under £250 all-in on British Airways before the pandemic, and under £200 on Norwegian

You can book on the Norse Atlantic website here.