Royal Air Maroc’s 2026 Route Push: Casablanca Adds Seven New Cities-and a Landmark LAX Link
Royal Air Maroc (RAM) is teeing up one of its most consequential network refreshes in years, using Casablanca Mohammed V International Airport (CMN) as the springboard. The 2026 plan blends “classic” hub building—more spokes to feed connections—with a headline-grabbing long-haul route that puts Morocco directly on the U.S. West Coast map.
This isn’t growth for growth’s sake. It’s a very deliberate mix of short/medium-haul additions (to thicken connectivity and improve bank structures at CMN) and targeted long-haul flying designed to pull premium demand, diaspora traffic, and inbound tourism into the network.
Why Casablanca (CMN) is the center of the strategy
CMN works best when it behaves like a true hub: multiple inbound waves from Europe and Africa feeding outbound departures to North America and the Middle East (and vice versa). Adding new “spoke” cities—especially those that aren’t well-served to West Africa or North Africa—creates more one-stop options via Morocco, often with more practical journey times than circuitous double-connect itineraries.
For RAM, that hub logic matters because the airline’s network isn’t built around one mega-market. It’s built around connectivity: Europe ↔ West Africa, North America ↔ Africa, and increasingly, selective city pairs that can support nonstop service.
The 2026 short- and medium-haul adds: Europe, the Levant, North Africa, and Central Africa
Based on current schedules filed for 2026, RAM is planning seven notable additions from CMN, mixing Embraer and Boeing narrowbodies depending on stage length and demand profile:
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Casablanca (CMN) – Alicante (ALC): 3x weekly beginning April 2026 on the Embraer E190
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Casablanca (CMN) – Bilbao (BIO): 3x weekly beginning April 2026 on the Embraer E190
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Casablanca (CMN) – Beirut (BEY): 3x weekly beginning April 2026 on the Boeing 737-800 / 737 MAX 8
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Casablanca (CMN) – Tripoli Mitiga (MJI): 2x weekly beginning late March 2026 on the Boeing 737-800
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Casablanca (CMN) – Verona (VRN): 3x weekly beginning late June 2026 on the Boeing 737-800
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Casablanca (CMN) – Lille (LIL): 2x weekly beginning early July 2026 on the Boeing 737-800 / 737 MAX 8
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Casablanca (CMN) – Pointe-Noire (PNR): 2x weekly beginning early July 2026 on the Boeing 737-800 / 737 MAX 8
A few aircraft notes that matter here:
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Embraer E190: a right-sized tool for thinner European routes. With a 2–2 cabin layout and efficient trip economics, it allows RAM to open markets like ALC and BIO with less capacity risk while still offering respectable frequency (which is often what drives corporate and VFR booking preference).
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Boeing 737-800 vs. 737 MAX 8: RAM can flex between the NG and MAX depending on performance needs and seasonality. The MAX 8’s improved fuel burn and range make it a stronger candidate when payload, winds, or longer stage lengths start to matter—useful for routes like CMN–BEY or CMN–PNR, where operational margins can be tighter.
The attention-grabber: Casablanca (CMN)–Los Angeles (LAX)
The route that changes the conversation is RAM’s planned nonstop between Casablanca (CMN) and Los Angeles (LAX), scheduled to begin on June 7, 2026, operating 3x weekly.
RAM is expected to fly the sector with a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner—a logical choice for a mission of roughly 5,200 nautical miles. The 787’s efficiency on long stage lengths, plus passenger-friendly features (higher cabin humidity, lower cabin altitude, and larger windows), make it a strong fit for building a new long-haul market where reliability and comfort are part of the sales pitch.
This route also has strategic “network math” behind it:
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LAX adds a massive catchment area and premium demand base on the U.S. side.
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CMN offers RAM’s African network as the onward product—meaning the flight isn’t just about Morocco O&D; it’s also about one-stop flows to West Africa and beyond.
St. Petersburg (LED) adds another Russia spoke
Separate from the 2026 spring/summer additions, RAM has also signaled a direct link between Casablanca (CMN) and St. Petersburg (LED) beginning in January 2026. For a hub carrier, routes like LED can be valuable not only for point-to-point demand, but also for distributing traffic onward to leisure destinations and African markets that aren’t easily served nonstop from Russia.
The bigger picture: fleet growth, better banks, and long-haul credibility
RAM has been open about long-term fleet ambitions—growing well beyond today’s size over the next decade—while using leasing and incremental capacity adds to bridge the near term. Practically, that means:
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More narrowbody flying to build frequency and add markets into the CMN banks
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Select long-haul additions (like LAX) that are “statement routes,” but also structurally sensible if the hub can feed them
And that’s the key: RAM’s 2026 plan reads like a hub carrier acting like a hub carrier—expanding where connectivity improves the whole network, not just where a standalone route looks good on a map.
Bottom Line
Royal Air Maroc is positioning 2026 as a step-change year for Casablanca (CMN), adding new European, Middle Eastern, North African, and Central African routes that strengthen hub connectivity—while pairing that with a true flagship move: launching Casablanca (CMN)–Los Angeles (LAX) on the Boeing 787. If the schedules hold, the result is a sharper, more connected CMN hub with a more credible long-haul footprint.
