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Weekly Airline Route Launches

The Week’s Biggest Route Launches: Spirit Leads, AirAsia and T’Way Impress

August 22, 2025 John Cushma 75

Weekly Airline Route Launches

Six notable additions hit the map this week—from Spirit’s U.S. push to AirAsia’s new fifth-freedom hop in Northeast Asia, plus fresh links in Europe, the Caribbean, and Türkiye. Here’s what changed and why it matters.

New and notable, at a glance

Spirit expands in the U.S. (6 routes)

AirAsia’s new fifth-freedom: Taipei – Fukuoka (daily A320)

  • Operated by AirAsia Malaysia on a Kota Kinabalu – Taipei – Fukuoka – Taipei – Kota Kinabalu pattern

  • First-ever link for Kota Kinabalu – Fukuoka (one-stop via TPE)

  • TPE–FUK now has five passenger operators; AirAsia is the only foreign carrier (joins China Airlines, EVA Air, STARLUX, Tigerair Taiwan)

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  • Sample rotation: AK1510 departs BKI 07:40; AK1511 returns BKI 22:50

Aurigny: Guernsey – Bastia, Corsica (seasonal)

  • Saturdays to Sep 27

  • Planned ATR 72 block up to ~3h15, but inaugural used Titan-leased E190 (G-POWX) and got back ~41 minutes early

T’Way: Jeju – Singapore (5x weekly, daily from September)

  • 737 MAX 8 (189 seats)

  • ~2,302 nm; now Jeju’s longest route

  • Second carrier after Scoot; complements T’Way’s ICN–SIN (9x weekly A330-200/-300, up from daily last year)

Caribbean Airlines: San Juan – Dominica (3x weekly ATR 72)

  • Replaces Silver Airways (ended Mar 2025)

  • Small O&D market (~6,000 round-trip pax)

  • Operates as one-stop via Port of Spain, enabling wider Caribbean connections (e.g., Georgetown)

Pegasus adds three

  • Antalya – Elazığ (2x weekly; back since 2021)

  • Antalya – Samsun (2x weekly; new)

  • Çukurova (Adana region) – Beirut (3x weekly; late-night/early-morning timings)
    Notes: Competes with AJet on CUK–BEY; very short sector (~185 nm). Aircraft are based at Istanbul Sabiha Gökçen.

Why these launches matter

  • ULCC recalibration: Spirit is testing new domestic spokes (and a few revivals) where leisure demand and low fares can stimulate traffic—often with limited competition.

  • Fifth-freedom utility: AirAsia’s Taipei–Fukuoka link shows how fifth-freedom rights can open big, contested city pairs while connecting secondary hubs like Kota Kinabalu.

  • Leisure-first network design: Jeju–Singapore and Guernsey–Corsica underscore airlines’ chase for resilient leisure flows, even with seasonal or thin schedules.

  • Regional connectivity: Caribbean Airlines’ SJU–DOM restores a fragile link and ties it into a broader POS-centric network for onward travel.

  • Turkey’s domestic and near-abroad growth: Pegasus keeps layering short-haul capacity to balance summer peaks and deepen coverage across Anatolia and the Levant.

What to watch next

  • Competitive response: Will incumbents adjust schedules or pricing on TPE–FUK, SAN transcons, or new Spirit city pairs?

  • Sustainability of thin routes: Seasonality and late-night timings (e.g., Çukurova–Beirut) can pressure yields—load factors will tell the story by autumn.

  • Operational consistency: Equipment swaps (ATR vs. E190) can swing block times and costs on niche leisure routes.

  • Jeju’s long-haul resilience: Daily Jeju–Singapore will test shoulder-season demand once holiday peaks pass.

Bottom line

From fifth-freedom experimentation in Northeast Asia to pragmatic ULCC bets in the U.S., this week’s launches highlight a common thread: airlines are leaning into leisure demand, niche connectivity, and creative rights to grow where premium business traffic still lags.

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