After a 7-year break, passengers travelling from Rzeszów will have the option of flying directly to New York. Polskie Linie Lotnicze decided to restore such important connection for the residents of Podkarpacie area.
After 7 years of break
The decision on restoring the connection was announced at the press conference on 8 December 2017 by Rafał Milczarski, President of the Management Board of Polskie Linie Lotnicze. “We are pleased to announce that after 7 years of break, we can restore the direct connection with New York and New Jersey, two most important centres of the Polish community in the US, for the residents of Podkarpacie,” said Rafał Milczarski, the President of Polskie Linie Lotnicze, at the conference. Apart from president, the conference was also attended by representatives of local authorities, Władysław Ortyl, Marshal of Podkarpacie Province, Tadeusz Ferenc, Mayor of Rzeszów, Adam Hamryszczak, Under-secretary of State and representative of the Ministry of Development, as well as representatives of “Rzeszów Jasionka” Airport, namely Michał Tabisz, President of “Rzeszów Jasionka” Airport and Zbigniew Halat, Deputy President.
Flights will start from 29 April 2018. Passengers from the Rzeszów airport will travel to Newark in New York (EWR), which services a significant portion of the American states of Pennsylvania and New Jersey, which are - it is to be noted - inhabited by a large number of Poles from southern Poland. The airport services approx. 40 million passengers annually and is located at a distance of 25 km from New York.
Boeing 787 Dreamliner planes
It is also worth reminding that in 2007, passengers had the opportunity of travelling directly from Rzeszów to the JFK airport in New York, as well as to Newark. Both flights were made once a week; however, on account of personnel problems, difficulties with lease of planes and supply of new ones, the carrier decided to suspend the connection in 2010.
The flights will take place all year round and not, as seven years ago, seasonally (from June to September). Passengers will travel in Boeing 787 Dreamliner planes. Flights from Rzeszów are on Mondays at 2.10 p.m., whereas the planned arrival in New York is 5.40 p.m. taking the time difference into account. On the other hand, passengers travelling from Newark to Rzeszów depart on Sunday at 7.25 p.m. in order to reach Rzeszów at 10.10 a.m. local time.
Time will show whether the new LOT connection will not share the fate of its’ predecessor seven years ago. There are multiple opinions pertaining to the profitability of such connection. In spite of quite significant number of Poles from Podkarpacie who live in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, Polskie Linie Lotnicze did not record high profitability on this route. Even if the economy class is filled to the brim, the flight does not bring profits when the luggage hold and the business class are empty. However, the local authorities and the carrier's representatives assure that in the recent years, a number of companies that have their headquarters in the United States have located their branches in Podkarpacie.
From Rzeszów to Tel-Aviv
Another novelty announced by the Polish carrier is a direct connection from Rzeszów to Tel-Aviv which, similarly to the flights to New York, will take place once a week.