World’s best low-cost long-haul airline, Norwegian, continues its global expansion today by launching its first route from London Gatwick to Asia with a special Singaporean themed celebration to mark the carrier’s inaugural flight to Singapore.
The new 12-hour 45 minute flight from London Gatwick to Singapore Changi Airport is now the world’s longest route operated by a low-cost airline, covering 6,764 miles (10,885km) using brand new, state-of-the-art Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft.
Consumers can fly direct to Singapore from Gatwick four times a week.
Today’s gate celebration at Gatwick Airport gave passengers an entertaining taste of Singapore with lion dance performances, colourful kebaya dress and traditional Singaporean cuisine and refreshments to enjoy. Norwegian opened the new route alongside Gatwick CEO Stewart Wingate and Ms Tan Yen Nee, European Regional Director at Singapore Tourism Board.
Bjørn Kjos, CEO at Norwegian said: “Today we brought a taste of Singapore to Gatwick to mark the expansion of our high-quality long-haul flights from the UK to Asia for the first time. I’m delighted to build upon our popular USA flights and give leisure and business customers more affordable access to Singapore and the Asia-Pacific like never before.
“The 787 Dreamliner has the range to allow us to expand our long-haul services to other parts of the world while keeping fares affordable for all. This is just the start of Norwegian’s UK expansion into new markets as we will continue connecting destinations where fares have been too high for too long.”
Ms. Tan Yen Nee, Regional Director, Europe at Singapore Tourism Board said: “We are delighted that Singapore is chosen as Norwegian’s first direct route to Asia from the UK. Singapore has evolved from a colony to a city with a unique blend of multicultural enclaves, architectural wonders, lush gardens, world-class attractions and diverse culinary experiences, made possible by a Singapore spirit and attitude of never settling. Whether you are a nature lover, culture buff, foodie or action-seeker, Singapore offers a multitude of inspiring experiences to travellers with a passion for discovery. We look forward to welcoming Norwegian’s passengers to Singapore.”
Norwegian’s Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners are designed for comfort as all passengers have personal 11-inch seat back screens offering a wide selection of complimentary in-flight entertainment. All seats are equipped with USB ports for charging personal electronic devices. Premium passengers also benefit from spacious cradle seating offering more than a metre of legroom and free lounge access at Gatwick Airport.
The Singapore route will be operated by the UK subsidiary ‘Norwegian UK’ (NUK) ahead of operating new flights to Buenos Aires from 14 February 2018. NUK has been granted a foreign air carrier permit by the U.S. Department of Transportation which allows NUK to operate flights between the UK, Europe and the United States. NUK is headquartered at London Gatwick and will use British-registered Dreamliner aircraft and Gatwick-based crew to operate the new services.
Consumers can also connect from an easyJet short-haul flight to Norwegian’s new Singapore flight in a single booking using the new ‘Worldwide by easyJet’ platform.
