Norwegian.com commence Dublin-Oslo and Dublin-Copenhagen

Norwegian Air Shuttle, the second largest Scandinavian carrier introduced two new routes this week linking Dublin with Copenhagen and Oslo Gardermoen. Yesterday saw the introduction of the Oslo service which operates Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday. The flight was inaugurated by B737-300 LN-KKZ.

Today saw the introduction of the Dublin - Copenhagen service which operates Monday, Wednesday and Friday, also operated by B737-300 series aircraft. This morning's flight was operated by LN-KKB.

With falling passenger numbers at Dublin this year the DAA were keen to highlight the fact that the new services bring a welcome boost to the Irish market.

“We are delighted that Norwegian has commenced direct services from Copenhagan and Oslo to Dublin,” said Cormac O’Connell, Head of Aviation Marketing with the Dublin Airport Authority (DAA). “The decision by Norwegian to commence these new services is particularly welcome at a time when most airlines are reducing their route network,” Mr O’Connell added.

The reality is that SAS and Norwegian will be going toe to toe in a classic Legacy v LCC battle on the Dublin market with little prospect of a significant increase in passenger numbers for Dublin Airport. The fact that Norwegian are utilising lower capacity -300 series aircraft as opposed to the higher -800 aircraft would indicate that the carrier is hedging it's bets rather than throwing the kitchen sink into the fray.