Norse Atlantic Airways

[Scottie Dog]

Norse has been announced for a weekly service to Bangkok from November.

 

[jfy1999]

I had always thought that Thai would be the one to start this route, turns out I was wrong…

Norse Atlantic Airways to offer direct Manchester to Bangkok route (Travel Weekly)
Flights will operate once a week on Wednesdays at 11.30pm from November 26, 2025, to Thailand’s capital city, arriving 6pm local time. Return fares start from £259.

 

[Liverpoola380]

Do Norse crew operate the Indigo 789 service to Mumbai? They could be pooling resource in MAN to operate the two flights.

 

[mullion]

It appears different operations as Indigo is a Norwegian based aircraft and BKK is UK based as are the cruise operations over the winter

 

[David_itl]

Simple Flying's piece on this service has this useful snippet

"The market is huge. According to booking data, 140,000 round-trip passengers flew indirectly between the two cities in 2024, mainly via the Gulf.

 

[Land23R]

As well as the 140,000, there are those passengers within the catchment who didn't fly from MAN but who well might with a non-stop service. Doesn't it highlight that a once weekly seasonal flight is barely touching the demand? Personally, I don't understand what it takes to get Thai to commit to the route. A case of watching to see if and how things develop further.

 

[Jerry]

Personally, I don't understand what it takes to get Thai to commit to the route. A case of watching to see if and how things develop further.

Probably another airline to prove it's viable.

 

[gulftraveller]

Probably another airline to prove it's viable.

If a route with 140,000 passengers annually is not viable, surely it is a problem with the airline(s), not the route’s potential. You are right that competition sometimes encourages other airlines to respond, even if they have only been thinking about it for 30 years.

 

[Jerry]

If a route with 140,000 passengers annually is not viable, surely it is a problem with the airline(s), not the route’s potential. You are right that competition sometimes encourages other airlines to respond, even if they have only been thinking about it for 30 years.

It may well be viable but for airlines like Thai it may not be as profitable as saying adding another frequency to say London or Paris or Amsterdam etc

 

[gulftraveller]

Yes it could well be. It does then make you wonder why Thai keep including it in their presentations on future routes and apply for slots almost every year.

 

[mullion]

yes my wife and I both worked in business travel and went to Thai Airlines presentations in Manchester where they were announcing they were starting a new service 30 years ago

 

[Jerry]

Yes it could well be. It does then make you wonder why Thai keep including it in their presentations on future routes and apply for slots almost every year.

Only Thai have the answer as to why they keep doing that.

 

[Jerry]

Looks like Norse will be operating Islamabad on behalf of HB International

https://twitter.com/x/status/1943364869694087654

 

[ian_h]

With the EIUK debacle ongoing and the public airing of dirty laundry Norse could just be a big part of the solution they are doing a lot of marketing on the BKK launch and could capitalise on the growing brand recognition.

 

[EGCC_MAN]

We need to keep in mind that Norse operates a combined fleet of just 12 B787-9 aircraft, and 5 of these are committed to IndiGo for the foreseeable future. That leaves just seven aircraft to service the remainder of the operation. Presume one aircraft in for maintenance, and that is just enough for six transatlantic round-trips per day (or equivalent) across the entire operation. If they lease any more aircraft to IndiGo, that capability reduces further. If Norse were to commit to a MAN scheduled operation in a serious way, they would either have to cannibalise well-established services from existing bases or expand their B787-9 fleet to expand into a difficult market (Transatlantic long-haul). I really don't expect either of those things to happen.

 

[ian_h]

We need to keep in mind that Norse operates a combined fleet of just 12 B787-9 aircraft, and 5 of these are committed to IndiGo for the foreseeable future. That leaves just seven aircraft to service the remainder of the operation. Presume one aircraft in for maintenance, and that is just enough for six transatlantic round-trips per day (or equivalent) across the entire operation. If they lease any more aircraft to IndiGo, that capability reduces further. If Norse were to commit to a MAN scheduled operation in a serious way, they would either have to cannibalise well-established services from existing bases or expand their B787-9 fleet to expand into a difficult market (Transatlantic long-haul). I really don't expect either of those things to happen.

Totally agree but IAG came to stop VS neither has the same appetite post covid and there are unserved routes that even in these uncertain times could easily wash their face and norse product is a much closer match to TCX than VS or EI throw in some tui (maybe jet2) long distance and maybe it can add up. Back of fag packet stuff but the most compelling scenario available at the moment.

 

[BlueManc]

We just need someone to get serious about TATL form Manchester. Not sure Norse is that and they seem to be a slow burn developing LGW - not making the Norwegian too quick expansion mistake?

5th freedom Emirates anyone?

 

[gulftraveller]

The problem with 5th freedom Emirates is that they already have all the capacity to US they need. From DXB, passengers will opt for nonstop flights where they can. It means that MAN would need to fill the majority of a 777’s seats to US, including in premium classes. In the current circumstances of lower transatlantic demand, that is a big ask.

 

[CCGE29]

Some BKK pax figs for those wondering

MAN BKK
26/11 - 314
3/12 - 319
10/12 - 335


BKK MAN
27/11 - 287
4/12 - 276
11/12 - 298

Flights are just as busy below wing as they are above!

CCGE29

 

[David_itl]

The added "bonus" for MAN as and when EU pull the plug is that they can put forward a results driven case to Norse that even with all these mysterious dubious "services" (at 105% of cost!) EI is still generating a profit. If you look at Norse's results, having something in profit may be useful for them. That is where the balancing act comers in about whether they want a number of "bases" with a single flight or consolidate at MAN/LGW, For MAN, they may get tempted for a 2nd BKK and a CPT service or 2 in winter