American Airlines will become the first airline to offer nonstop flights between the United States and Bangalore, India, in October, from an unlikely departure city.
American is adding the daily service to the southern India technology center not from Dallas, Chicago or one of its other big hubs, but from Seattle, where it has a small presence.
It's all part of an expanded partnership with Alaska Airlines announced Thursday, where the airlines will feed each other passengers and offer travelers reciprocal frequent flyer benefits to lure more passengers. Bangalore isn't the only new international flight planned from Seattle. American said it will offer nonstop service to London Heathrow beginning in March 2021.
Alaska, a mostly domestic airline with a loyal following in California and the Pacific Northwest, is based in Seattle. It's been battling American rival Delta Air Lines at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport since Delta established a hub there in 2014 and has aggressively added flights. Delta now considers Seattle its primary West Coast gateway to Asia, with nonstop flights to Japan, Korea and China, but none to India.
American's 16 hour, 20 minute flight from Seattle to Bangalore's Kempegowda International Airport will be Seattle's first nonstop flight to India and will mark American's return to the Asian nation after nearly a decade.
The carrier ended flights between Chicago and New Delhi in 2012. It will be American's second longest flight behind Dallas-Hong Kong at 17 hours, the airline said. Tickets go on sale in late February.
Seattle will be American's first international gateway in the United States outside of its hubs, and the expanded partnership reverses American's earlier decision to end key parts of its partnership with Alaska beginning next month.
"This is going to come as a bit of a surprise to the world,'' Vasu Raja, American's senior vice president of network strategy, said in an interview. "I'm not sure anyone has done anything like this.''
Why Bangalore instead of other destinations in India, such as New Delhi and Mumbai, which some of American's competitors already serve from other U.S. airports?
Raja said Bangalore is the the No. 1 destination the Dallas-based airline's top corporate customers have been requesting for more than two years. Big technology companies such as Dell and Texas Instruments and other large companies have a presence there, he said.
13/02/20 Dawn Gilbertson/USA Today
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American is adding the daily service to the southern India technology center not from Dallas, Chicago or one of its other big hubs, but from Seattle, where it has a small presence.
It's all part of an expanded partnership with Alaska Airlines announced Thursday, where the airlines will feed each other passengers and offer travelers reciprocal frequent flyer benefits to lure more passengers. Bangalore isn't the only new international flight planned from Seattle. American said it will offer nonstop service to London Heathrow beginning in March 2021.
Alaska, a mostly domestic airline with a loyal following in California and the Pacific Northwest, is based in Seattle. It's been battling American rival Delta Air Lines at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport since Delta established a hub there in 2014 and has aggressively added flights. Delta now considers Seattle its primary West Coast gateway to Asia, with nonstop flights to Japan, Korea and China, but none to India.
American's 16 hour, 20 minute flight from Seattle to Bangalore's Kempegowda International Airport will be Seattle's first nonstop flight to India and will mark American's return to the Asian nation after nearly a decade.
The carrier ended flights between Chicago and New Delhi in 2012. It will be American's second longest flight behind Dallas-Hong Kong at 17 hours, the airline said. Tickets go on sale in late February.
Seattle will be American's first international gateway in the United States outside of its hubs, and the expanded partnership reverses American's earlier decision to end key parts of its partnership with Alaska beginning next month.
"This is going to come as a bit of a surprise to the world,'' Vasu Raja, American's senior vice president of network strategy, said in an interview. "I'm not sure anyone has done anything like this.''
Why Bangalore instead of other destinations in India, such as New Delhi and Mumbai, which some of American's competitors already serve from other U.S. airports?
Raja said Bangalore is the the No. 1 destination the Dallas-based airline's top corporate customers have been requesting for more than two years. Big technology companies such as Dell and Texas Instruments and other large companies have a presence there, he said.
13/02/20 Dawn Gilbertson/USA Today
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