This week’s long-haul flight schedule changes from Europe: what you need to know
October 18, 2025
Every week, airlines make adjustments to their schedules. Dynamic as the industry is, these changes are necessary to adapt to market conditions including but not limited to fluctuating demand, geopolitical instability and economic uncertainty. Crucially, changes to the competitive environment also push airlines to adjust their schedules to maximise profitability.
Analysed by Aerospace Global News, this week’s schedule long-haul changes to and from Europe show examples of a mix of these differing conditions. In Air France’s case, adjustments to its Antannarivo operation possibly point to the long-term impacts of political instability in the country on air travel demand. Additionally, despite just entering the market, IndiGo has already filed slight adjustments to its ambitious long-haul ventures into Europe, reducing planned service to Manchester as of April 2026.
As with most reductions, there are increases elsewhere. Although these comments cannot and should not be generalised for the overall market over a longer period of time, this week’s filings reiterate the strength of the South Atlantic and African markets, as Iberia grows in the former and Uganda Airlines annualises its heavily publicised new London Gatwick route.
Europe’s main long-haul flight schedule changes this week
Using data from aviation analytics firm Cirium, the below is a non-exhaustive list of developments this week. The sample was selected on the basis of relevance and market trends, and does not include smaller changes such as minor aircraft changes with a limited impact on capacity. As always, schedules are subject to change.
North Atlantic
- Norse Atlantic Airways removes Rome Fiumicino to Los Angeles in November, a month earlier than planned.
- United Airlines reduces Athens to Newark from 10x weekly to daily from April 2026.
- Iberia adds year-round flights from Madrid to Orlando at three weekly frequencies from March 2026. This route begins at the end of October with four weekly services.
- Iberia will launch three-weekly Airbus A330-200 flights between Madrid and Monterrey
- British Airways resumes Airbus A380 flights on London Heathrow to Dallas/Fort-Worth route from June 2026 operating daily. Seats are up 72% compared to the initially planned Boeing 777.
- Air Serbia resumes Belgrade to Toronto after a 30-year hiatus from May 2026 with an Airbus A330-200, twice-weekly. Connections to central and Eastern European destinations will be offered.
- Iberia increases Madrid to Santo Domingo by four weekly flights to 11 weekly in total. Daily service with the A321XLR will be complemented by four weekly A330-200 flights.
- British Airways maintains double daily Airbus A380 flights to Miami through April and May. This operation will resume in November 2025 and will last, therefore, until May 2026. From June, a Boeing 787-10 will fill in for one daily A380 flight.
- United Airlines halves Edinburgh to Newark flights from double-daily to daily as it introduces a new route to Glasgow from May 2026.
- Delta Air Lines reduces Barcelona to New York-JFK flights from 12x weekly to daily from May 2026.
- United Airlines reduces Frankfurt to Newark flights from 11x weekly to daily from April 2026.
South Atlantic
- Air France briefly suspends flights between Paris and San Salvador between 8 March and 27 April.
- TAP Air Portugal reduces Lisbon to Rio de Janeiro flights from July 2026 from 12x to 11x weekly.
- Qatar Airways increases service from Doha to Amsterdam from 11x to 14x weekly from April 2026.
Middle East
- T’Way Air reduces Seoul to Frankfurt service from daily to four weekly during the winter season from December until February. Daily flights resume in summer.
- IndiGo reduces flights from Mumbai to Manchester from four to three weekly as of April 2026. It is currently four weekly and will be maintained at that frequency until March.
- Neos reduces its ultra-long Boeing 737 service from Milan to Almaty from two to one weekly flight from next month. It will also suspend nonstop service this winter between December and February. The introduction of its new Atyrau service will fill this gap, however, as the route terminates in Almaty and the entire journey is still bookable from Milan.
Africa
- Uganda Airlines annualises flights from Entebbe to London Gatwick, its only European route. Four weekly flights will be maintained from November onwards.
Uganda Airlines makes London Gatwick flights year-round
Uganda’s flag carrier has decided to extend its infamous London Gatwick route year-round. The service, which uses the rare Airbus A330-800, is one of the carrier’s few long-haul routes. Uganda has a complete monopoly on the route as British Airways pulled out of the Entebbe flights in October 2015, describing the flights as “not commercially viable.”
According to the Ugandan government, these flights were initially planned as summer seasonal, ending in October. It is assumed that the carrier’s performance was positive enough to warrant the extension of the route into the winter season. Flights are already open for booking.
United Airlines halves Edinburgh flights as it adds Glasgow route
United Airlines’ decision to reduce service to Edinburgh comes as it expands its network in Scotland. Flights to Glasgow are being introduced as of May 2026, operating daily with a Boeing 737 MAX 8.
It is worth noting that the carrier already flies to Edinburgh from Washington and Chicago (summer seasonally) as well as Newark. During the summer season last year, it flew four daily flights across three routes. This year, it will be flying four daily flights across four routes – so there are not any changes to the overall frequency offered.
The introduction of the 737 MAX 8 on the route is a novelty, though. Last summer, all four flights were operated with the ever-rarer 757.
9 hours on a 737: Neos launches one-stop 737 flights to Almaty
When it launched in June 2022, Neos quite consistently operated twice-weekly nonstop flights between Milan Malpensa and Almaty with its Boeing 737s, which would switch to 787 equipment during the summer season.
It has made several changes to its planned operation. Firstly, it will reduce service to a single weekly frequency. Secondly, it will axe all nonstop flights between December and February. Finally, the Boeing 787 is not scheduled to return, meaning the 737 will continue flying the route through the summer season.
This coincides with the launch of its new Milan to Atyrau flights which will also operate once a week with 737 equipment from December. The flights terminate in Almaty, meaning passengers can still book to fly between Milan and Almaty, via Atyrau, a nearly 9-hour total journey.
Featured image: JarekKilian | stock.adobe.com
