Finnair adds Melbourne route as Europe–Australia links accelerate
December 18, 2025
Finnair is set to add Australia to its long-haul map for the first time, announcing plans to launch daily services to Melbourne from October 2026, as competition and connectivity between Europe, the Middle East and Australia continue to intensify.
The oneworld carrier will operate the route with Airbus A350-900 aircraft, flying from Helsinki to Melbourne via Bangkok.
While not a nonstop service, the routing reflects the current geopolitical environment in which the carrier operates, including the closure of Russian airspace.
First Australian connection for Finnair
Melbourne will become Finnair’s first destination in Australia and its first in Oceania. The airline says the route will link the Victorian capital directly into its Helsinki hub, offering one-stop access to its wider European network and onward connections to Asia and North America.
“We are very excited to introduce service to a new continent. By connecting Helsinki and Melbourne, two cities on opposite sides of the world, we can offer a truly unique bridge between the northern and southern hemispheres,” said Christine Rovelli, chief revenue officer at Finnair.
“We expect that this new route will appeal to travellers from Europe heading to Australia, as well as Australians exploring northern Europe and beyond.”
Finnair’s planned schedule has been designed around its established wave structure at Helsinki.
Flights will depart shortly after midnight, reach Bangkok in the afternoon and continue to Melbourne following a brief stop, arriving the next morning.
The return leg leaves Melbourne in the afternoon, arrives in Bangkok during the evening and lands in Helsinki early the following day, feeding into the airline’s first bank of European departures.
Flights to Australia are ramping up
Finnair’s move comes amid a resurgence in long-haul capacity to Australia, following several years of constrained connectivity during and after the pandemic.
Middle Eastern and Asian carriers, in particular, have been strengthening their positions, while European airlines are reassessing how best to serve the profitable market.
Qatar Airways has recently deepened its presence through its strategic tie-up with Virgin Australia, which has allowed it to expand effective capacity.
Turkish Airlines has entered the Australian market with the launch of flights to Melbourne, with three weekly flights via Singapore, and to Sydney via Kuala Lumpur.
At the same time, Qantas continues to progress its long-anticipated Project Sunrise programme.
The Australian flag carrier has recently revealed its first Airbus A350-1000 aircraft configured for ultra-long-haul missions, underpinning plans for future nonstop services from Sydney to London and New York later in the decade.
Finnair’s offering is distinctive in relying on a Southeast Asian intermediate point (as Turkish does) rather than a Middle Eastern hub, which has been the conventional stopover for many who are routing between Europe and Australia.
Finnair targets leisure, VFR and students
Finnair said Melbourne was positioned as a strong fit for the carrier’s network, combining leisure demand with visiting friends and relatives traffic and a substantial student population.
The city hosts a large European diaspora and is widely regarded as Australia’s cultural capital, with a strong international profile in sport, food and the arts.
For Finnair, Australia also offers the potential to diversify revenues beyond its traditional Europe–Asia flows, which have been disrupted by airspace restrictions over Russia and longer routings to North Asia.
Tickets for the Melbourne service are due to go on sale on 18 December, with the inaugural flight currently planned for 25 October 2026, subject to regulatory approvals.
Finnair’s network growth for 2026
The Australia launch forms part of a broader long-haul expansion planned for 2026. Finnair’s network next year is set to include 93 destinations within Europe, alongside 11 in Asia, seven in North America and two in the Middle East.
Toronto is scheduled to join the network in summer 2026, strengthening the carrier’s transatlantic offering.
Featured image: Markus Mainka / stock.adobe.com
