Norse cleared to fly between Stewart and Norway

Norse Atlantic Airways says it plans to begin service between Newburgh”™s Stewart New York International Airport and Oslo in Norway this spring. The airline was cleared by the  U.S. Department of Transportation to begin service between The European Union and the U.S.

In addition to Stewart, the airline reports it has been cleared to operate between Oslo and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in Florida. It also plans service to London, Paris and Los Angeles.

As the name might imply, Norse is headquartered in Norway. It was founded this past February. The airline says it will operate bases in Oslo in Norway, Fort Lauderdale and London.

On approach to Oslo in a Norse Boeing Dreamliner.
On approach to Oslo in a Norse Boeing Dreamliner.

Norse intends to offer low-cost long-haul service using a fleet of Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft it is leasing. Last month, the airline received its Air Operator’s Certificate from Norway”™s Civil Aviation Authority and took delivery of its first Dreamliner. The airline plans to have a fleet of 15 Dreamliners. As of September, it had paid $22.4 million toward the leases for the aircraft.

Norse CEO and Founder Bjørn Tore Larsen said, “We are thrilled by the Department of Transportation”™s approval of our affordable transatlantic flights. This significant milestone brings Norse one step closer to launching affordable and more environmentally friendly service to customers traveling between Europe and the United States.”

Larsen did not provide details on what the ticket prices would be nor did he preview the planned flight schedules.

Norse has signed agreements with the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA in the U.S. and the British Airline Pilots Association in the United Kingdom and has been talking with other unions in the countries in which it plans to operate. The airline anticipated having approximately 1,600 employees by the spring of this year.

A Norse Boeing Dreamliner.
A Norse Boeing Dreamliner.

Norse is the second Norway-based airline to make Stewart its gateway airport for the New York market. Norwegian Air operated service between Europe and Stewart that began in the summer of 2017 and ended in the fall of 2019.