Primera Air will begin direct flights five times a week from London Stansted to Washington Dulles airport, with flights commencing August 22nd.
The carrier said it also planned to increase flight frequency between London Stansted and Toronto.
“We’ve been planning to add Washington from the beginning of the transatlantic flight project.
“We see a strong demand for this route and we are the first low-cost airline to start operations between both cities, offering people an affordable way of transatlantic travel,” said Andri Már Ingólfsson, president and owner of Primera Air.
The new route is a strong development for London Stansted which has been seeking to build its long-haul flight network.
“We’ve already seen a very positive response from passengers to Primera’s previous announcement of new services to New York, Boston and Toronto, and the addition of Washington will provide even more choice and connectivity to the east coast of the USA,” said London Stansted chief executive Ken O’Toole.
Primera Air has, however, quietly dropped its planned launch of flights between Birmingham and Boston for later this year.
The low-cost carrier announced the route in July last year, among a raft of new transatlantic services from Birmingham, though it now looks unlikely to enter service.
Due to growing demand for flights from London Stansted to Toronto, Primera Air has decided to increase flight frequency from three to five flights per week.
“Our booking numbers show that travellers have been waiting for flights to North America.
“We are very satisfied with the results so far and are adjusting our flight network accordingly,” said Ingólfsson.