Alaska Launches Rome, British Airways Restores St. Louis

Key Points:

• Alaska Airlines will launch its first-ever transatlantic route on April 28, flying nonstop from Seattle to Rome with a Boeing 787-9, marking a significant expansion of its network.
• Nine days earlier, British Airways quietly resumed nonstop service between London Heathrow and St. Louis Lambert International Airport, the first UK nonstop flight to St. Louis in 22 years, operating four times weekly with a Boeing 787-8.
• The St. Louis route reflects British Airways' strategic focus on mid-sized U.S. cities that lost direct transatlantic service after post-9/11 hub consolidations, tapping into suppressed demand and local incentives that U.S. carriers like American Airlines previously abandoned.
• British Airways’ move signals a broader trend of restoring or launching transatlantic flights to mid-market American cities, complementing similar efforts by Aer Lingus and potentially expanding to markets like Kansas City and Indianapolis.
• While Alaska Airlines’ transatlantic expansion is notable, British Airways’ St. Louis route offers insight into evolving transatlantic aviation patterns favoring direct service to secondary U.S. cities with strong travel demand.