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Quick Airline Information:

✈Airline IATA* code: DY
✈Airline ICAO* code: NAX 
✈Founded: 22 January 1993 
✈Website: www.norwegian.com
✈Alliance: None
History
Operations and Destinations 🌍
Fleet ✈️
Photo Slide 📷
Safety Video 🎬
Airline reviews 
*IATA: (International Air Transport Association)
*ICAO: (International Civil Aviation Organization)

History Menu:

✈Airline Beginnings

One of the most revolutionary airlines is Europe, Norwegian is the third biggest low cost airline in Europe. Its name started as Norwegian Air Shuttle (NAS), which was founded on 22 January 1993 to take over the regional airline services by Busy Bee for Braathens in Western Norway. Busy Bee, founded in 1966, was a subsidiary of Braathens that operated a fleet of Fokker 50 aircraft on charter services. Following Busy Bee's bankruptcy in December 1992, Norwegian took over three leased Fokker 50 aircraft, and started operating from Bergen Airport, Flesland to Haugesund Airport, Karmøy, as well as from Bergen to Molde Airport, Årø or Kristiansund Airport, Kvernberget, and onwards to Trondheim Airport, Værnes.

Humble beginnings, the airline started as a regional airline flying Fokker 50, for Braathens Airlines in Western Norway in 1993. (Photo:airliners.net)

From 1 April 1994, the airline also began service from Bergen to Ålesund Airport, Vigra. By 1999, the company had six Fokker 50s. As it grew its presence in Norway it started looking to expand outside the country for the first time. Then, on 7 January 2002, Norwegian took over the route from Stavanger to Newcastle, flying two round trips per day. After Braathens was bought by Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) in November 2001, all contracts that Norwegian had with Braathens were cancelled by SAS, as it wanted its subsidiary SAS Commuter to take the routes over. NAS had an 18-month cancellation period in its contract with Braathens, however this was not respected by SAS; the contracts were terminated without any notice.


This made, NAS react quickly and started domestic scheduled services as a low-cost carrier, leasing Boeing 737-300/500 on the busiest routes to attract more market share. Consequently from 1 September 2002, the airline re-branded from Norwegian Air Shuttle to simply Norwegian.

In 2002, Norwegian rebranded as a low cost airline to compete directly with national airline in Norway, using an initial fleet of Boeing 737-300/500 aircraft. (Photo:flickr.com)
✈Expansion and Development

To expand its presence in Europe the airline looked at opening new bases. So, it opened its second hub at Warsaw Chopin Airport in Poland, flying to Central European destinations,  were two Boeing 737 were based, however the base was closed in 2010. Norwegian announced on the 24 April 2007 that it had bought 100% of the Swedish low-cost airline FlyNordic from Finnair plc. This gave Norwegian a larger opportunity to expand and grow more services from other European countries and compete directly with the northern Europe carriers on flights to Scandinavia and Finland. Due to the purchase, it inherited types such as the MD-82/83 which it flew from 2008, but because those jets were uneconomical to run, they were disposed of one year later in 2009. 

After the take over of FlyNordic in 2007, Norwegian briefly operated the MD-82/83 models for only one year. (Photo:jetphotos.com)

On 30 August 2007, Norwegian ordered 42 new Boeing 737-800 aircraft. Additionally, Norwegian introduced leased Boeing 737-800 aircraft into the fleet. The first leased 737-800 arrived at Oslo Airport, Gardermoen, Norway, on 26 January 2008. In April 2010, Norwegian started flights from Oslo-Gardermoen and Stockholm to Helsinki-Vantaa Airport. In May 2011, flights to nine additional international destinations began. In October 2009, Norwegian announced it intended to start flights from Oslo to New York City and Bangkok, requiring new intercontinental aircraft and would also consider services to South America and Africa. 


On 25 January 2012, Norwegian announced again a new order, of 22 Boeing 737-800 and 100 Boeing 737 MAX 8 and 100 Airbus A320neos. In late October 2012, the airline announced a new base at London Gatwick from spring 2013 with three Boeing 737-800s to be used on new international routes from London to leisure destinations in Spain, Portugal, France, Italy and Croatia. Gatwick has also been served by Norwegian from a large number of cities in Scandinavia over the years. 

The Boeing 737-800 is the backbone of the fleet, flying all short and medium flights since 2008. (Photo:airplane-pictures.net)

Norwegian launched its long-haul operation in May 2013. The long-haul flights operated by fully owned subsidiaries which are: Norway-based Norwegian Long Haul, Ireland-based Norwegian Air International, and United Kingdom-based Norwegian Air UK.The first scheduled flights were from Oslo and Stockholm to New York JFK and Bangkok, originally with wet-leased A340-300 aircraft while the airline awaited delivery of the new Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft. In September 2013, Norwegian announced flights from Stockholm to Oakland and Los Angeles beginning in May 2014, from Copenhagen to Los Angeles and New York, and from Oslo to Oakland, Los Angeles and Orlando. The first of the new Boeing 787-8 Dreamliners were delivered during the Summer of 2013. 

Norwegian Long Haul started operations in May 2013 with leased Airbus A340-300. (Photo:fotoverden.no)
The first new Boeing 787-8 for Norwegian arrived in the Summer of 2013. (Photo:planespotters.net)
✈Recent History and Growth

In 2016 Norwegian won its first charter contract in the United States, flying three Boeing 737-800s to Mexico and the Caribbean from December 2016 to April 2017. In July 2016, the airline launched flights from Paris Charles de Gaulle to New York, Los Angeles and Fort Lauderdale. Also in July 2016, the airline confirmed it would select the Airbus A321LR (long Range) for it future medium haul flights, to be delivered from 2019. In September 2016, the airline announced flights from Barcelona to Los Angeles, Oakland and Newark in June 2017, and Fort Lauderdale in August 2017. On 20 April 2017, Norwegian announced its second long-haul destination in Asia with flights between London's Gatwick and Singapore  using Boeing 787s operated by Norwegian Air UK. On 29 June 2017, Norwegian received its first Boeing 737 MAX.


Norwegian Air Argentina was established on 25 January 2017 and started operating domestic services in Argentina with Boeing 737-800 from September 2018. Also, in June 2017, the airline announced flights from London to Buenos Aires, to begin in February 2018. During 2018, the airline continued to expand dramatically inaugurating new long haul routes from bases across Europe (Madrid, Rome, Paris, Milan, London) to destinations in Asia, North America and South America. 


To finance its aggressive growth involving the inauguration of many new routes, the hiring and training of new employees, and the accepting of aircraft deliveries, Norwegian sold some of its shares.  Norwegian changed its strategy from growth to profitability in 2018, and in January 2019, the airline announced restructuring measures consisting of the closure of several crew bases mostly for its Boeing 737 operations outside Norway and the cancellation of nearly its entire Airbus order.  On 11 July 2019, the company's founder Bjørn Kjos stepped down as CEO.

 

On 12 March 2019, the group had grounded all of its Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, after the grounding of the type by EASA, in the wake of the Ethiopian Airlines and Lion Air crash.

In the early months of 2020, in the ongoing of the coronavirus outbreak, the airline suffered considerably. Norwegian Air Shuttle is widely thought to be the next casualty of the global travel market crash.


History source: Wikipedia.org + Norwegian.com

In June 2017, the new generation Boeing 737-8 Max aircraft entered service with Norwegian. (Photo:airplane-pictures.net)

Operations and Destinations 🌍:

Norwegian has several bases across Europe, including Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Italy, France, Spain and the United Kingdom. Additionally it has an overseas base at Buenos Aires (Argentina) and several cities across the USA. It flies from its major bases in Europe to Northern Europe, and within central and western Europe. The airline offers itself as a step higher between traditional low cost airlines and the legacy carriers. It's possible to make connecting flights to reach your final destination, in Europe, Asia or America. The airline together with its integrated subsidiaries operates to 152 airports in 40 countries. 


It's the only airline which offers its passengers free WIFI on board, and gives a unlimited content during the flight. There are different types of tickets, from traditional hand luggage only fares to all inclusive fares with the possibility to pre-order meals for long haul flights. Additionally it offers a Business Class product as well on the long haul flights. 


Norwegian flies to the following destinations*, including those by its integrated subsidiaries around the world:

Region 🗺️ Destinations 🌍🌎🌏
✈Scandinavia (Denmark, Norway, Sweden)Denmark: Aalborg, Billund, Copenhagen
Norway: Ålesund, Alta, Andenes, Bardufoss, Bergen, Bodø, Harstad/Narvik, Haugesund, Kirkenes, Kristiansand, Lakselv, Longyearbyen, Molde, Oslo, Sandefjord, Stavanger, Tromsø, Trondheim
Sweden: Gothenburg, Karlstad, Kiruna, Luleå, Malmö, Stockholm, Umeå, Visby
✈Europe (except Scandinavia)Ajaccio, Alicante, Amsterdam, Antalya, Athens, Barcelona, Bastia, Belgrade, Berlin, Bilbao, Bordeaux, Budapest, Burgas, Catania, Cayenne, Cephalonia, Chania, Cologne, Corfu, Cork, Dublin, Dubrovnik, Düsseldorf, Edinburgh, Faro, Fort-de-France, Fuerteventura, Funchal, Gdańsk, Geneva, Grenoble, Hamburg, Hanover, Helsinki, Heraklion, Ibiza, Ivalo, Kittilä, Kos, Kraków, Lanzarote, Larnaca, Las Palmas, Limerick/Shannon, Lisbon, London, Madrid, Málaga, Manchester, Marseille, Menorca, Milan, Montpellier, Munich, Murcia, Nice, Olbia, Oulu, Palanga, Palermo, Palma de Mallorca, Paris, Paris, Pisa, Pointe-à-Pitre, Prague, Preveza, Pristina, Pula, Reykjavík, Rhodes, Riga, Rijeka, Rome, Rovaniemi, Salzburg, Santorini, Sarajevo, Split, Szczecin, Tallinn, Tenerife, Tirana, Tivat, Vaasa, Valletta, Varna, Venice, Vienna, Vilnius, Warsaw, Zagreb
 ✈Africa
Agadir,  Marrakech
 ✈Asia
Bangkok, Krabi
 ✈North America (USA and Canada)
USA: Austin, Boston, Chicago, Denver, Fort Lauderdale, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York City, Newark, Newburgh, Oakland, Orlando, Providence, San Francisco, Seattle, Tampa
Canada: Hamilton, Montréal
 ✈South America (Argentina and Brazil) Argentina: Buenos Aires (AEP, EZE), Córdoba, Mendoza, Neuquén, Puerto Iguazú, Salta, San Carlos de Bariloche
Brazil: Rio de Janeiro
 ✈The Middle East Amman, Aqaba, Dubai, Tel Aviv

*Destination list is for reference only. Please check directly with the airline for updates. 

*Note some destinations are only seasonal.*Correct info as of  Jan 2019.                               

Fleet ✈️:

The airline has expanded its fleet dramatically in the last decade with the introduction of new short and long haul aircraft. It has always been a predominately Boeing customer, however in a move of strategy, it also operates Airbus aircraft from 2019 as it launches medium haul and some long haul flights using the new variant of the Airbus A321LR (long range). It has a big backlog or orders of new Boeing dreamliners and new generation Max aircraft.

 

The fleet* of Norwegian Air Shuttle, including all its subsidiaries consists of the following aircraft:

Network  🌐 Aircraft ✈️
✈Short and Medium Haul Boeing 737-800, 737-8 Max. (on hold)
 ✈Long Haul Boeing 787-8/9
*Correct fleet info as of Jan 2019.      

Norwegian Photo Slide 📷:​

Norwegian Safety Video (B787-9)  🎬:​

Reviews ⭐:

Competitive fares to Scandinavia, Europe and selected USA and Asian destinations. 👎Basic fare tickets only include hand luggage. 
 Free Wifi provided on all its flights.👎Many routes served on seasonal basis only.
Online check-in or Free Airport Check-in available (no extra surcharge).👎Poor rebooking services at outside base airports if a flight is cancelled.
 Individual Point Programme for frequent travellers. 
 SMS notification for Flight Status.
Connection flights available with all Norwegian Subsidiaries.