Pittsburghers will have more flexibility starting in the spring to visit the capital of the United Kingdom.
British Airways plans in May to begin offering six direct flights a week from Pittsburgh to London, according to the Pittsburgh International Airport. The service to London Heathrow will be available every day but Saturday. Today, British Airways operates just four flights from Pittsburgh each week, on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays.
The fifth flight of the week begins on April 24 and the sixth on May 14.
Christina Cassotis, CEO of the Allegheny County Airport Authority, said the expanded service will help local companies to build global relationships. Her agency runs the Pittsburgh International Airport.
“Pittsburgh is a global brand, and we need to tell that story whenever and wherever we get the chance,” she said. “That’s vital to building partnerships and increasing international air service.”
The airport reported British Airways’ plans last week. They followed a meeting in London last month between a delegation of Pittsburgh-area officials and business leaders and British Airways. The gathering included executives from locally-based PNC, PPG, the Pittsburgh Steelers, Aurora Innovation, and Carnegie Robotics, according to the airport’s publication Blue Sky News. Local representatives from higher education and other civic sectors were also reported to have participated, along with leaders of U.K. businesses.
British Airways relaunched flights out of Pittsburgh in 2019, following a 20-year absence. It suspended the service for two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The flights resumed this June.
Blue Sky News reports that leisure travel drives much of the demand for tickets and that British Airways’ Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner accommodates cargo service, too. With more flights to London, the publication says local passengers can more easily access other international routes.
