| Logan
airport lands another nonstop flight to
Europe Logan International Airport
officials said yesterday they have landed
a third nonstop flight to Europe in May,
with five times a week service to Madrid
aboard Spanish national airline Iberia.
The move comes on the heels of this week's
unveiling of a new twice-a-week flight
to Ireland West Airport in Knock, County
Mayo, on Scottish discount carrier Flyglobespan,
starting May 30. Flyglobespan had said
earlier it planned to also begin in May
daily service from Boston to Glasgow,
Scotland.
Boston has not had regular nonstop service
to Madrid in 22 years, according to the
Massachusetts Port Authority , which runs
Logan. Iberia offered one to three flights
weekly between 1983 and 1985 before pulling
out. The new service, starting May 6,
will be on 260-seat Airbus A340s , Logan
spokesman Phil Orlandella said.
The newest moves will bring the number
of international destinations served nonstop
from Logan to 35. Massport officials over
the past year have been working aggressively
to widen the roster of international flights
out of Logan, particularly Europe, to
increase overall business .
" We're seeing the first fruits
of a major effort to get international
airlines back into Boston, and it also
shows with the right kinds of marketing
efforts, there is tremendous interest
in Massachusetts" as a tourist destination
in many European and Asian countries,
said William H. MacDougall , chief executive
of Tourism Massachusetts, a nonprofit
organization that promotes the state abroad.
Tourism Massachusetts ran a $150,000
marketing campaign in Spain, MacDougall
said, that bolstered Massport's efforts
to persuade Iberia to make Boston its
fourth US destination along with Chicago,
Miami, and New York.
David Soskin , chief executive of CheapFlights.com,
which runs Boston- and London-based airfare
shopping websites, said he thinks direct
Madrid service will work in Boston, both
for people vacationing in Spain and others
connecting at Barajas International Airport
to other destinations in Europe or North
Africa.
"There is a good route network out
of Madrid to other parts of Europe, and
there are phenomenal destinations in Spain
for cultural tourism," Soskin said.
"My guess is that a large chunk of
the business will be tourists visiting
Spain for the first time."
Iberia's website late yesterday did not
list which five days the flights will
operate or fares, and the airline's US
spokesman could not be reached. Orlandella
said that flights will leave Boston for
Madrid at 6:20 p.m., with the return flight
from Madrid arriving at 3:40 p.m.
|
