MORE than 215 airlines have confirmed their participation for the 19th World Route Development Forum which will take place from October 5 to 8 in Las Vegas in the US, a seven per cent rise compared to last year.
There is a very strong presence of North America-based carriers including United, Delta, American and US Airways. On the low cost front, Southwest, JetBlue and Spirit will all be present along with Allegiant, Sun Country, Alaska Airlines and Virgin America whilst, from North of the border, Air Canada, Air Transat, WestJet and Sunwing will also be represented at the event. From Latin America key operators including Latam, Avianca, Aeromexico and Copa Airlines are also confirmed.
Four of China’s leading carriers – China Southern, Hainan Airlines, Air China and China Eastern – will be present as well as ANA and JAL from Japan. Other major operators confirmed from the Asia Pacific market include Vietnam Airlines, China Airlines, Thai Airways and Philippine Airlines. Further registrations have also been received from Qantas and Jetstar who will be present from Australia.
From Europe Air France, Lufthansa, with British Airways, KLM, Alitalia and SAS are amongst other major airlines that have signed up. Confirmed European low cost carrier presence comes from easyJet, Norwegian, Germanwings and Transavia whilst the Middle East contingent is led by Emirates, Etihad, Qatar and Oman Air.
Paul Winfield, airline relations director for Routes, says: “The almost 100 per cent growth in airline delegates since World Routes in 2010 is a testament to the Routes product and how it has evolved to meet the world’s largest airlines’ needs. Moving ahead to Las Vegas, we expect to see more airlines confirm their presence.”
In addition over 650 delegates representing over 500 airports have registered to attend World Routes in Las Vegas to date. These registrations include first time attendees Raleigh - Durham International Airport, El Paso International Airport, and Atlantic City International Airport. Other recent airport registrations include Abidjan International Airport (AERIA), Maastricht Aachen Airport, GMR Hyderabad International Airport, Donetsk International Airport, Chubu Centrair International Airport (NGO), King Fahd International Airport and Aruba Airport Authority amongst many others.