Low Cost Trans-Atlantic Flights to NY

Zoom Airlines, the low-cost, transatlantic carrier, has now received approval to begin the marketing and selling of tickets for its proposed London-New York service - but for now, only in the U.K. This comes after Zoom had earlier filed an application requesting permission to start a daily flight service on June 7th between London Gatwick and New York JFK. Details given this week show Zoom’s plans to launch flights costing as little as £129 in a move described as "a revolution in low-cost transatlantic air travel". It is expected that the each way fee would even cover taxes, fees and charges. The move is part of Zoom Airlines plan to become the UK's leading low-cost transatlantic airline, providing an affordable alternative to British Airways and Virgin.

Zoom is an established as a Canadian airline that offers scheduled flights from 8 Canadian cities to five U.K. destinations and from four Canadian cities to Paris. Last August the Bank of Scotland acquired a stake in Zoom Airlines for approximately $11 million. This money was to be used to firmly establish Zoom U.K. to fly to non-Canadian destinations, such as the USA. Questions had been asked whether Zoom could even be considered as a UK company, which is a requirement for getting US-UK authority under an aviation agreement between the two countries. However, Zoom has argued otherwise – pointing to the UK citizenship of its founder and chairman and its integration into the UK as a separate legal entity from Zoom Canada - but also that under the US-UK agreement it is up to the UK to decide whether the airline qualifies as a UK national or not.

Zoom Airlines are hoping to establish itself as a low-cost trans-Atlantic flier before the "open skies" deal comes to fruition, enabling airlines to fly from anywhere in the EU to any point in the USA.