Norwegian takes off to Fort Lauderdale
Norwegian's first long-haul flight out of Copenhagen has taken of as flight DY7041 left Copenhagen Airport heading for Fort Lauderdale in southern Florida.
An American-Cuban party was held at Copenhagen Airport during the afternoon, when Norwegian welcomed passengers on board the airline's first long-distance flight out of Copenhagen to Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Gate C39 was the venue of the southern-Florida-style party featuring Cuban music and American food and beer.
The event was attended by Norwegian's CEO Bjørn Kjos who cut the red ribbon and officially declared the new route open. Kjos:
A milestone
"Opening our first long-haul service out of Copenhagen is a milestone for us, and we are pleased to welcome the first Danish passengers on board. Our long-haul services out of Oslo and Stockholm have been very well received, and we now look forward to carrying passengers from Denmark directly to Florida on our new 787 Dreamliners, the world's most modern passenger plane," said Kjos.
"The market for intercontinental services has for much too long been characterised by artificially high fares with little flexibility. The popularity of our services proves that many people want to fly low cost and comfortably to overseas destinations. Moreover, we focus on living up to our goal that flying should be affordable to everyone," said Kjos.
CPH: Congratulations
Copenhagen Airport's CEO Thomas Woldbye congratulated Norwegian and said that the new service to Florida is only the beginning. Next spring, Norwegian will launch another two intercontinental services out of Copenhagen: to JFK in New York and to Los Angeles.
"There is every reason to congratulate Norwegian on their first of three, so far, intercontinental services out of Copenhagen. These services to the United States create new travel opportunities, growth and jobs in Denmark," said Woldbye.
Fort Lauderdale, which is just 50 kilometres north of Miami, is home to one of the world's largest cruise ports, Port Everglades. "The direct service to Copenhagen may open the door for even more cruise passengers to Denmark, as cruises out of Copenhagen are very popular with Americans," said Woldbye.