Providence, Rhode Island's T.F. Green Airport has been selected at the second U.S. base for Norwegian Air Shuttles's trans-Atlantic service set to begin this summer, a company spokesman told The Providence Journal.
"Which transatlantic routes I cannot comment on just yet," spokesman Anders Lindstrom told The Journal.
For now, based on what Norwegian has hinted in the past after confirming that Stewart Airport in Newburgh, N.Y, would be its first home base, it appears the airline will fly to Cork, Ireland, to start and then add routes.
With the airline based in Dublin-much to the consternation of U.S.-based airlines-it is believed the carrier will also fly to Dublin and Edinburgh, Scotland. It has promised to provide introductory fares as low as $69 each way overseas.
Critics have panned the decision by the U.S. Department of Transportation to allow Norwegian to enter the marketplace in the U.S. and use Ireland as its home base, where it can skirt strict labor laws in Norway and hire below-market flight crews from other countries.
[READMORE]READ MORE: Trump Will Have Norwegian Air Decision On His Plate[/READMORE]
Norwegian Air has denied the claims and said it is in full compliance with the Open Skies Agreements.
Edward Wytkind, president of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO said the DOT's decision betrays American aviation workers.
"Unless reversed, this decision threatens a generation of U.S. airline jobs and tells foreign airlines that scour the globe for cheap labor and lax employment laws that America is open for business," he said in a statement, calling on President Obama to reverse the decision.
"Clearly, a Norwegian-owned airline that is based in Ireland for the purpose of evading Norway's labor and tax laws, and that will hire crews under Asian contracts, is in violation of these explicit labor protections, and should be denied entry into our marketplace. With this decision, the Obama Administration has failed to enforce the very labor protection it negotiated and sold as a breakthrough in aviation trade policy."
Providence and Newburgh are part of Norwegian's plan to use smaller suburban airports to generate its trans-Atlantic service. While Green Airport has some 60 flights a day, Stewart Airport has just five per day from four airlines-Allegiant, American, JetBlue and Delta.
Norwegian Air will use Boeing Co.'s new 737 Max single-aisle planes seating up to 189 passengers at both airports.
"There is zero downside to allowing more low-cost carriers into U.S. airports: it's a policy that's good for consumers, stupendous for U.S. economic and job growth, and even good for U.S. airlines because it broadens the market for domestic connector flights," Roger Dow, president-CEO of the U.S. Travel Association, said in a statement.
"More choices for American travelers and more capacity to bring foreign visitors and their dollars to U.S. shores is the unimpeachably correct decision, period."
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