More affordable transatlantic flights could soon be landing a little closer to the center of London. Bombardier has announced that its CS100 single-aisle aircraft has completed a non-stop flight from London City Airport (LCY) to New York's John F. Kennedy (JFK) airport carrying a payload comparable to 100 to 150 passengers.
The CS100 is a "C Series" aircraft that's wider than other single-aisle aircraft made by Bombardier and often used for regional flights in North America. The company says this makes it an ideal candidate for flying commercial passengers into London City, which requires meeting special noise restrictions and contending with a short runway and a steep approach.
After demonstrating that the CS100 can make the steep approach into LCY in a series of take-offs and landings over two days, it completed the nonstop trip over the Atlantic to New York.
The CS100 boasts bigger seats, overhead bins and windows than other single-aisle, commuter aircraft, and the company says it will offer a quiet, efficient and economical option for transatlantic travel to LCY, which currently caters to higher-end business travelers.
"The C Series is the only commercial aircraft that was specifically designed for operations at LCY," said Bombardier's Rob Dewar.
Some regulatory hurdles still remain, but Swiss International Airlines is expected to start offering service with C Series aircraft to and from LCY later this year. Routes from the center of London to the Middle East, Europe, Russia and Northern Africa are also being eyed for the future.
Source: Bombardier
