Tag: AY

• It’s hell at HEL: the sauna at Finnair’s Helsinki lounge isn’t working

  LoyaltyLobby has the scoop.

  Finnair operates one of only two airport lounge saunas in the world. The other is at one of Air France’s lounges in Paris.

  2026.01.12

• oneworld in 2026

  (If you’re new here, welcome. Spheres is where I post news and commentary about flying with oneworld and whatever goes along with that. You can also get these posts in a free newsletter. One email per week.)

  Here are the routes, planes, services, and other changes that caught my eye for 2026.

  oneworld

  • Hawaiian Airlines joins on April 22nd
  • The alliance needs a new CEO
  • A unified tech platform for member airlines is due
  • Interest in India¹

  Alaska

  • First-ever international flights from Seattle to London, Rome, and Reykjavík
  • Retreat from San Francisco, expansion in Portland and San Diego
  • Free Starlink wifi for Atmos members²

  American

  • Six new routes to Europe, including the only direct flight from the US to Budapest
  • 16 new domestic routes including five from Phoenix and three from Chicago
  • Two new gates at Chicago after losing five to United
  • More A321XLRs and B787-9Ps on transcontinental and international routes
  • Retrofitted B777-300ERs
  • Free Viasat wifi for AAdvantage members³
  • 100th anniversary

  British

  • New international and European routes, including more flights to Bangkok and Miami, and first-time flights between Glasgow and San Sebastián
  • New First class suites on the A380
  • More B787-10s
  • Free Starlink wifi for everyone
  • Fewer hot breakfasts on European flights
  • At last, a new app

  Cathay

  • A return to Seattle for the first time in more than five years
  • New Business class on San Francisco flights
  • Renovated The Wing, First lounge at Hong Kong
  • A first-ever lounge at JFK alongside a move to the new T6
  • 80th anniversary

  Fiji

  • New 3x weekly route between Nadi and the Gold Coast
  • A new CEO

  Finnair

  • New route from Helsinki to Melbourne via Bangkok with fifth freedom rights
  • A return to Toronto after 11 years
  • Summer flights between Helsinki and Florence, Valencia, Catania, and Kos, and 12 new short-haul routes across Europe

  Iberia

  • New routes between Madrid and Toronto; New York on the A321XLR
  • Expansion in Brazil: new routes between Madrid and Fortaleza and Recife, more flights to Rio, more seats
  • Free Starlink wifi for everyone

  JAL

  • New routes from Tokyo to Delhi and Okinawa to Taipei

  Malaysia

  • Daily flights between Kuala Lumpur and Adelaide and resumed flights to Chengdu
  • All flights into Australia on the A330neo

  Oman

  • New routes from Muscat to Singapore, Copenhagen (via Baghdad), and Taif
  • Retiring the B737-800 and 900-ER

  Qantas

  • New routes between the Gold Coast to Auckland; Sydney to Samoa (via Auckland), and Port Moresby
  • New lounges: refurbished Business lounge in Los Angeles,⁴ new lounge in Hobart, and refurbished regional lounges
  • Free wifi on international routes flown by the A330, B787, and A380
  • Project Sunrise test flights

  Qatar

  • More flights between Doha and Shanghai, and Singapore, and an expansion in Saudi Arabia
  • Fewer flights between Doha and San Francisco
  • A first-ever lounge in the US at JFK alongside a move to the new T1

  Royal Air Maroc

  • Nine new routes including Casablanca to Los Angeles

  Royal Jordanian

  • New flights from Amman to Almaty, Belgrade, Dallas, Hamburg, and Munich
  • New Business class on the B787-9

  SriLankan

  • Debt-reducing restructuring after the Sri Lankan government failed to find a buyer

  —

  1. If there is a new member airline from India, it will be IndiGo. The only other major airline, Air India, is a Star Alliance member. IndiGo partnered with four SkyTeam members in June, but it also has ties with American, British, JAL, Qantas, and Qatar. ↩︎
  2. Alaska and American are following the same playbook for wifi: it’s free because a cellular network is sponsoring it, and you’ll only get it if you’re a member of the airline’s loyalty program. I hope they’ll spare members of each other’s programs or non-US oneworld airlines from having to sign up for an account that will never get used. ↩︎
  3. Ditto. ↩︎
  4. The concept photo suggests that the iconic Eames Lounge Chairs aren’t coming along for the ride. ↩︎

  2026.01.01