Since announcing their base at Stewart International Airport late last year, Norwegian has kept relatively quiet on what their second US base would be. The three contenders were:

• T.F. Green Airport, Providence, RI (PVD)
• Bradley International Airport, Hartford/Windsor Locks, CT (BDL)
• Portsmouth International Airport at Pease, Portsmouth, NH (PSM)

Today, the wait is over. Per USA Today, Norwegian confirmed that Providence would be their second US base!

Maximum range from Providence, RI. Map courtesy of gcmap.com

What We Know

In a quote from The Seattle Times:

Norwegian will fly that jet [Boeing 737 MAX], with even lower fares, on thinner routes from cities like Dublin and Cork in Ireland or Edinburgh in Scotland, into smaller U.S. airports including Stewart International, north of New York city, and Providence, Rhode Island.

While these are definite, Edinburgh would make sense, as it will also be served from Stewart International Airport. With a maximum range of ~4,000 miles on the Boeing 737 MAX, don’t expect flights deep into the heart of Europe. My guess is that Eastern France would be the farthest Norwegian could get from Providence.

What We Don’t Know

Most of the details! We currently don’t know:

• When flights will start in 2017
• Where those flights will be to (educated guesses above)
• What the price of those flights will be; however, expect cheap introductory fares like at Stewart International Airport to start

Conclusion

This is great news for Providence, as more service is always a good thing for an airport. Norwegian is really on a roll, adding service to Argentina as well! I’m curious to see how sustainable all this growth really is though…

For those in the Providence area, what is on your Norwegian wish list?

Header image property of Eric Salard