Norwegian Announces Plans To Open Base In Athens, Greece

European low-cost carrier Norwegian Air Shuttle intends to open a base in Athens, Greece, according to Greek business news site Capital.gr.

Norwegian currently operates flights to Athens year-round and flies to the Greek islands (Corfu, Chania and Heraklion in Crete, Kefalonia, Kos, Lefkada, Rhodes and Santorini) during the summer months.

The airline’s head, Bjorn Kjos, disclosed to Capital.gr his intention to open a base either in Athens or another Greek destination in the summer of 2016.

“The Greek market has great growth potential. More and more people are traveling to Athens, while the Greek Islands are a favorite destination for the Scandinavians,” Mr. Kjos said.

Norwegian Air Shuttle, commercially branded “Norwegian,” is a public low-cost airline noted on the Oslo Stock Exchange. The company is the second largest airline in Scandinavia and the third largest low-cost airline in Europe. It has a route portfolio that stretches across Europe into North Africa and the Middle East, as well as Thailand and the US.

According to Norwegian, more than 20 million passengers flew with the airline in 2013. Norwegian operates 416 routes to 126 destinations.