United Adds Dulles–Bradford, Air Transat Unveils Five New Europe Routes

Friday, October 30, 2026

United is giving Bradford, Pennsylvania a twice-daily link to Washington Dulles from February, while Air Transat has unveiled five new nonstop routes between Canada and Europe for summer 2027, including first-ever service to Geneva and a return to Birmingham after nearly a decade. Elsewhere, FlySafair is heading to Zambia, Royal Air Maroc is back in Essaouira, and Ethiopian Airlines is trimming its Atlanta season for 2027. This roundup covers announcements and schedule filings published between midday October 29 and midday October 30 (UTC).

New Routes

United: Washington Dulles (IAD) – Bradford, PA (BFD)

• Starts: February 11, 2027
• Frequency: Twice daily
• Aircraft: CRJ200, operated by SkyWest as United Express

The schedule filing shows a midday and an evening departure from Dulles, with a dawn and an early-afternoon return from Bradford, giving the small northwestern Pennsylvania airport a direct connection into United’s Washington hub.

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Air Transat: Five new Canada – Europe routes for summer 2027

Air Transat announced on October 29 that it will add Geneva and Birmingham as new destinations and open three more new city pairs from Quebec City and Montreal. All five are seasonal summer services. The airline’s release does not name aircraft types; where AeroRoutes reported one from the schedule filing, it is noted below. The two Quebec City routes were first revealed by Air Transat on October 28 and were confirmed again in the October 29 release.

• Montreal (YUL) – Geneva (GVA): June 19 to October 23, 2027; twice weekly (Tuesdays and Saturdays); aircraft TBA.
• Toronto (YYZ) – Birmingham (BHX): June 22 to October 22, 2027; twice weekly (Tuesdays and Fridays); Airbus A321LR per AeroRoutes (not stated in Air Transat’s release). AeroRoutes notes Transat last flew to Birmingham in October 2017.
• Quebec City (YQB) – Lyon (LYS): June 8 to October 26, 2027; once weekly (Tuesdays); aircraft TBA.
• Quebec City (YQB) – Barcelona (BCN): June 14 to October 25, 2027; once weekly (Mondays); aircraft TBA.
• Montreal (YUL) – Faro (FAO): June 14 to October 25, 2027; once weekly (Mondays); aircraft TBA.

The same release says Quebec City – Puerto Plata and Montreal – Saint-Martin will become year-round services, each with one weekly summer flight.

FlySafair: Johannesburg (JNB) – Lusaka (LUN)

• Starts: February 1, 2027
• Frequency: Five times weekly
• Aircraft: Boeing 737-800

The South African low-cost carrier adds the Zambian capital, with a morning departure from Johannesburg and a midday return.

Royal Air Maroc: Casablanca (CMN) – Essaouira (ESU)

• Starts: October 28, 2026 (resumed)
• Frequency: Twice weekly
• Aircraft: ATR 72

The domestic link returns for the winter season after a gap of six years; AeroRoutes says the route was last served in September 2020.

Federal Airlines: Johannesburg (JNB) – Sabie (GSS)

• Starts: In service since October 16, 2026 (reported October 29)
• Frequency: Twice daily, no Sunday flights
• Aircraft: Cessna (model TBA)

The South African operator added the small-aircraft service to Sabie, in Mpumalanga, earlier this month.

Quick scan: new routes

Routes Being Discontinued

Ethiopian Airlines: Addis Ababa (ADD) – Rome (FCO) – Atlanta (ATL) shortened for summer 2027

• Change: Atlanta service will run only from May 16 to September 1, 2027, three times weekly, a shorter season than previously planned
• Last day / effective: September 1, 2027 (last scheduled day of the 2027 summer season)
• Aircraft: Boeing 787

The filing shows Atlanta-bound flights stopping in Rome, with the return running nonstop to Addis Ababa. AeroRoutes did not say what the earlier planned dates were.

No other route exits or suspensions announced in the past 24 hours could be confirmed.

Quick scan: discontinued routes

Sources

• AeroRoutes, “United Adds Washington Dulles – Bradford From Feb 2027” – aeroroutes.com/eng/261029-uafeb27bfd
• Transat A.T. (press release), “Air Transat adds Geneva and Birmingham to its European network for summer 2027” – transat.mediaroom.com
• AeroRoutes, “Air Transat Resume Toronto – Birmingham Service From June 2027” – aeroroutes.com/eng/261029-tsns27bhx
• Rus Tourism News, “Air Transat Announces Five New Nonstop Routes Between Canada and Europe” – rustourismnews.com
• AeroRoutes, “Flysafair Adds Johannesburg – Lusaka in mid-1Q27” – aeroroutes.com/eng/261029-fa1q27lun
• AeroRoutes, “Royal Air Maroc Resumes Casablanca – Essaouira Route in NW26” – aeroroutes.com/eng/261029-atnw26esu
• AeroRoutes, “Federal Airlines Adds Johannesburg – Sabie Service From Oct 2026” – aeroroutes.com/eng/261029-7voct26jnbgss
• AeroRoutes, “Ethiopian Airlines Shortens NS27 Atlanta Service” – aeroroutes.com/eng/261029-etns27atl