A LOT Polish Airlines’ Dreamliner has operated the first of its kind historic flight from Chicago to Kraków launching new connection between Poland and the US.
The new connection between Kraków and Chicago is 9th long haul route and 6th long haul connection launched by LOT Polish Airlines to North America. The flights between the 'Malopolska' district and Chicago will be carried out once a week throughout the year.
"Every year more than 90,000 passengers travel between Chicago and Kraków. Until now, all these passengers had to travel with a stopover. This is why we decided to open direct connection to the hub of where most Poles live abroad and also those living in Malopolska with family and friends in the United States and launch the first direct long-haul connection from the regional Kraków airport. I am glad that from now on our passengers can fly directly from Kraków to Chicago and I am certain that this will give Poles in America an even better connectivity with their homeland. I hope they will be frequent guests on our board," says Rafal Milczarski, CEO of LOT Polish Airlines.
The decision to launch a direct flight from Kraków to Chicago was made based on detailed traffic analysis on this route, said the airline, which stated that data over the last few years shows a clear increase in the number of passengers. The great majority of them chose to have a connection in Warsaw. After positive detailed business analysis LOT Polish Airlines decided to launch additional direct flights.
"The number of passengers traveling between Kraków and Chicago since 2012 has grown on average by 17% a year, and LOT's strategy clearly states that we must not miss that potential. Together with Krakow Airport we have been investigating the possibility of returning to Kraków - Chicago for many months. Thanks to the new Dreamliner’s that are joining our fleet, the launch of this connection becomes a reality, today," adds Rafał Milczarski.