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Palermo Dreaming (on a direct flight)...

Posted by (New Jersey) on

Hi All. I've been wanting to visit Sicily but would much prefer to do it via a DIRECT flight. Back in 2019, I recall that United Airlines was going to add direct service to Palermo (one flight per day) from Newark/New York (May to September, I think) but it was scratched when Covid arrived.

I have been hearing rumors that this plan may be revived and it MIGHT happen spring/summer 2023. Does anyone have any info on this matter or am I just wanting to believe in a fairytale? I googled United's original press release back in 2019 which came out in October. So I am thinking maybe if it is going to happen that they might announce it during that same timeframe? I think I will hold off buying my tickets until January with the hopes of my fairytale coming true. I hope to visit Sicily in mid-May 2023.

Posted by
6841 posts

There are no nonstop flights between Palermo and North America on any airline's schedule (going as far out as search engines go -- for United, that's 330 days, so it ain't in their system). For that matter, there's no long-haul service to Palermo from anyplace beyond Europe at all (well, there's one alleged flight to Sharm El Sheikh, in Egypt's Sanai Peninsula, but that's not going to help you).

The current generation of new jets are designed for "long and thin" routes. Flying nonstop to Palermo from the US is definitely long, but I suspect it's a bit too thin to be easily justified to United's bean counters. We will need to see to what extent that travel demand remains high. By next summer? Who knows. But for now, I think this will remain a fairy tale for you.

Posted by
220 posts

Thanks, David - unfortunately you are probably right; my direct flight will remain a fairytale.

I do wonder though why United was going forward with the non-stop plan in 2019 -- they must have thought there was enough business to justify it back then. I recall that it was limited to peak travel months (May - September) and ONLY one flight per day. I think there would be many customers for such a flight. Maybe they've hired new bean counters and our post Covid landscape has factored into their spreadsheets.

The reason I was hopeful is that I read on a travel website forum from someone who works at the Palermo airport that he noticed a new counter had been assigned to United Airlines.

Posted by
16167 posts

Joeandrose from NJ you are correct. The seasonal United flight from EWR to PMO was scheduled to start on May 20, 2020 throughout the summer till October, but then we all know what happened in 2020.

In July it was reported on the Italian media that United intends to resume that plan in 2023.

https://mobile.ttgitalia.com/stories/trasporti/177377_il_colpo_di_palermo_volo_per_new_york_con_united_dal_prossimo_anno/

For those who may not have noticed UA has also started to fly non stop from EWR to Naples (NAP) since last May with a seasonal flight that will run until the end of October.

Posted by
220 posts

Roberto, this morning, you have me skipping around my kitchen with this news!!! I will be waiting with bated breath for this announcement.

I also want to thank you for some previous guidance that was so helpful in my trip to Florence this past May. More specifically, you provided instructions to reach San Miniato al Monte without climbing the steps. You mentioned that in your youth you had taken girlfriends along a path to reach this vantage point for some romance! We found our way and I even gave my husband a big kiss once we reached the top as an homage to you!

Also, your instructions on how to exit Downtown florence from the rental car street were beyond helpful! We so easily made it out of EuropCar and found our way to the highway to reach Lucca.

So Roberto, you are the man! And now you've topped it with this news!

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