New Nordic airline Norse Atlantic started ticket sales on Friday for budget transatlantic flights, hoping to succeed where Norwegian Air spectacularly failed, by betting on aircraft leased at rock-bottom rates during the pandemic. Having assembled a fleet of widebody planes, Norway-based Norse will initially connect US destinations New York, Fort Lauderdale, Los Angeles and Orlando with Norway's capital Oslo, and with London and Paris to follow. Its first flight will take off in Oslo on June 14, heading for New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport, its booking system showed. While the favourable terms of its leases and the fuel-efficiency of its modern aircraft should give it an edge on cost, the question is whether it can fill the planes and generate enough revenue to be profitable. "It is always a bit of a risk when you are in the airline business but we think it's a pretty good timing," CE Bjoern Tore Larsen said. Larsen, an aviation enthusiast and the company's biggest shareholder, made his fortune in the shipping industry and controls ship management group OSM Maritime. The United States is his personal favourite travel destination, and he believes there is a massive demand for budget travel between Europe and North America.<br/>
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Singapore’s low-cost carrier Scoot has resumed its services to Sabah, making it the first international airline to do so. The Scoot Flight TR492 touched down at the Kota Kinabalu International Airport at about 9pm on Friday carrying 150 passengers, most of whom were foreign tourists. The aircraft was given a water cannon salute as it arrived and passengers were given a warm Sabah welcome by a group dressed in traditional cultural attire as they entered the arrival gate. State Tourism, Culture, and Environment Assistant Minister cum Sabah Tourism Board chairman Datuk Joniston Bangkuai was on hand to greet Scoot passengers and hand out goodie bags. Scoot launched its first direct flight from Singapore to Kota Kinabalu on Dec 3, 2019, but its operations were halted when the global Covid-19 pandemic struck the following year, affecting the tourism and airline industries. Prior to the pandemic, Kota Kinabalu was Scoot’s eighth destination in Malaysia after Kuala Lumpur, Ipoh, Kota Bharu, Kuantan, Kuching, Langkawi, and Penang.<br/>
Virgin Australia said on Friday it will add four new Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft to its fleet to meet higher demand as the airline expects to hit pre-pandemic domestic capacity by mid-2022. "We are on track to return to 100% of pre-COVID domestic capacity by June this year and expect to well exceed those levels by year's end," CEO Jayne Hrdlicka said. The country's second-biggest airline, which is now owned by US private equity group Bain Capital, also saw high demand in the resources sector and in contract flying in Western Australia. The four new aircraft will take the airline's fleet of 737 planes to 88 and enter service early next year. In 2020, Virgin Australia restructured its 737 MAX order to include more of the largest 737 MAX 10 variant and had pushed back on the smaller MAX 8.<br/>