American Airlines to launch direct flight from Athens to Chicago, home to America’s third largest Greek community

American Airlines is ready to launch new seasonal direct flights from Athens International Airport (AIA) to Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD), which is the first time the US airline is connecting the two cities.

This will be American Airlines’ second connection with Athens, Greece, as it already operates the seasonal Philadelphia – Athens route since 2007.

As announced during a press conference on Thursday, the summer seasonal flight will operate as of May 4 until September 29 and will be flown on the airline’s state-of-the-art Boeing 787-8 aircraft.

“American’s Philadelphia – Athens route is a very strong route and when the airline begins its new service to Chicago, it will be flying to two destinations from the Greek capital, offering a double daily service,” said Ioanna Papadopoulou, Director, Communications & Marketing of AIA.

According to American Airlines Sales Manager, Southeast Europe, Angelo Camilletti, the important element is the investment American Airlines is making to the Greek market. “Because we are boosting our capacity from 291 seats (seats available on the Airbus 330) to 525 daily seats, one-way, which means that we are increasing our capacity in 2019 by 80 percent for the Greek market,” Camilletti said.

The Athens – Chicago route is expected to be well-received by the Greek American community generally in the US but especially in Chicago, Illinois, which is home to the third largest community of Greek Americans in the country after New York and California.

*Source: GTPHeadlines