TAP Air Portugal will commence flights between its Lisbon
hub and Washington Dulles and Chicago in June.
The launches will bring to seven the number of U.S. airports
that TAP serves. But the new routes are just the beginning of what will be a
broader U.S. expansion, said David Neeleman, a major TAP shareholder and the founder
of JetBlue and Azul.
"I'd like to get to 10 cities," Neeleman said
during a Thursday interview. "One more we can announce shortly and then
maybe the next two the summer after."
TAP will service both Washington Dulles and Chicago O'Hare five
times weekly. The carrier will be alone in the Lisbon-Chicago market, but will
compete during the summer season against United on the Washington route.
Chicago service launches June 1, followed by D.C. service on June 16.
The TAP announcement came just three days after taking
delivery of its first Airbus A330neo-900, for which it is the launch airline.
TAP plans to deploy the A330neo on the Chicago and Washington routes as well as
to its four existing U.S. destinations: New York JFK, Newark, Miami and Boston.
The planes, which have 25% better fuel efficiency than
older-generation A330s, will have a two-cabin configuration featuring a
business-class cabin with lie-flat seats and an economy cabin. The economy
cabin will be further divided between standard seats, with 31 inches between
rows, and Economy Xtra, offering 34 inches of space.
"You'll find a great product. Really great food and
great wine. I think people will be dazzled by it," Neeleman said.