LOT Announces New Flights Between Warsaw And Washington D.C.

Warsaw, 30th December 2019 - Starting 2nd June 2020, LOT Polish Airlines will launch a direct connection from the Polish capital to Washington D.C. It will be the 10th route of the Poland’s flag carrier connecting Poland and the United States. Flights to the capital of the United States will be operated three times a week by Boeing 787 Dreamliner.

The flight, during which LOT’s Dreamliners will cover over 7 thousand km, will take a bit longer than 9 hours. It will therefore be the fastest way to travel from Poland and the entire CEE region to Washington D.C. Flights  on this route will be operated as from 2nd June 2020 three times a week, according to the following timetable:

LO39 WAW-IAD 16:50-20:30            on Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays

LO40 IAD-WAW 22:25-13:25 (+1)   on Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays

- A direct flight from Warsaw to Washington D.C. has long been on our "short list". In the course of extensive business analyses, we focused not only on the very fact of connecting the capitals of Poland and the U.S., but also on the tourist and business potential offered by this connection which has been growing with each year. Moreover, so far Central and Eastern Europe has lacked such a convenient connection to Washington D.C. New long-haul flights  to the USA are the backbone of our strategy and announcing the new connection to Washington now certainly is not our last word - says Rafał Milczarski, CEO of LOT Polish Airlines.

Washington is home both to the most important administrative units in the USA and to many of the world's largest companies. 70 companies with annual revenues of over 1 billion dollars have their headquarters or main branches located here: Amazon, Hilton, Discovery, MARS, as well as arms companies (General Dynamics).

Moreover, Washington is also an attractive tourist destination. The most popular and frequently visited locations include: The White House, Capitol with an impressive library and Supreme Court as well as numerous magnificent museums along the National Mall, or Georgetown, which is perfect for a leisurely academic strolls. What is more, in Washington D.C. it is worth spending some time exploring the Smithsonian Institute. It is the world's biggest complex of educational and research centers and museums (19 different facilities) open all year round except Christmas.

– Our decision to announce yet another connection to the U.S. this year was also influenced by the fact that on 11th November Poland joined the VWP. It is a great success of the President of Poland Mr Andrzej Duda as well as Polish diplomacy and a milestone in Polish-American relationship. I am delighted that our social campaign "Let’s visit USA without visas [#BezWizDoUSA]" that we initiated in 2018 has also contributed to this historic success. Now Poles can easily travel to the USA for tourist and business purposes without a visa.  The new connection perfectly complements our offer of direct flights to North America, and of course significantly strengthens our flight network with regard to flights to the United States – adds Rafał Milczarski, CEO of LOT Polish Airlines

Flights to Washington D.C. will be operated with Boeing 787 Dreamliner, one of the most advanced wide-body airplanes in the world. Thanks to the use of state-of-the-art technology, they allow to maintain a higher pressure and higher air humidity on board than other passenger aircrafts in this class. All those factors help enhance passengers’ comfort during such a long flight and reduce the so-called jet lag effect. Passengers travelling onboard LOT can choose from three travel classes: LOT Business Class with lie-flat seats and premium restaurant cuisine; LOT Premium Economy Class with larger, individual space and footrests, comfortable thigh support, cocktail tables and extensive menu as well as LOT Economy Class with modern seats and individual on-board entertainment screens as well as USB ports.

LOT's offer comprises as many as over 120 scheduled flights all around the world. In 2019 LOT carried  10 million passengers, nearly one million more than in the previous year and as many as 5.7 million more than in 2015.

LOT Polish Airlines now offer as many as 20 long-haul flights. Today, the Polish carrier offers flights from Warsaw: to New York [JFK/EWR], Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, San Francisco, Washington D.C. [IAD from 2.06.2020], Toronto, Tokyo, Seoul, Beijing [PEK/PKX], Singapore, Delhi and to Colombo. Moreover, from Cracow to Chicago and New York [JFK as from 3.05.2020], from Rzeszow to New York [EWR], and from Budapest to Chicago and New York City [JFK] and Seoul.

Tickets for flights to Washington D.C. are going on sale now in all sales channels, including lot.com.