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Kuwait Airways Nixes U.S. Expansion Plans

The flag carrier had planned to expand service offerings from its Kuwait City hub.

Kuwait Airways A330-800 lifting off on its delivery flight. (Photo: Airbus)

In a recent schedule change, Kuwaiti flag carrier Kuwait Airways has canceled recently announced service changes from its schedule. The carrier has cut its planned service to Washington-Dulles and its A330-800neo swap to New York-JFK.

In August 2023, the carrier announced its intentions to fly from Kuwait City to Washington Dulles, which would have been the longest A330-800neo route. According to Aviation24.be, the Dulles route was slated to begin on Dec. 15, 2023, with three times weekly service.

Earlier this week, the airline zeroed out inventory on the route before scrubbing it from the schedule on Saturday, per Cirium data. Both the airport and airline have removed any references from their respective websites.

The Kuwait City to Washington Dulles market has been unserved since 2016 when United ended service.

New York-JFK Aircraft Change

According to Cirium data, Kuwait Airways also planned to continue daily A330-800neo service to New York-JFK through the end of the year. However, the carrier will change the route’s equipment type to a 777-300ER effective on Oct. 29, 2023.

Kuwait Airways was the launch customer for Airbus’ smaller A330neo variant, taking delivery of the first aircraft in 2020. The A330-800neo is a rather rare type with only 12 on order and seven in service. Uganda National Airlines, Kuwait Airways, and Garuda Indonesia are the only operators of the aircraft.

The airline did not provide any additional details on these service changes but did confirm the Dulles cancellation via a Twitter (X) direct message.

Ryan Ewing
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  • Ryan Ewing

    Ryan founded AirlineGeeks.com back in February 2013 and has amassed considerable experience in the aviation sector. His work has been featured in several publications and news outlets, including CNN, WJLA, CNET, and Business Insider. During his time in the industry, he's worked in roles pertaining to airport/airline operations while holding a B.S. in Air Transportation Management from Arizona State University along with an MBA. Ryan has experience in several facets of the industry from behind the yoke of a Cessna 172 to interviewing airline industry executives. Ryan works for AirlineGeeks' owner FLYING Media, spearheading coverage in the commercial aviation space.

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