Miami airport celebrates new service with #BigDayMIA
Sunday was so full of festivities celebrating new and improved flight services at Miami International Airport that a special social media hashtag was needed: #BigDayMIA.
Notable among the arrivals:
Turkish Airlines inaugurated daily non-stop service between Miami and Istanbul, making the Magic City the carrier’s eighth U.S. destination after Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, Washington, Boston and San Francisco.
The 13-hour flight will be served by a 337-passenger Boeing 777-300ER, leaving Istanbul each day in the early afternoon and returning from Miami in the evening. The aircraft will have 28 business-class seats, 63 premium-economy seats and seat 246 passengers in economy class.
“We’re thrilled to name Miami as the newest gateway in the U.S. and proud to serve to one of the most influential tourism centers in the world,” said Turkish Airlines’ CMO Ahmet Olmuştur in a statement.
On Sunday, MIA also celebrated the beginning of British Airways’ Airbus A380 service between Miami and London.
BA currently offers twice-daily service between Miami and London Heathrow. The first departure will continue on a Boeing 747 aircraft, but the second departure is served by the Airbus A380, which has two decks and room for 469 passengers: 14 first-class suites, 97 business-class seats with full flatbeds, 55 premium-economy seats and 303 seats in the economy cabin.
“We have been flying between Miami and London for more than 40 years and this week we are reinforcing our commitment by introducing an incredible new aircraft onto the route,” said Simon Brooks, SVP Americas for British Airways, in a news release.
Three other cities — Los Angeles, Washington, D.C. and San Francisco — have British Airways A380 service as well.
In addition to the people who flew as passengers on British Airways’ first A380 flight to Miami, there were six white rhinos traveling as cargo, according to Air Cargo News. The rhinos began their journey in Johannesburg and were headed to Miami as part of a conservation breeding program.
Denver-based Frontier Airlines also kicked off its new non-stop service between Miami and Las Vegas on Sunday. As with the Turkish Airlines and British Airways flights, there was cake, but Frontier also had a Vegas-style showgirl on hand and a “cash cube” where passengers could win vouchers for future Frontier flights.
Frontier’s Las Vegas flights will use a 138-seat Airbus A319 aircraft. Flights will depart Miami daily at 9 a.m. and arrive in Las Vegas at 11:20 a.m. The return will leave Las Vegas at 11:20 p.m., delivering passengers back to Miami at 6:45 a.m. the following morning.
Sunday was also the first day Virgin Atlantic, Air France and several other airlines added extra or returning seasonal service to Miami International Airport, with more to come.
Harriet Baskas is a Seattle-based airports and aviation writer and Paste BN Travel's "At the Airport" columnist. She occasionally contributes to Ben Mutzabaugh's Today in the Sky blog. Follow her at twitter.com/hbaskas.