LOT Polish Airlines is launching flights to Dubai in September this year, in time for EXPO 2020 that has been postponed until October 2021. The flights will be operated by both Boeing 737 and Boeing 787 aircraft.

A new route for LOT Polish Airlines

LOT Polish Airlines announced yesterday that it would be launching flights from its base, Warsaw Chopin Airport (WAW), to Dubai International Airport (DXB) in September this year.

Flights are already on sale and will start on Sunday 19th September, ahead of EXPO 2020 that begins on 1st October 2021 and lasts until 31st March 2022.

LOT's new route will operate as follows:

  • LO121 departing Warsaw at 07:40, arriving in Dubai at 15:25
  • LO122 departing Dubai at 17:15, arriving in Warsaw at 21:35

Flights will operate on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays.

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737s and 787s will fly the route

LOT Polish Airlines confirmed to Simple Flying that the aircraft flying this route will be Boeing 737-800NG but that Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft may be used too on days when there is sufficient demand.

LOT's Boeing 737-800NG aircraft carry 168 seats, including a separate business class cabin of 12 seats.

Emirates, Boeing 777-300ER commercial airplane lands at
AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS - 2020/01/26: Emirates, Boeing 777-300ER commercial airplane lands at Amsterdam Schiphol AMS airport in the Netherlands. The Dubai based airline, UAE B777 is a wide body extended range aircraft with registration A6-EBM and 2x large GE90 jet engines. (Photo by Nik Oiko/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

A new market for LOT Polish

The new route will launch in time for EXPO 2020 in October, but flights are also on sale through the winter to offer Polish travelers an exotic winter holiday destination, in the words of LOT Polish.

Michał Fijoł, Chief Commercial Officer at LOT, commented on the route launch by saying:

"Within recent years, Dubai has been becoming one of the Poles’ favorite winter exotic destinations. (...) The potential for connection, also in the chartered segment, means that, in addition to the offer of carriers from the Gulf, we can see an opportunity for development for LOT. I am convinced that passengers will appreciate the Polish product, the schedule which is perfectly suited to both visitors to the EXPO exhibition and tourists, as well as attractive price offer."

The price for this route is indeed a great sales point for LOT Polish Airlines.

LOT's fares for one-way Economy tickets to Dubai start at $295 while Emirates' fares start at $485. For return flights (WAW-DXB-WAW), LOT's fares start at $471 and Emirates' at $566.

For the return flights in the other direction, leaving Dubai, Emirates' fares are no lower than $903 while LOT Polish is selling this return rotation for $712.

LOT
The unruly passenger was eventually arrested by police in Iceland. Photo: Getty Images.

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Tourism is the way forward

LOT Polish, like many other airlines, has identified that demand for holiday travel is likely to be an optimal way forward for airlines in the short term. The ongoing pandemic has inflicted serious harm on the industry.

Michał Fijoł also added:

"Dubai, in addition to Sri Lanka, is another offer for our passengers launched with a view to relax in warm countries during the cold winter months in Poland. Thus, due to the reversed seasonality of traffic, this connection will allow us for exploiting operational resources in the so-called low season."

It is expected that more airlines will be adding new leisure routes to their networks this year.

Do you think LOT Polish Airlines will compete against Emirates successfully on this route? Let us know in the comments below.