Travelers looking to head to New York from Amsterdam between now and the end of February may have fewer options to choose from. This is because Norwegian Air Shuttle will be temporarily reducing its flights on this route from seven to five times a week.

Cost-saving measure

Business Traveller reports that the airline will be suspending the route on either a Tuesday or Wednesday in either direction. These two days are when operations on this service are the quietest during the off-peak season.

According to a senior manager at Norwegian, this was a tactical decision to help save money. The low-cost carrier could lose money during periods that are not busy. Therefore, it has decided to reduce the risk of making losses and is instead concentrating on its revenue streams.

“It’s also to make sure you don’t then have [the problem of dealing with] flights that go tech [encounter technical issues].” the Norwegian senior manager added, when speaking to Business Traveller.

Norwegian 787
Norwegian's flights to New York are often considerably cheaper than its rivals, making it a preferred option for many. Photo: Norwegian

Important hub

Norwegian flies this route on a Boeing 787 between Schiphol and JFK. Schiphol is a crucial asset for several airlines as it is currently slot-constrained.

In fact, Norwegian may not even have any slots at the hub if European Union authorities didn't help them. The EU instructed the Netherlands flag carrier KLM to allow the Scandinavian firm to take on the slots. This was to keep the competition healthy within the airport.

Norwegian also had some good news in regards to slots across the English Channel. In December, it was granted six new slots at London Heathrow Airport, helping it grow its presence within the UK.

Measures need to be taken

Norwegian has had a tough year when it comes to financials. There had been numerous reports of struggles during the whole of 2019Therefore, the airline hired former JetBlue COO Marty St. George in an effort to turn things around.

Norwegian 787 Aircraft
The operator will need to make some crucial decisions this year to overturn its fortunes.  Photo: Norwegian

Additionally, new CEO Jacob Schram finally took on his post after the announcement of his appointment towards the end of last year. Hopefully, with adjustments such as the one it has made with the AMS-JFK route, Norwegian can eventually turn things around.

Last month, the airline made a more considerable change to its operations. It sold off its Argentinian subsidiary, Norwegian Air Argentina (NAA) to JetSMART. If the carrier continues to review its operations across the board, its accounting may look healthier this time next year.

Simple Flying reached out to Norwegian for further comment on its decision to reduce the frequency on this route. However, we did not hear back before publication. We will update the article with any further announcements.

What are your thoughts on the airline's move to suspend two flights a week to New York from Amsterdam till the end of February? Let us know what you think in the comment section.