March 28th, 2008 marks the expiration of the Open Skies Agreement, thereby voiding red-tape that has in the past kept many US carriers from running routes between certain cities Europe and the US.  While it doesn’t appear there will be any immediate changes, the deregulation could be a real boon to BWI’s underutilized International wing.   European discount airlines RyanAir and EasyJet have expressed interest in starting service to the US, possibly as early as 2010.  Currently the airlines only service locations in and around the European Union.  BWI, already a discount travel hub, would be in the best position to accommodate those routes. 

Southwest airlines, which has its second largest hub at BWI already, has also made suggestions that they could foray into international travel, potentially using assents/routes from recently acquired ATA Airlines.  It’s speculated that Southwest could start by offering flights to the Caribbean as an experiment before making the long haul to Europe. Discount routes between Europe and BWI could also bring tourists to the area (especially if exchange rates stay the way they are).   Certainly the idea of hopping on a cheap flight for a long weekend in Europe is something anybody would love.

Baltimore Sun Article
Aviation Week Article

jeffcantonite@yahoo.com

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