Major airline dubbed the ‘golden age’ of flying to bring back flights next year – with stops in Europe & the Caribbean
A CLASSIC airline once at the pinnacle of travel is set for a comeback in a rare opportunity for nostalgic passengers.
An American travel agency has set about reviving the old aviation leader for 2025, promising an exclusive experience on a Boeing 757.
The Pan American brand, better known as Pan Am, has been brought back from the dead by Criterion Travel – and the agency is planning a multi-city trip for the ages.
Pan Am formed in the 1920s, becoming famous for its “Clipper” flying boats in the 1930s and 40s.
The airline enjoyed a famed commercial run in the decades that followed, peaking between the late 1950s to early 1970s with destinations in every continent bar Antarctica.
But the aviation kings were dethroned when the airline industry was deregulated, sparking a burst of competition.
It suffered a slow demise through the 1980s amid failed to attempts to re-brand and restructure, before going bankrupt in 1991.
Now, 33 years later, Pan Am will again take off to the troposphere after Criterion Travel paid to use the brand and logo.
The multi-city sensation will take off from New York on June 27 2025, bound for Bermuda – where Clippers often stopped.
The flight will then cross the Atlantic for Lisbon before a stopover in Marseille.
A Pan-Am revival trip wouldn’t be complete with a hop to London, the city that first saw its Boeing 747.
From London, passengers will be flown to Foynes on Ireland‘s west coast – another historical stopping point for Clippers.
It will then return to New York, completing the journey by July 9.
Criterion Travel will fit the narrow-bodied Boeing 757 will 50 business class seats.
Aside from a seat, a ticket for the trip includes accommodation, travel and most meals, the travel company’s website says.
But if you want to go along it’d be wise to start saving – a ticket for a single traveller costs £51,130 ($65,500), while if you go as a couple it’s discounted to £46,800 ($59,950) per ticket.
The journey will be hosted by Craig Carter, chief executive of Pan American World Airways LLC, which owns the branding and naming rights.
The Criterion Travel website states: “As we are becoming more accustomed to travel being a commodity, usually a way to get from point A to point B at the most economical price, we offer a reminder of the Golden Age of travel.
“A time when the travel itself was a glamorous experience, and when the journey was as important and special as the destination.”
Jet2 to launch six new flights from Birmingham Airport
Jet2 is set to launch six new flights from a major UK airport.
The package deal giant has “listened to its customers” and put on more routes to snow-loving Brits’ favourite holiday destinations.
All new added countries will be available for the 2025/26 season – with Jet2 announcing them early so holidaymakers can beat the rush.
They include Chambery, Geneva, Grenoble, Salzburg, Innsbruck and Turin.
Extra flights will be taking off from Birmingham Airport, who recently scrapped strict 100ml hand luggage liquid rules.
New flights will give land-locked Midlanders and the rest of the country more options to depart from if they’re in need of a skiing or snowboarding escape.