O’Hare To Welcome Romanian Airline, IndiGo and Qantas Debut Airbus A321XLRs, and Other News You Might’ve Missed

In this week’s airline news roundup, we’ve got headlines from all corners of the globe. From IndiGo and Qantas debuting new Airbus A321XLRs and a low-cost Romanian launching a new route to the U.S. to Allegiant cutting all flights from LAX, there’s a lot to get through.

Let’s take a look.

Allegiant Exits Los Angeles, Pivots to Burbank

Ultra-low-cost carrier Allegiant will end its remaining 2 services from Los Angeles (LAX).

From January 3, 2026, travelers from Cincinnati, Ohio (CVG) and Bellingham, Washington (BLI) will no longer be able to take advantage of Allegiant’s ultra-low-cost fares to Tinsel Town.

Instead, Allegiant will move its operations to Burbank (BUR).

“Burbank’s lower operating costs and streamlined gate and facility usage allow us to offer more attractive fares to our customers while creating a better working environment for our team members,” a spokesperson for Allegiant told AirlineGeeks.

Considering its location just 9 miles North of Hollywood, Allegiant’s move to Burbank will benefit travelers heading to the popular area by reducing transit times to and from the airport.

Qantas A321XLR Flights Launching Next Week

September 25, 2025, is a big day for Australian flag carrier Qantas.

Its newly-delivered Airbus A321XLRs will carry passengers for the first time from Sydney (SYD) to Melbourne (MEL) and Perth (PER).

The jets operating the flights are 2 of a huge order of 48 of the aircraft type Qantas chose as part of its wider fleet renewal program.

However, 16 of the 48-strong order will have lie-flat seats in business class. Qantas will start taking delivery of these more premium aircraft in 2028. Until then, Qantas business-class passengers could find themselves without a lie-flat bed.

Avianca Continues New Business Class Rollout

Colombia-based Avianca is continuing the rollout of its more premium business-class experience onboard its narrow-body jets.

Back in August, the carrier announced it would introduce its retrofitted Airbus A320 jets with wider and more comfortable business class seats on more routes to the U.S.

The first 3 rows of these aircraft feature a blocked middle seat with a built-in shared console for drinks or personal belongings in flight.

Avianca has now confirmed that these aircraft will operate even more routes to and from Canada and the U.S.

As of November 1, business class passengers on the following routes will enjoy Avianca’s enhanced seating:

• Quito (UIO) to New York (JFK)
• Quayaquil (GYE) to Miami (MIA) and New York (JFK)

And the following routes before the end of the year:

• San Salvador, El Salvador (SAL) to Chicago (ORD) from December 2; to Las Vegas (LAS) from December 4; to Montréal (YUL) from December 2; and to Orlando (MCO) from December 1
• Medellin, Colombia (MDE) to Orlando from December 3

Avianca also promises complimentary in-flight meals and beverages in its reimagined short-haul business class cabins. This is a step up from the business class experience on its non-retrofitted aircraft where passengers in business class are charged for drinks and snacks.

Romanian Low-Cost Carrier Adds Second Flight to U.S.

Niche route announcements like this are my favorite things to write about in these roundups.

This week, we learned that Romanian low-cost airline HiSky will add Chicago as its second U.S. destination after New York’s JFK. This will be the first time an airline has flown passengers nonstop between Chicago and the Romanian capital city in 24 years.

“The Romanian and Moldovan community in Chicago is one of the largest and most established in the United States and, considering that nearly 25 years have passed since the last direct flights, we realize that an entire generation has lacked the chance to maintain this direct link with the homeland,” said Iulian Scorpan, HiSky’s CEO.

Starting June 4, 2026, the carrier will operate round-trip flights between Bucharest (OTP) and Chicago’s O’Hare on Thursdays and Sundays.

Despite marketing itself as a low-cost carrier, a return economy flight starts at $830. At around just $150 cheaper than a one-stop connection with a full-service carrier like Austrian Airlines, British Airways, or SWISS, HiSky could struggle to fill its planes.

SAS Lounge Access

Flying SAS (Scandinavian Airlines) is about to feel more premium for some passengers.

From October 1, the airline will offer its business class and elite status holder passengers access to 35 new lounges. This is a significant upgrade to the airline’s business experience, which only permits lounge access in its Scandinavian hub airports and long-haul destinations at present.

New lounge locations will be added throughout fall in key European destinations like Barcelona (BCN), Nice, France (NCE); Manchester, U.K. (MAN); and Milan (LIN).

“By partnering with established lounge operators, we can quickly give our customers access to a much broader network at important destinations across Europe and Scandinavia,” said Theres Briger, head of on-ground product at SAS.

This will make a huge difference for passengers in airports without SAS or SkyTeam lounges. Most of the lounges SAS is partnering with are also used as by members of lounge pass memberships. Examples of such are the ANA Lounge at Lisbon (LIS) and the SkyCourt Lounge at Budapest (BUD), which will accept eligible SAS passengers from October 1.

IndiGo Will Fly Narrow-Body Jets From Delhi to Europe

To finish this week’s round-up, we’re heading east — where new routes are set to connect Athens (ATH) with India.

Similar to the Qantas news from earlier, Indian low-cost carrier IndiGo will soon take delivery of it’s first Airbus A321XLR.

IndiGo will use these long-range, narrow-body aircraft to tap into newer markets in Asia and Europe that don’t have enough demand to send larger jets.

The first destination on its list is Athens (ATH), the Greek capital. From January, IndiGo will fly 3x weekly from Delhi (DEL) and 3x weekly from Mumbai (BOM).

True to its low-cost business model, IndiGo opted against lie-flat seats for its A321XLRs. Instead, it will offer 12 seats in the airline’s IndiGo Stretch cabin, which is similar to domestic first class. In economy, there are 171 seats in a regular 3-3 configuration.

Final Thoughts

It’s nice to have a week with all positive news. SAS will offer more lounge access, IndiGo and Qantas will soon fly their new Airbus A321XLRs, a niche Romanian airline will connect Chicago nonstop with Bucharest, and Avianca’s business-class passengers should soon notice a marked improvement in seats and service on flights to the U.S. Even Allegiant switching from LAX to Burbank will likely make for a better all-round experience for many passengers.

As always, we’ll be back next week with more.