The first nonstop passenger flight between London and South Carolina is due at Charleston International Airport on Thursday night, opening the state’s first transatlantic route.
British Airways Flight 221 leaves London’s Heathrow Airport on Thursday for Charleston, according to the Charleston County Aviation Authority. After it lands, passengers in Charleston will board the same Boeing 787 Dreamliner for the first outbound flight to London, scheduled to depart at 11:20 p.m.
“Years of relationship building and months of preparations led us to this momentous occasion,” said Paul Campbell, CEO of the aviation authority. “Loved ones will be able to reconnect more easily while business travelers anticipate higher productivity and new opportunities.”
The schedule
British Airways will fly the route twice a week, on Thursdays and Sundays. Flights leave Charleston at 11:20 p.m. and arrive in London at 12:20 p.m. the next day, according to the airport. Flights from London leave at 5:30 p.m. and reach Charleston at 9:30 p.m. local time.
The airline is using a Boeing 787-8 with 214 seats: 35 in Club World business class, 25 in World Traveller Plus premium economy and 154 in World Traveller economy. When British Airways announced the route in October, it said the summer service would run through Oct. 24.
“I am really excited about this new service between Charleston and London, two world class cities with rich histories and strong cultures,” said Simon Brooks, British Airways’ senior vice president of sales for North America.
British Airways, airport and community leaders planned a red-carpet welcome, a ribbon cutting, music and British-themed decorations for Thursday night’s arriving and departing passengers, with a Facebook Live broadcast on Explore Charleston’s page.
What officials expect
The flight is projected to generate about $20.2 million a year in economic impact through new spending, job creation and related tourism activity, according to the airport.
Officials have also pitched the route as a business tool. There are 143 companies in the Charleston area’s three counties with headquarters in the United Kingdom or Europe, according to a fact sheet the airport released when the route was announced. Travelers can connect at Heathrow to more than 130 destinations in Europe, Asia and beyond, according to the fact sheet.
“This is ultimately a game-changer,” South Carolina Commerce Secretary Bobby Hitt said in October. He said the connection to western Europe “makes the state a more attractive destination to companies that are looking to locate headquarters facilities or other office operations.”
Duane Parrish, director of the South Carolina Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism, said the effect will reach beyond the coast.
“The planes may land in Charleston but the impact extends well outside of the Lowcountry,” Parrish said. “South Carolina’s popularity with overseas travelers is strong and growing.”
Elliott Summey, chairman of Charleston County Council, said the service strengthens the region’s ability “to compete in a global economy.”
A Dreamliner link
British Airways chose the 787 for the route in what the airport called “a unique nod to the Charleston area’s recent economic development.” Boeing South Carolina, one of the 787’s two final assembly sites, sits on about 730 acres next to the airport in North Charleston, according to the airport.
When it announced the route, British Airways said it would take delivery of 12 new Boeing 787-10s between 2020 and 2023, and it noted that Boeing builds the 787-10 at its Charleston-area factory.
A record year behind it
The new route comes after the airport’s busiest year. Charleston International handled a record 4.47 million passengers in 2018, according to the authority, which is in the midst of a master campus plan to expand passenger amenities, parking and support space for airlines.
Helen Hill, CEO of Explore Charleston and vice chair of the aviation authority, said the flight took work from local, regional and state groups.
“More flights to more destinations enhance the quality of life for citizens across the region and serve as a catalyst for new economic development,” Hill said.
“We are honored to celebrate this endorsement of the greater Charleston area and our incredible people,” said Michael Tall, chairman of Explore Charleston’s board of governors.
