British Airways announces major winter 2026 expansion

British Airways has announced a significant planned expansion to its network for winter 2026, with the addition of two new destinations, Melbourne in Australia and Colombo in Sri Lanka.

New Destinations
- Melbourne, Australia: Daily flights from London Heathrow via Kuala Lumpur starting 9 January 2027.
- Colombo, Sri Lanka: Three weekly flights from London Gatwick starting 23 October 2026 (winter season only).

Frequency Increases on Popular Routes
- Cape Town: Third daily flight from December.
- Tokyo (Haneda): Double daily from March.
- Barbados: New daily Gatwick service from October, with onward flights to Grenada, Guyana, and Tobago.
- San José (Costa Rica): Increased to five per week, now from Heathrow.
- Kingston (Jamaica) and Punta Cana (Dominican Republic): Up to four per week.
- US routes: New Orleans (4 per week), Baltimore (daily), Houston (12 per week).
- Delhi: Maintains three daily flights.
- Abu Dhabi: Daily service resumes from 25 October.

Short-Term Adjustments (Middle East conflict impact)
- Seven extra return services to Bangkok and Singapore in March.
- Flights to Amman, Bahrain, Dubai, and Tel Aviv cancelled until 31 May 2026.
- Flights to Doha cancelled until 30 April 2026.

Travel Trends
- Surge in holiday searches: Caribbean (+50–63%), Indian Ocean (+32–42%), Canary Islands (+38–50%).
- Flight searches: Maldives (+74%), St Lucia (+26%), Barbados (+18%).

This expansion represents a 9% growth in BA’s long-haul network compared to winter 2025, with a clear focus on leisure destinations and alternative routes due to Middle East disruptions