List of Fifth Freedom Routes (Part 1)

Hello, everyone! On this post, I will create a list of some fifth freedom routes and explain them.

Some of you may not know what a fifth freedom route is. According to Wendover Productions, a fifth freedom route is the ability for an airline to carry passengers between two foreign countries (from the airline’s country of registration POV) on a route that terminates or commences in their home country. If you are still not clear, look at some of the examples; I’m sure you will get it.

Fifth freedom routes are also a fun way to travel between two countries while getting a taste of another country.

Air India: Newark – London Heathrow

Air India flies 3x weekly fromAhmedabad to Newark via London Heathrow, and you are able to book just the Newark-London leg. These flights are operated by one of Air India’s relatively modern 787 Dreamliner aircraft. Air India is a Star Alliance member.

Emirates: New York – Milan

Emirates flies 4x daily flights between Dubai and New York (3 to JFK, and one to Newark), and two of them are fifth freedom routes: New York to Milan and Newark to Athens (see next post). This flight is labeled as Flight 205 from Milan to New York and 206 from New York to Milan. It is run by one of Emirates’ famous A380s.

SWISS: Dubai – Muscat

Swiss flies flights from Zurich to Dubai to Muscat aboard their A330s. This is a very short hop but is still a great opportunity to try either their economy, business, or even their first class for a relatively cheap price. Swiss is a Star Alliance member.

Cathay Pacific: New York – Vancouver

Cathay Pacific flies one of their 777-300er aircraft from Hong Kong to New York JFK via Vancouver. You can earn OneWorld airline miles on Cathay. They also have a first class cabin (although the prices will likely be higher than the above Swiss route) and a very comfortable reverse herringbone business class product (the same as on some of American Airlines’ aircraft).

Air New Zealand: Los Angeles – London

Air New Zealand runs an Auckland – Los Angeles – London flight in which it is possible to book just the London – Los Angeles flight. They run these flights with their 777-300er aircraft. The airline is a Star Alliance member.

Air China: Houston – Panama

This flight is the newest fifth freedom flight on this list. It is flown from Beijing – Houston – Panama. According to The Points Guy, this specific segment started on April 5 and is flown 5x weekly. Air China is a Star Alliance member.

That will conclude this list. There are still many more fifth freedom routes, which is why I will be making a Part 2 very soon. Thanks for reading, and come back for a new post new week!