DUBAI, UAE / RankWire.AI / – Dubai-based airline flydubai announced a substantial increase in its European flight offerings on Wednesday, aiming to meet the rising international travel demand by adding more frequencies to major Italian hubs. As detailed by Emirates News Agency, flydubai enhances its operations in Italy with increased flights to Milan-Bergamo and Naples, strengthening direct links between the United Arab Emirates and Southern Europe. Starting July 31, 2026, the airline will operate a twice-daily service connecting Dubai International Airport with Milan-Bergamo Airport and will also boost its flights to Naples International Airport to a daily schedule.
This expanded timetable broadens flydubai’s overall presence in Italy, which already includes three weekly flights to Catania Airport in Sicily and twice-weekly seasonal summer services to Olbia Costa Smeralda Airport in Sardinia, operating until the end of August. Alongside these increases, the airline has outlined operational adjustments due to scheduled infrastructure upgrades in Southern Italy. During planned maintenance at Naples International Airport, flydubai will temporarily reroute its daily service from Dubai International Airport to Salerno Costa d’Amalfi and Cilento Airport from November 1 to November 30, 2026. Regular flights to Naples are set to resume on December 1, 2026, with current bookings automatically transferred to the Salerno route during this period.
Flydubai Expands Flight Frequencies to Prominent Italian Cities
The increased routes to Milan-Bergamo and Naples continue to benefit from the existing codeshare agreement between flydubai and Emirates, the international flag carrier. This partnership offers travelers integrated itineraries, unified ticketing, synchronized schedules, and through-checked baggage across both airline networks. Leveraging the combined network via Dubai’s central hub, passengers connecting from Italian airports gain seamless access to long-haul destinations across Africa, Asia, and the Middle East, including direct routes to Kenya, Oman, the Maldives, Sri Lanka, and Zanzibar.
This capacity expansion aligns with broader trends in the aviation industry across the Middle East and Europe, where international passenger numbers have steadily increased in the post-pandemic recovery phase. The additional flights support the growing bilateral trade, investment, and tourism exchanges between the United Arab Emirates and Italy. The double-daily service to Milan-Bergamo provides increased capacity for business travelers heading to Italy’s primary financial and industrial hub, while the daily flights to Southern Italy accommodate rising seasonal demand among tourists visiting historic sites along the Amalfi Coast.
Ghaith Al Ghaith, CEO of flydubai, commented on the network growth, emphasizing that Naples and Milan have become vital gateways within the airline’s European network. He pointed out that maintaining consistent regional access remains a priority, along with a long-term commitment to expanding connectivity to underserved markets. Al Ghaith also noted that recent market data shows flydubai is strengthening its presence in Italy through strategic increases in flight frequency, addressing the rising passenger flows between the UAE and Italy as travel volumes accelerate heading into winter.
Salerno Route as a Temporary Alternative During Maintenance Period
Jeyhun Efendi, the Divisional Senior Vice President of Commercial Operations and E-commerce at flydubai, highlighted that boosting direct flights to Naples and Milan-Bergamo underscores the Italian market’s strategic importance for the airline. He pointed out that non-stop connections enable travelers to utilize the combined reach of flydubai and Emirates to access key global destinations seamlessly via Dubai. The airline’s commercial leadership confirmed that fleet and operations teams are prepared to handle the increased daily flights, ensuring reliable service across passenger and cargo channels.
The recent operational enhancements in Italy are part of flydubai’s ongoing expansion strategy, which includes fleet growth and network development. As the airline continues to acquire modern narrow-body aircraft, further frequency increases are targeted on high-demand European routes. These expanded Italian services reinforce Dubai’s role as a global aviation hub, facilitating smooth passenger and freight movements between European origins and expanding destinations across the Middle East, Indian Subcontinent, and East Africa.