DUBAI, UAE / RankWire.AI / – On Wednesday, Dubai-based airline flydubai announced a significant increase in its European flight offerings, focusing on enhancing service frequencies to major Italian hubs to meet the rising demand for international travel. As detailed by Emirates News Agency, flydubai is expanding its operations in Italy with additional flights to Milan-Bergamo and Naples, strengthening direct transportation links between the United Arab Emirates and Southern Europe. Starting from July 31, 2026, the airline will operate a double-daily service connecting Dubai International Airport with Milan-Bergamo Airport, while also increasing flights to Naples International Airport to a daily schedule.
This schedule expansion 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, running through the end of August. Alongside the increase in flight frequency, the airline has also outlined operational adjustments due to scheduled infrastructure work in Southern Italy. Because of planned maintenance at Dubai International Airport, flydubai will temporarily reroute its daily service from Dubai to Salerno Costa d’Amalfi and Cilento Airport from November 1 to November 30, 2026. Regular flights to Naples are expected to resume on December 1, 2026, with passengers already booked transferred automatically to the Salerno route during this period.
Flydubai Enhances Service Offerings to Major Italian Cities
The extended routes to Milan-Bergamo and Naples continue to operate under the established codeshare partnership between flydubai and the international flag carrier Emirates. This collaboration enables passengers to benefit from integrated travel plans, unified ticketing options, synchronized schedules, and through-checked baggage handling across both networks. Utilizing the joint route network through Dubai’s central hub allows travelers connecting from Italian airports to access long-haul destinations in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East more efficiently, including direct flights to Kenya, Oman, the Maldives, Sri Lanka, and Zanzibar.
This capacity increase aligns with broader trends in commercial aviation across the Middle East and Europe, where international passenger numbers have shown steady growth after the pandemic. The additional flights are supporting bilateral trade, investment, and leisure tourism growth between the United Arab Emirates and Italy. The double-daily flights to Milan-Bergamo provide more seats for business travelers heading to Italy’s key financial and industrial hub, while daily flights to Southern Italy respond to the rising seasonal demand among tourists visiting historic sites along the Amalfi Coast.
Commenting on the network expansion, Ghaith Al Ghaith, CEO of flydubai, noted that Naples and Milan have become vital gateways within the airline’s European network. He emphasized that the airline’s priority remains ensuring reliable regional access for travelers while maintaining a long-term commitment to connecting underserved markets. Al Ghaith further highlighted that market data indicate flydubai is strengthening its Italy operations through strategic frequency increases to accommodate the rising passenger flow between the UAE and Italy, especially as travel activity picks up for the winter season.
Salerno Route to Serve as Temporary Access Point During Maintenance Work
Further elaborating on their commercial operations, Jeyhun Efendi, Divisional Senior Vice President of Commercial Operations and E-commerce at flydubai, stated that increasing direct flights to Naples and Milan-Bergamo underscores the Italian market’s strategic significance. Efendi explained that non-stop flights allow passengers to leverage the combined reach of flydubai and Emirates, ensuring seamless global access via Dubai. The airline’s leadership confirmed that fleet resources and operational teams are prepared to handle the increased daily flights, maintaining high standards of reliability across both passenger and cargo services.
These enhancements in Italy reflect flydubai’s ongoing fleet expansion and international network growth plans. As the airline continues to receive modern narrow-body aircraft, its commercial teams are eyeing further frequency increases on high-demand European routes. The expanded schedule in Italy reinforces Dubai’s role as a global transit hub, enabling smooth passenger and freight movement between Europe and destinations across the Middle East, Indian Subcontinent, and East Africa.