No-frills Condor Airlines to begin Seattle-Frankfurt flights

Travel to Europe could get cheaper next summer when Condor Airlines, a no-frills German airline, begins twice-weekly nonstop service between Seattle and Frankfurt.

Condor (formerly Thomas Cook Airlines) will fly on Mondays and Thursdays to and from Frankfurt, starting June 23, with connections there to other cities in Europe, Asia, South America and Africa.

Like Icelandair, which started nonstop flights from Seattle to Reykjavik last year, Condor, owned by the Thomas Cook Group, (www12.condor.com) offers low-fare, no-frills alternatives to the major airlines on international routes. It will compete with Lufthansa which flies daily nonstops to Frankfurt from Seattle.

Service will be aboard Boeing 767-300s in three classes, economy, premium economy and comfort class. A check on its website showed a round-trip fare of $946 (including taxes) for a flight departing Thursday, June 23 and returning on Monday, July 11.

Condor's announcement adds to previously announced expansion of international service from Seattle next year. Delta Airlines plans to add a second daily flight to Amsterdam in June, and Icelandair will add a sixth weekly flight to Reykjavik in May.

cpucci@seattletimes.com