Romania’s boutique low-cost carrier HiSky is set to launch non-stop flights between Bucharest and Chicago in the summer of 2026, reviving a transatlantic link that has been dormant for over two decades.
Starting June 4, 2026, HiSky will connect Bucharest’s Henri Coandă International Airport (OTP) with Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD) twice weekly, on Thursdays and Sundays.
This move makes HiSky the only airline offering direct flights between Romania and the United States, restoring service on a route last operated by Romanian flag-carrier Tarom over 24 years ago.
Route Details and Schedule
HiSky’s Airbus A330-200 will be deployed on the new Bucharest–Chicago route.
HiSky plans to operate the Bucharest–Chicago flights with an Airbus A330-200 wide-body jet.
Departures from Bucharest are scheduled at 09:00 local time, arriving in Chicago at approximately 11:50 the same day, while the return leg departs O’Hare at 13:20 and lands in Bucharest at 07:10 the next morning.
The flight duration westbound is about 10 hours 50 minutes (eastbound 9h50m).
Tickets have already gone on sale, with one-way fares starting around €349.99 in economy and €1,199.99 in business class – a pricing that reflects HiSky’s low-cost model even on long-haul routes.
The Chicago service will be HiSky’s second U.S. destination, complementing its existing Bucharest–New York JFK route that launched in 2024.
With only two weekly rotations to Chicago initially, there remains capacity for HiSky to continue its New York flights as well in summer 2026.
HiSky currently has a single A330-200 (leased from Air Lease Corp.) in its fleet for long-haul operations, alongside narrow-body Airbus A320 family jets, so the airline may adjust schedules or acquire additional aircraft if both U.S. routes run concurrently.
Flight timings have been strategically set to maximize connectivity. HiSky has aligned the Bucharest–Chicago schedule with its domestic and regional network so that passengers from other Romanian cities – such as Cluj, Timișoara, Oradea, and Iași – as well as from Chișinău, Moldova and even Tel Aviv, Israel, can conveniently connect in Bucharest for the U.S. flight.
According to the airline, its timetable from those cities will be adjusted so that travelers can book a single-ticket journey with checked baggage through to Chicago, and total travel time (including the Bucharest transfer) will not exceed 13 hours from cities like Chișinău.
This effectively turns Bucharest’s OTP airport into a mini hub for transatlantic travel in the region , offering a one-stop alternative to the large Western European hubs that Eastern European travelers traditionally used for flights to the U.S.
Why This New Route Matters
For travelers in Romania and neighboring Eastern European countries, HiSky’s new Chicago connection opens up faster and more convenient transatlantic travel options that were previously missing.
No airline has flown nonstop between Romania and Chicago since the late 1990s – almost 25 years ago – meaning generations of Romanian and Moldovan diaspora in the U.S. Midwest have never had a direct flight home.
Chicago is known for having one of the largest Romanian-American communities in the United States, and this route will reconnect families and communities by eliminating the need for connecting flights via London, Frankfurt, or other hubs.
“The Romanian and Moldovan community in Chicago is one of the largest and most established in the United States and, considering that nearly 25 years have passed since the last direct flights, we realize that an entire generation has lacked the chance to maintain this direct link with the homeland,” said HiSky CEO Iulian Scorpan.
Beyond serving diaspora travelers, the airline is targeting tourists and business travelers as well.
Chicago is a major global city and economic center, and a nonstop link from Bucharest could stimulate two-way tourism and commerce.
Romanian officials have noted a recent rebound in demand for travel to the U.S.; in 2024, Romania–U.S. passenger traffic reached about 455,000 two-way travelers, up 15% from pre-pandemic 2019 levels.
By offering a direct flight, HiSky can tap into this demand and potentially offer lower fares than legacy carriers, making Chicago–Eastern Europe air travel more affordable.
Passengers flying HiSky to Chicago will benefit from shorter total journey times (with the 10-hour nonstop replacing itineraries that might otherwise take 15+ hours with layovers) and the comfort of wide-body amenities.
Notably, HiSky’s A330 features both economy and a modest business class cabin, allowing the airline to cater to higher-end leisure and corporate travelers while still being a low-cost operator.
This hybrid approach – similar to other long-haul low-cost carriers – could improve cost and convenience for travelers who have been underserved in this market.
Transatlantic Travel Expands Eastward
HiSky’s upcoming Bucharest–Chicago route is part of a broader trend of transatlantic expansion into Central and Eastern Europe.
As the demand for travel between Eastern Europe and North America grows, both local and foreign carriers are adding new nonstop routes that once seemed unlikely.
In fact, HiSky’s own transatlantic foray began in June 2024 with Bucharest–New York JFK, which marked the first nonstop flight from Romania to the U.S. in over a decade (since Delta’s short-lived Bucharest–JFK service ended in 2009).
Now, with Chicago launching, HiSky will simultaneously operate two U.S. routes – a distinction no other Romanian airline has held in the modern era.
This eastward shift is evident across the region. According to OAG data, there were 13 nonstop routes between the U.S. and Central/Eastern Europe in the summer 2025 season, with nearly 1 million two-way seats, up from 864,000 the previous year.
Carriers like Poland’s LOT have steadily grown their U.S. network (including multiple flights to Chicago, given Chicago’s large Polish diaspora), and Serbia’s national airline Air Serbia now flies directly to both New York and Chicago as of 2023.
U.S. airlines are also eyeing Eastern European capitals: for example, American Airlines announced new flights from Philadelphia to Prague and Budapest, slated to launch soon.
In this competitive context, HiSky is positioning itself as a leading Eastern European operator for transatlantic routes.
The airline was founded only in 2019 (starting operations in 2021) and has quickly grown to become Romania’s second-largest airline by passengers, after the national carrier Tarom.
Its decision to acquire a long-range Airbus A330 and venture into U.S. routes was seen as bold for a young airline, but so far it appears to be paying off. “What some called risk, we called vision, and it turns out we were right,” CEO Scorpan remarked, referencing the success of the New York service and the confidence to add Chicago.
By directly connecting Romania to major U.S. hubs, HiSky is not only filling a void left by larger airlines but also turning Bucharest into a regional gateway.
Travelers from across Romania, Moldova, and even the Balkans or Middle East can now consider connecting through Bucharest for their transatlantic trips, rather than backtracking west to Paris, Amsterdam or London.
Outlook for Summer 2026
When the Bucharest–Chicago flights take off in June 2026, it will mark a historic milestone: the return of an uninterrupted Romania–U.S. link that had been absent for almost a quarter century.
For travelers, this means shorter journeys and new opportunities – whether it’s Midwestern Americans exploring the landscapes and culture of Romania and Eastern Europe, or Romanian families visiting relatives in Illinois without a layover.
It also symbolizes how even smaller carriers can reshape travel patterns: HiSky’s low-cost, transatlantic experiment is expanding the map of new transatlantic routes in 2026 beyond the traditional airline strongholds.
If the Chicago route succeeds, it could encourage further route expansion, such as additional U.S. cities or higher frequency, and potentially spur Tarom or other regional airlines to revisit long-haul operations.
In the meantime, HiSky has firmly put Romania back on the nonstop transatlantic map, bridging Bucharest and Chicago with a direct flight and providing Eastern European travelers a welcome new option for crossing the Atlantic.
Sources: HiSky, Aviation Week, AirlineGeeks, and One Mile at a Time confirm the Bucharest–Chicago launch, schedule, and regional impact (HiSky, Aviation Week, AirlineGeeks, One Mile at a Time).