Brussel Airlines connects the United States with Brussels in Belgium. Passengers receive a truly unique Belgian experience as soon as they step on the plane.
Brussels isn’t a high volume destination for travel from the United States. That likely explains the lack of American air travel service to Belgium’s capital city.
But, Brussels Airlines provides year round service from New York City. It also has a codeshare with United Airlines, making it a great option for you if you want to fly to Brussels.
In this article, we’ll explore the airline’s service, route network, onboard experience, and whether it’s the best choice for your transatlantic journey.
Who is Brussels Airlines exactly?
Brussels Airlines was founded in 2006 when Virgin Express and SN Brussel Airlines merged to take over the bankrupt airline, Sabena. Sabena was the national flag carrier of Belgium at the time. Brussels Airlines was formed from the merger and soon took over the reins, being the national flag carrier ever since.
Today, Brussels Airlines flies to over 90 destinations all over Europe, Africa and North American. They are owned by Lufthansa Group, and headquartered at their hub airport, Brussels Airports.
The airline takes great pride in being a true representation of its country. It functions as the one of the gateways into Belgium, as well as a vehicle to bring the world to Belgium.
The whole product experience is Belgium themed. From its cuisine given on board its flights. To their aircraft liveries that represent a famous Belgian person, team, or event.
Where in The United States Does Brussels Airlines Have Flights to Brussels?
As the airline grew during the 2010s, they welcomed service back to the United States from Brussels. Service to the United States paused after Sabena imploded. In 2012, they began operating their Airbus A330 on flights to both New York City and Washington.
New York
Brussel Airlines main service to the United States is between Brussels and New York City. The airline offers a daily flight to/from New York City via John F Kennedy International Airport. The outbound flight from NYC is Brussels Airlines Flight 502. The inbound flight from Belgium is flight 501.
The aircraft of choice on this route is the Airbus A330-300. The A330 is a fine aircraft choice for this transatlantic route. Airlines like Delta and Aer Lingus also use the A330 for transatlantic routes.
From Brussels Airport, New York City is the top ranked international destination. Brussels Airlines dedicates well over 200,000 seats per year on this route pairing.
Factoring in United’s service from Brussels (whom Brussels Airlines codeshares with) in 2018, nearly 473,000 passengers flew between New York City and Brussels. That was ahead of the number of passengers who flew between Brussels and Dubai, which came in second place.
While it appears that Brussels Airlines has scaled down service since 2018, this is a very lucrative route for the airline. The scale down likely was due to the effects of the pandemic, and plane inventory challenges.
Washington D.C
The only other destination that Brussels Airlines offers service from to Belgium is Washington D.C. From Dulles International Airport, you can find once daily flights between Brussels and the nation’s capital. This route is offered all year round, and flown three times per week. The Brussels bound flight is Brussels Flight 516. The inbound flight to Washington D.C is flight 515.
This is an interesting departure city for Brussels Airlines. Considering that Dulles is one of the primary international airports on the East Coast, why would Brussels consider flying so close to another East Coast city like it’s New York JFK – Brussels operation?
The answer probably has to do with Washington Dulles being a major hub for United Airlines which Brussels codeshares with. It’s likely that Brussels Airlines needed an east coast airport to promote an easy connection experience. They were unable to get landing slots at Newark Liberty International Airport, another United hub.
The next nearest United hub is Washington Dulles. With flights connecting just about everywhere in the Domestic United States and internationally, Brussels is able to offer their passengers seamless flight experiences as promised in their codeshare.
Alternatives to Brussels Airlines’ USA Service
Codeshare Agreements
Brussels Airlines is a part of the Star Alliance airline group. Star Alliance is considered the largest airline partnership in the world. The partnership features 25 airlines. These airlines touch nearly 1150 different airports around the world.
The benefit of Star Alliance for passengers is to ease seamless international travel. Passengers can get frequent flyer miles amongst partner airlines and have access to various lounges at departure airports.
For American passengers, the only American member of the Star Alliance is United Airlines. Which explains why Brussels Airlines codeshare with United and fly from their Washington Dulles Hub.
Main U.S Competitors
The only direct U.S competitor to Brussels Airlines and it’s service to Brussels, Belgium is Delta Air Lines. Delta flies nonstop to Brussels, competing directly with Brussel Airlines from New York JFK Airport. They also have new service from Atlanta starting up in June 2025.
Delta flies to Brussels four times per week out of JFK. That means that Brussels Airlines offers more seats per month than Delta. However, with more options for connection with Delta in the United States, Delta may understandably get more of the U.S market share than Brussels Airlines.
What To Expect Flying With Brussels Airlines?
Cabin Configurations
On Brussels Airlines Airbus A330-300s, there are three seating classes that passengers can purchase. You can opt for either their economy class, premium economy class, or their business class.
Economy Class
Brussels Airlines devotes 226 seats to their economy class on their Airbus A330-300. These seats are set up in a 2 x 4 x 2 row. The airline offers passengers a seat pitch of 32 inches and a seat width of 17.5 inches.
In comparison to Delta’s economy product offered on their flights to Brussels, there is no clear winner. Delta offers 31-32 inches of seat pitch and 17.9 inches of seat width. But the clear advantage that Delta has is that their highest economy seat density layout only has 165 seats. And these seats are set up in 2 x 3 x 2 rows. This promotes a roomier cabin experience. More so than Brussels.
Premium Economy Class
The premium economy class seating product isn’t much different from its economy class product. Brussels Airlines designates 32 seats to their premium economy product. The only difference between their premium economy seat and standard economy seat is the seat pitch. In premium economy, passengers will get two extra inches of pitch. They get 34 inches of seat pitch instead of 32.
Delta not only has more premium economy seats on their Boeing 767s. They also offer one more inch of seat pitch than Brussels. And these seats are configured in a 2 x 3 x 2 instead of a 2 x 4 x 2 like Brussels Airlines.
Business Class
Brussels Airlines business class on their Airbus A330-300s is not too shabby. The airline sets up 30 lie flat seats in alternating rows configured 1 x 2 x 1 and 2 x 1 x 2, respectively. Each seat gets up to 42 inches of seat pitch. When lying flat, the bed stretches upwards to 70 inches. The width of the seat/bed is 20 inches.
This is comparable to Delta’s business product. While on Delta, business class passengers do get more seat pitch (77 to 81 inches, and one more inch of seat width, Brussels does have more business class seats available. Delta only has 26 seats in their business class.
Brussels Airlines’ Inflight Services
On Demand Inflight Entertainment
Brussels Airlines utilizes a seat back inflight entertainment system. This system is proven to be very useful because WIFI is not available on these flights. The airline owns a catalog of the latest movies, tv shows, and music that passengers can browse.
This is one of the biggest gripes about Brussels Airlines mentioned in reviews. The lack of WIFI makes the airline a tough choice especially for long haul trips from the United States to Belgium. American passengers may look to fly with Delta or United to capitalize on their superior inflight entertainment system and WIFI capabilities.
Dining
There is meal service on Brussels Airlines flights. They offer snacks, meals, and beverages. The cuisine is quite standard. The meal offerings change week to week. There are also options suited just for children and anyone that has special dietary requests.
It is best to check with the airline before you fly to get an idea of what’s to come cuisine wise on flights. Six to seven hours flying between the United States and Belgium is a long time to fly while hungry.
Our Thoughts On Brussels Airlines’ Service From The U.S to Brussels
Brussels Airlines is a worthy airline to explore if you are an American looking to fly to Brussels. Brussels is not one of those high volume destinations in Europe frequented by American air carriers. They opt to fly to more of the larger cities in Europe like London, and Paris. National flag carriers like Brussels Airlines to Belgium are a very reliable option for finding consistent flights to these smaller, less popular cities.
Brussels Airlines Shortfall in Inflight Product
While Brussels Airlines is a reliable method of travel for people seeking to go to Brussels, there are some areas where the airline seems to fall short. Compared to United or Delta service to Brussels.
Brussels Airlines only flies from New York – JFK and from Washington D.C . While this makes perfect sense, Delta and United also have service from the same exact or from nearby airports. Both even take service to the next level as United offers flights to Brussels from Chicago, and Delta from Atlanta.
While the codeshare with United helps, what’s stopping American passengers looking to go to Brussels from flying with United? You will still receive the same frequent flyer miles.
Based on this point alone, understandably Brussels Airlines U.S – Belgium service likely benefits United States bound passengers from Belgium more so than American passengers going to Belgium.
Lack of WIFI
Another gripe is the lack of WIFI on board their flights. It’s hard to compete with Delta or semi-compete with United if you don’t have WIFI available to use in your cabin. Flights between the United States and Brussels take 7+ hours. While, yes the airline has a robust entertainment catalog, a smaller advantage like having WIFI on your flights like Delta or United can make all the difference.
But if You’re Looking for a True Beligan Experience
Brussels Airlines definitely makes the bulk of their revenue from flights within Europe to Brussels. However, they still field a relatively competitive long haul product for the American market. If you are looking to get the full Belgium experience starting when you hop on the plane, Brussels Airlines may be for you.
Sources
https://www.planespotters.net/airline/Brussels-Airlines
https://www.brusselsairlines.com/us/en/homepage
https://seatguru.com/airlines/Brussels_Airlines/information.php
https://seatguru.com/airlines/Delta_Airlines/information.php
https://www.staralliance.com/en
https://www.offthebeatenpoints.com/review-brussels-airlines-business-class-a330-300-bru-jfk/
