On June 6, Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) marked a major milestone with the launch of Aeroméxico’s inaugural nonstop flight to Mexico City. With this addition, Aeroméxico reconnects PHL with Mexico City via daily, year-round nonstop service, for the first time since January 2019.
Leaders from Aeromexico, the Department of Aviation and the Consulate of Mexico of Philadelphia opened the event with remarks emphasizing the cultural, economic, and personal significance of reinstating direct flights between Mexico City and Philadelphia.
Department of Aviation CEO Atif Saeed said, “It’s not every day we welcome a new international carrier to PHL. We are thrilled to welcome Aeromexico with this new nonstop daily service to Mexico City. A strong partnership of business and community leaders were instrumental in building the case for this service and the economic impact of this flight is estimated to be more than $30 million.” He also noted that the flight comes at a great time as Mexico City is a fellow host city of the FIFA World Cup 2026 and will host the first match of the games. 
Ivan Vukov, Aeromexico’s USA sales director added, “During 2024, the Aeroméxico -Delta alliance launched 28 scheduled and seasonal routes in the US-Mexico transborder market. This year, we continue growing, offering even more destinations for our customers to travel seamlessly between both countries. Philadelphia, the largest underserved market in the U.S. from Mexico City, will be Aeroméxico's 26th destination in the U.S, and will be served with a comfortable and eco-friendly Boeing 737-Max aircraft, with a capacity of 166 seats. We are thrilled to offer our customers in the Philadelphia region the most convenient and non-stop air service to Mexico.”
“We are very excited and happy to have this direct flight to Mexico City, connecting two beautiful World Heritage cities,” said Carlos Obrador, Consul General of Mexican Consulate in Philadelphia. “With the upcoming World Cup being hosted across our three countries, including Philadelphia and Mexico City, we expect to see many more visitors traveling between our cities. This new route will help us get to know each other better and build bridges of understanding, culture, and tolerance. It’s a beautiful step forward.”
To offer passengers a warm welcome and a festive sendoff to this new international route, PHL and Aeromexico organized the inaugural flight celebration at the departure gate in Terminal A-East. The event was filled with live music from the Pedro Villaseñor Mariachi Band and authentic Mexican cuisine including chicken tacos, torta de huevo con frijoles, con queso fresco, and churros with chocolate and fresh fruit.
The World Affairs Council helped make the celebration more fun with a cultural stations with international candy for travelers to enjoy and phrases in Spanish and cultural tips for visiting Mexico.
The ribbon-cutting ceremony took place prior to the flight’s on-time departure to Mexico City at 10 am. Among the passengers onboard the first flight was a delegation including representatives and members from the City of Philadelphia Department of Commerce, the Department of Aviation, the US-Mexico Chamber of Commerce of New York and PA, the City Representative’s Office, the PA State Department of Community and Economic Development, the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, the PHL-Convention and Visitor’s Bureau, and the Consulate of Mexico in Philadelphia and the World Affairs Council.
