Direct flights cancelled from major UK airport as European airline ditches popular route

A European airline has confirmed it will stop direct journeys between two cities come autumn. Once operating a service of six flights per week, the now-scrapped flight was the only direct route connecting one major UK city to Brussels. In July 2025, Brussels Airlines announced it will stop direct journeys between the Belgian capital of Brussels and Birmingham, UK.

The last Brussels Airlines flight departing on this route will take off this October. The decision will allow Brussels Airlines to focus on other services. A spokesperson for Brussels Airlines told Sun Travel: "Like many airlines, we constantly review our network. At the beginning of every season, some destinations might see higher frequencies and we might decrease capacity to some other markets.

"In that light, we have indeed decided not to offer Birmingham anymore as of Winter 25. We remain active on other routes in the United Kingdom, such as Manchester (13 flights weekly) and London Heathrow (20 flights weekly) and Edinburgh."

Flights to Birmingham were only just reinstated in October 2024, but have now been dropped from Brussels Airlines’ Winter 2025/26 and Summer 2026 schedules.

Travellers departing from Birmingham will now have to fly to Brussels via a connecting flight from Birmingham - as opposed to the previous 70-minute direct journey. Alternatively, travellers can depart from Birmingham and reach Brussels via Munich.

According to Visit Britain, travellers from Belgium made 19.2 million outbound visits to the UK in 2024, with a total international tourism expenditure of US$27billion (£20bn).

Additionally, in 2023, the UK welcomed 867,000 visitors from Belgium, with an average spend of £555 per visit. Conversely, around 820,000 British tourists visit Brussels every year, to see famous landmarks including the Grand Place and the Maison du Roi. Other big draws to the Belgian capital include the local culinary specialties.

Moules-frites - aka mussels and fries - as well as Belgian waffles and traditional chocolate are all part of the city’s unique appeal. That said, Brussels is not the only Belgian city worth visiting.

In 2024, Bruges was named the best one to visit from the UK by train by consumer champions Which?. Approximately a 3.5-hour train ride from London, Bruges makes for a great alternative for Brits looking to see another side of Belgium.

Despite the disappointing news about the Birmingham-to-Brussels service, Brussels Airlines has said it is ready for a busy summer holiday season. The airline will operate a fleet of 50 aircraft, compared to 44 aircraft in summer 2024, and transport nearly 2 million passengers.

Brussels Airlines serves 12 Spanish destinations, with Malaga, Barcelona and Alicante as most popular ones for passengers traveling from Belgium. The airline also notes the popularity of services to Greece and Italy.