Thomas Cook Airlines @FlyTC_ has today announced that, for Summer 2015, it will operate flights from London Stansted to Orlando, Cancun and Las Vegas, becoming the only airline to offer a long haul programme from the airport.

Last year, Thomas Cook Airlines announced that from this June it will operate two aircraft from Stansted – using the larger Airbus A321 replacing the existing A320 – bringing an increased amount of flights and holidays which are now on sale for holidaymakers from the East and South East of England to a range of new destinations.

With long haul flights on a larger Airbus A330, the additional flights in 2015 will begin on the weekend of Friday 17 July – with two flights a week to Orlando and one per week to both Cancun and Las Vegas – and continue up until the 17 August 2015.

Christoph Debus, CEO Thomas Cook Airlines said, "It’s great news that we are able to continue to grow our partnership with London Stansted – and it’s even better news for holidaymakers in the East and South East of England as they can now fly long haul from their local airport.

“With yet more flights travelling further afield, to popular long haul resorts, we’re looking forward to building on the continued success of our Stansted fleet, meeting the growing demand from the region for more choice from airlines operating from the airport.”

Stansted Airport’s Managing Director, Andrew Harrison, said, "We’re delighted Thomas Cook Airlines are the first airline to announce new long-haul connections from Stansted when they launch services to Orlando, Cancun and Las Vegas from next summer. Stansted already has an unrivalled network of European destinations but today’s announcement demonstrates our drive to improve services and expand the range of destinations we offer.

“This is yet another vote of confidence by Thomas Cook Airlines, who are already expanding this summer with 8 new routes using larger aircraft. Thomas Cook Airlines recognise our untapped potential and what a great airport Stansted is for passengers travelling to and from London and the East of England so the development of all these new services is not only great news for Stansted, but great news for the wider region.

“This news continues the positive evolution of Stansted under MAG ownership and we look forward to giving Thomas Cook Airlines our full support as they develop these new connections which I’m sure will prove very popular with our passengers.”

From June 2014, Thomas Cook Airlines will serve 18 destinations from London Stansted Airport, with over 150,000 passengers each year flying with the airline from the airport.