One option under consideration at Boeing is to build a new plane for the “middle of the market”, to replace its ageing 757. An aircraft that would carry between 220 and 280 passengers on routes up to 5,000 miles would plug a gap in its fleet, between short-haul narrow-body jets and wide-bodied planes for long-haul travel.

While eight hours on a 130-foot plane with three toilets and one gangway might not immediately appeal to travelers used to the spacious cabins of an Airbus A380, airlines say the smaller jets will open up direct routes that wouldn’t otherwise be viable. That would do away with the need to switch between flights at a busy hub. At the same time people can look forward to competitive fares as carriers seek out smaller airports where access charges are lower.

Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA, JetBlue Airways Corp. and Portugal’s TAP are among airlines buying the jets for trans-Atlantic routes, with NAS set to lead the way when it becomes one of the first carriers to get Boeing’s Max 8 next year. Its initial flights may link Edinburgh, Birmingham in England and Cork and Shannon in Ireland to smaller airports in New England and the New York area.

“The Max is very competitive,” Norwegian Air Chief Executive Officer Bjorn Kjos said in an interview in London. “It has huge potential from the smaller cities along the Atlantic coast. But you can’t go into New York as you do with wide-bodies. You must target airports with a totally different cost structure.”