Come January, Vermonters will be able to fly directly to Florida year-round out of Patrick Leahy Burlington International Airport via the low-cost carrier Breeze Airways.
The airline plans to begin twice-weekly direct service from Burlington to Tampa starting Jan. 31 and to Orlando starting on Feb. 14, airport and airline officials announced at a press conference Wednesday morning at the airport.
“Today we welcome Breeze Airways to the Leahy BTV team,” said Nic Longo, the airport’s director of aviation. “The relationship that we’ve kindled over the last year is strong, and with this new service I look forward to a long relationship and a valued partnership for many years to come.”
Longo said that Florida is a particularly popular destination for Vermonters, with approximately 200 passengers flying to or from the Sunshine State each day through the Burlington airport. “These new direct flights are going to be extremely important,” Longo said.
Other than American Airlines, which operates a nonstop flight once weekly to and from Miami exclusively during the winter months, Breeze Airways will be the only airline offering nonstop service to Florida from Burlington on a year-round basis.
At Wednesday’s press conference, Gareth Edmondson-Jones, a spokesperson for Breeze, hinted at the possibility that the airline may expand its Burlington operations in the future.
“We grow like a weed, as I say. As soon as these flights fill up, we’ll add more flights and more destinations, so there’s lots more to come here,” Edmondson-Jones said.
The announcement of the new partnership comes just weeks after the airline JetBlue abruptly announced that it would pull out entirely from the Burlington airport, effective Jan. 4. The airline has provided nonstop service to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City and cited air traffic control staffing challenges and congestion in the New York airspace as reasons for its departure.
On average, JetBlue has accounted for roughly 10% of the airport’s monthly customer base, airport officials have said, and its sudden decision to end its services prompted members of Vermont’s congressional delegation to send a letter to the airline’s CEO criticizing the move.
In a separate decision, Delta Airlines also recently announced that it would be scaling back its service between Burlington and two New York City airports — JFK and LaGuardia Airport — effective Dec. 7.
Longo told VTDigger that the Burlington airport is always working with airlines to meet the demands of Vermonters, but he did not specify if there were any concrete plans to restore or add routes to New York City in the immediate future. Still, he expressed a hope that the airport would be able to increase service to the area soon.
“Do I feel like that market is going to stay the way it is right now, following those announcements? Absolutely not.” Longo said. “I definitely see that market as forecasted to come back quickly — for that to be resolved.”
