Startup Breeze adds Phoenix, but cuts some new transcons planned for NYC-area airport
Breeze is headed to the Valley of the Sun.
The ultra-low-cost carrier will launch flights from Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX) on Nov. 2, with service to Charleston International Airport (CHS) in South Carolina and Provo Municipal Airport (PVU) in Utah, near Salt Lake City. Both routes launch that day.
Also launching this fall are flights between Charleston and Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) that begin Nov. 4, as well as two new routes from Westchester County Airport (HPN) in New York. Flights between that airport and Nashville International Airport (BNA) begin Nov. 2 while service to Sarasota Bradenton International Airport (SRQ) in Florida starts Nov. 5. Rounding out Breeze's new routes is service between Syracuse Hancock International Airport (SYR) in New York and Tampa International Airport (TPA) that launches on Nov. 19.
"Charleston, our largest base, is one of the largest routes from Phoenix without existing nonstop service today, so we're excited to announce the first nonstop to connect these two fantastic destinations – along with our other new routes announced today," Breeze COO Michael Wuerger said in a statement.
But the news comes as Breeze continues to shuffle its network, a relatively frequent occurrence in recent months as it encounters growing pains. Specifically, the airline will cut two transcontinental flights from Westchester County, which is north of New York City.
Flights between White Plains, which the airport is also known as, and Las Vegas' Harry Reid International Airport (LAS) will launch as planned on Sept. 8, but will end on Oct. 2. Flights to San Francisco International Airport (SFO), which were slated for November, have been cut before launch. One transcontinental link between HPN and the West Coast is still planned: Flights to Los Angeles survived this round of cuts and will launch on Nov. 3.
Read more: Breeze encounters strong headwinds as it cancels new routes ahead of launch
"Certainly the price of fuel is a factor for the long-haul flying but also there's been a delay in our Airbus deliveries," a Breeze spokesperson told TPG in an email. "So while we won't be operating HPN-SFO, we are adding two new shorter haul routes from Westchester to both Nashville and Sarasota-Bradenton."
Breeze has faced some regulatory hurdles incorporating the new Airbus A220 aircraft into its fleet — especially when it comes to training pilots.
Wednesday's news comes a day after the airline announced a new operating base at the T.F. Green International Airport (PVD) in Providence, Rhode Island. The new A220 base will result in as many as 250 new full-time jobs, the airline said, and as many as 20 routes with 20 weekly departures by the end of 2023.
Providence is a market dominated by Southwest Airlines, which is the airport's capacity leader, though American Airlines operates more flights, according to Cirium. (Capacity is measured by multiplying the number of seats by the number of miles flown, which skews this metric toward Southwest since it operates larger aircraft on longer flights). As for Breeze, its Providence strategy mimics one it employed when it launched its base at another key Southwest market, Hartford, trying to undercut Southwest with less-expensive point-to-point flights.
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