Breeze Airways adding Islip, New York, to Vero Beach destinations; flights begin Dec. 21

Breeze Airways flight from the Vero Beach Regional Airport on July 31, 2023.

VERO BEACH — Breeze Airways will add service this winter between Vero Beach and Islip, New York, the airline announced Tuesday.

Starting Dec. 21, the seasonal service will operate Thursdays and Sundays through April 28.

Islip joins Hartford, Connecticut; White Plains, New York; and Providence, Rhode Island as destinations from Vero Beach.

"We have heard a lot about people wanting a route to and from Islip," said Breeze Airways spokesperson Ryne Williams. "It is similar to Westchester, just on the other side of New York City on Long Island. The new route shows that there is demand in and out of Vero Beach."

Service to Providence was announced in July and will begin Nov. 2.

"We are really delighted that Breeze Airways has announced a new seasonal route between Vero and Islip," said Todd Scher, Vero Beach Regional Airport director. "Islip is is a city that that people often mentioned when I'm out in the community. The fact that they are adding this flight really confirms that the partnership the city has with Breeze provides a very attractive convenient and pleasant travel experience for the community."

What is Breeze up to?

Breeze began operations in Vero Beach Feb. 2, filling the vacancy left by Elite Airways, which in June 2022, abruptly halted all flights in and out of Vero.

"We launched out of Vero with just twice-weekly flights to Westchester and Hartford, but since then, both of those flights have gone daily," said Williams. "We actually plan to grow our Westchester service to 12 weekly flights starting in December."

Since February, about 600 flights have carried 46,810 passengers in and out of Vero Beach, according to data provided by the airport and Breeze. Islip service will increase traffic to 26 flights a week here.

Founded in 2021, Breeze is headquartered in Cottonwood Heights, Utah, near Salt Lake City. Its inaugural flight was from Tampa to Charleston, South Carolina.

Breeze currently operates 58 nonstop routes in and out of Florida.

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Nick Slater is TCPalm’s Indian River County Watchdog reporter. You can reach him at Nick.Slater@tcpalm.com and 224-830-2875.

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Breeze Airways adding Islip-Long Island as new Vero Beach destination