Breeze Airways confirms it will begin Vero Beach service Feb. 2; three destinations named

Thomas Weber, Treasure Coast Newspapers
·3 min read

VERO BEACH — Breeze Airways on Wednesday confirmed it would begin passenger flights here early next year. The year-old airline said it would offer flights to three destinations from Vero Beach Regional Airport starting Feb. 2. Tickets already are on sale.

TCPalm reported Oct. 14 that Breeze had signed a letter of intent to add Vero Beach to its destinations.

Breeze said it would fly from here to:

  • Hartford, Connecticut: Thursdays and Saturdays starting Feb. 2. One-way fares would begin at $79.

  • Westchester, New York: Fridays and Mondays starting Feb. 3. One-way fares would begin at $79.

  • Norfolk, Virginia: Fridays and Mondays starting Feb. 3. One-way fares would begin at $89.

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The airline plans to add a third weekly flight to Westchester starting Feb. 16, and it will add more flights to Vero Beach depending on demand, Breeze spokesperson Ryne Williams said.

Flights from Vero Beach already can be booked through May, according to Breeze's website. The flights will be offered year-round, Williams said.

More expensive fares come with extras such as more leg room, additional bags and priority boarding, according to a news release.

The Utah-based airline, founded last year by CEO David Neeleman, said in an Aug. 3 letter to airport officials it intended to start offering flights here to the northeast every week. The airline had been in talks with Vero Beach for about a year, Airport Director Todd Scher said.

Where else does Breeze Airways fly?

In Florida, Breeze already flies from Fort Myers, Jacksonville, Orlando, Sarasota/Bradenton, Tampa and West Palm Beach, according to its website. Across the country, it serves major cities such as Pittsburgh, Nashville, New Orleans, Phoenix, Los Angeles and San Francisco, and smaller cities such as Providence, Rhode Island; Bentonville/Fayetteville, Arkansas; and San Bernardino, California.

Emails between Breeze and airport officials revealed the airline would need need to pay Vero Beach an estimated $172,000 to operate here next year. That cost includes facility and terminal fees, as well as money needed to upgrade airport security.

Vero Beach Regional Airport's security facilities accommodate only planes that hold up to 60 passengers, Scher said. Breeze's largest plane holds up to 137 passengers, according to its website.

Breeze initially wanted to start providing service here in December, the emails show, but airport officials said the necessary security changes couldn't be completed until February. They initially settled on a Feb. 15 start date, but the airport is on track to complete the necessary security changes by Feb. 2, Scher said.

Breeze would be the second airline to serve Vero Beach since American Eagle ended its service here in 1996. The airport tried for years to bring passenger service back, and finally did with Elite Airways, which started flying here to the northeast in 2015.

This year, however, Elite's service has been inconsistent, and it's unclear when — or if — the airline will return.

Elite's summer absence

Elite Airways canceled all of its flights here July through October, Scher said. On its website, the airline lists November and December flights from Vero Beach to Newark, New Jersey, and Portland, Maine, but those flights are shown as sold out and can't be booked.

Moreover, the airline can't fly here at all until it pays the city about $6,600 in overdue airport fees. Elite will be making an announcement soon, CEO John Pearsall said, but he provided no additional details.

Asked to comment on another airline coming to Vero Beach, he said only, "That's great. I love competition."

Thomas Weber is TCPalm's Indian River County government watchdog reporter. You can reach him at thomas.weber@tcpalm.com or 813-545-9113. Follow him on Facebook and Twitter.

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Breeze Airways confirms Vero Beach flights to begin Feb. 2