Las Vegas is latest destination for Breeze Airways from Akron-Canton Airport
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GREEN – Breeze Airways is adding Las Vegas to the list of destinations it serves from Akron-Canton Airport.
The upstart airline now serves seven cities from Akron-Canton, just a little more than one year after announcing plans to include the local airport in its operations.
Flights to Las Vegas will be offered twice each week — on Thursday and Sunday — beginning Oct. 6. Special pricing is offered beginning Monday on travel before Feb. 14.
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Las Vegas is a welcome destination for Akron-Canton Airport officials. Ren Camacho, president and chief executive officer, called Las Vegas the airport's leading unserved destination.
“CAK’s convenient airport experience paired with Breeze’s excellent travel product make a sure bet for Northeast Ohio travelers,” Camacho said in the press release announcing the new route. The airport's "winning partnership" with Breeze helped make the new service possible, he added.
Breeze Airways building up local service
Breeze announced in May 2021 plans to serve 16 locations across the country, including Akron-Canton. Breeze CEO David Neeleman — who has started several airlines, including JetBlue — said the airline was formed to address the needs of underserved airports.
The airline started with flights from Akron-Canton to Tampa, Florida, Charleston, South Carolina, and New Orleans. It's since added Palm Beach, Florida, Nashville, Tennessee, and Hartford, Connecticut, while converting the New Orleans service to seasonal during the winter months.
"We're building it up," Neeleman said Thursday morning of the airline's growth at Akron-Canton.
People are buying tickets and using the service, he said. "We don't ever add cities where we're not doing well," he said.
A combination of factors are helping Breeze find success with its strategy, Neeleman said. Akron-Canton is a convenient airport for travelers, and its location is accessible to a large number of people.
Additionally, Northeast Ohio offers a lot reasons for travelers to visit, Neeleman said. "We like to find these big pockets and provide service," he said.
Other airlines offered Las Vegas
It's been five years since an airline connected Akron-Canton to Las Vegas. Spirit Airlines offered the service for six months in 2017, but ended the flights because of low passenger numbers. Southwest and AirTran also provided service to Las Vegas at different times.
Neeleman called Las Vegas a great destination from Akron-Canton and expressed optimism the flight will do well. "Every time I go to Las Vegas, I see a lot of Ohio people there."
Breeze will use new Airbus A220-300 jets on the flights to Las Vegas. The company is in the process of adding 80 of the A220 jets. The initial round of A220 jets will have 36 first class, 10 extra legroom and 80 standard seats.
The airline currently serves 30 cities in 17 states, with 90 non-stop routes.
Neeleman said Akron-Canton could see more destinations added, but plans are for Breeze to add more days when the airline flies to a location. Currently Breeze flies from Akron-Canton to different destinations twice each week, although the airlines flies to Nashville four days each week.
This article originally appeared on The Repository: Akron-Canton Airport gets service to Las Vegas via Breeze Airways
