Worcester Airport director: new routes, bigger planes will help with demand

WORCESTER — Following Monday's announcement that JetBlue will be adding two Florida routes to Orlando and Fort Myers at Worcester Regional Airport, Airport Director Andy Davis said the new routes and JetBlue's use of larger aircrafts will help with an increased demand in the region.

"JetBlue is making a commitment to the Worcester community," Davis said. "It is clearly responding to a demand."

The routes to Orlando and Fort Myers were unveiled during a Monday-morning event where Gov. Maura Healey and JetBlue CEO Robin Hayes were among the officials present.

The flights to Orlando are a resurrection of a route that was stopped during the pandemic.

The Orlando route begins June 15, with Fort Myers to debut Jan. 4. The flights are nonstop.

The Fort Myers route will be winter seasonal service. The route will initially launch with twice-weekly service with plans to increase to daily service mid-February through the end of Red Sox spring training, which is held at JetBlue Park in Fort Myers.

JetBlue currently serves routes to Fort Lauderdale and New York City at Worcester Regional Airport. Davis said JetBlue will phase out the New York City route in favor of the Florida expansion, but passengers can still purchase tickets for flights at the airport to New York City through Delta and American Airlines.

Change to larger planes

JetBlue officials also said the company no longer flies Embraer 190 planes at Worcester Regional Airport, which have 100 seats, for the Airbus 320 plane with 162 seats.

Davis said the Airbus 320 planes have been in use at the Worcester Airport since July 2022 and they will be used for both the Orlando and Fort Myers routes when they begin. From July to December, Davis said a study found that over 9,000 more passengers were able to fly on JetBlue with the Airbus 320 planes than they would have otherwise.

The change to the larger planes is due to a mix of factors, Davis said. JetBlue is fading out the use of Embraer 190 planes throughout its network in favor of the Airbus 320 and other models, Davis said.

In addition, Davis said the adoption of the new planes in Worcester helps the company meet the increasing demand for air travel in the region.

On the new routes, Davis said he is thrilled to see JetBlue expand. He hopes the airport's other partners, Delta and American, as well as other companies look at this expansion and see viability and a demand for air travel in the Worcester market.

"It further demonstrates and proves our region will support air service," Davis said.

Social media has indicated to the airport and JetBlue that Orlando and Fort Myers were the most popular requests for expanded routes, Davis said. Orlando is the home of the popular theme parks Walt Disney World Resort and Universal Studios Florida, as well as several vacation resorts while Fort Myers has a big draw as the home of Red Sox spring training.

Second security checkpoint

The Transportation Security Administration is also looking to hire new officers in the Massachusetts region. Davis said that while part of the hiring is due in part the TSA preparing for seasonal travel to locations such as Cape Cod, Worcester Regional Airport also wants to create a second security checkpoint at the airport and move the checkpoints to add more seating at the terminals.

With the airport expecting more passengers arriving with the added routes, Davis said the airport wants to add the second checkpoint to keep the TSA lines quick, which the airport has always promoted. The airport expects the new checkpoint to be implemented by the holiday season.

"We've promoted this airport as very convenient," Davis said.

Three years after the suspension of flights in the early month of the COVID-19 pandemic, Davis said Worcester Regional Airport has come back to levels nearing 2019.

With routes having returned, Davis said the airport now offers more plane seating than before the pandemic. The passenger level for the first quarter of 2023 is at 97% of what it was for the first quarter of 2019, and Davis said the passenger level would have been 10% higher than the first quarter of 2019 if Orlando flights had taken place.

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Worcester Airport Sirector Andy davis discusses more routes, larger planes