Breeze Airways, which bills itself as the “Seriously Nice” airline, will be landing at the Arcata-Eureka airport starting early next year.
Today’s announcement of the flights to Burbank beginning March 12 — and the option of connecting flights to Provo, Utah — comes just days after fellow low-cost carrier Avelo Airlines broke the news it would be ending the same route after Dec. 2.
“Breeze is known for its convenient, affordable flights, premium seating options, and amenities like fast onboard Wi-Fi and power at every seat, and we look forward to introducing travelers in the Humboldt County area to our ‘Seriously Nice’ service,” Breeze Airways founder and CEO David Neeleman said in the announcement. “Arcata-Eureka is exactly the kind of underserved market our airline set out to serve and we’re confident our new guests will enjoy their enhanced travel experience onboard one of our brand-new Airbus A220 aircraft.”
According to the company, travelers can start booking right away, with some inaugural specials being offered for a limited time and travel window. Once started, the flights will take place on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays.
“We are thrilled to welcome Breeze Airways to the California Redwood Coast-Humboldt County Airport,” county Director of Aviation Ryan Cooley said in the announcement. “We appreciate Breeze’s commitment to serving the needs of Humboldt County’s travelers and visitors while helping to strengthen connectivity in our region.”
As the Journal previously reported, Avelo will be leaving the Arcata-Eureka airport come December, as the airline ends service on the West Coast.
The departure comes amid local and national backlash, including online boycott petitions and the Eureka City Council’s decision to stop using the airline for official business, over Avelo contracting with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, more commonly known as ICE, to provide chartered deportation flights out of Arizona.
Avelo spokesperson Courtney Goff said in an email to the Journal that pushback did not play a role in the decision affecting airports in mostly smaller markets up and down the coast. “Protests nor our contract with DHS had any effect on our decision and have not impacted our business,” Goff wrote.
A company statement says the decision to shutter Avelo’s base at Burbank (BUR) after more than four years was made following “careful consideration” and beginning Aug. 12 the company will reduce operations there down “to one aircraft before exiting the remaining aircraft” on Dec. 2.
“There is rarely one singular reason why decisions like this are made, and this one is no different. We believe the continuation service from BUR in the current operating environment will not deliver adequate financial returns in a highly competitive backdrop,” the statement says.
“Avelo has previously made several changes over the past few years to our West Coast operations to improve our financial results,” it continues. “Despite the investment of significant time, resources and efforts, our West Coast operations have not produced the results necessary to continue our presence there. The aircraft in BUR are expected to support growth in our East coast bases, where we have significantly more opportunity to continue our path to sustainable cash flow generation.”
For more information about Breeze Airways, visit FlyBreeze.com.
This article appears in The Conductor.
Awesome