Breeze Announces "Base of Operations" In Fort Myers
An upstart airline that only began serving Florida markets three years ago is already announcing a new “base of operations” in Southwest Florida.
Utah-based Breeze Airways today announced that the company will be relocating pilots, flight attendants and 3 aircraft to Fort Myers’ Southwest Florida International Airport (RSW), as part of its strategy to serve a hot Florida market popular with domestic and international travelers.
From Zero To 19 Destinations In Just Two Years
The timeline and trajectory of Breeze Airways’ Florida success is impressive when you consider the airline only commenced operations as Breeze Airways (formerly Moxy Airways) in May 2021.
From there, Breeze quickly began to expand operations to popular Florida coastal markets including some that were historically underserved by many of the larger carriers.
The Breeze timeline in Fort Myers is especially impressive, as noted on the company’s official press release.
Breeze’s first flight from Fort Myers was in June, 2022 and, since then, the airline has flown more than160,000 Guests in and out of RSW. Breeze has grown rapidly at RSW, doubling in size year over year and now serves 19 destinations nonstop from RSW, including five new routes in the coming months.
In October, RSW will officially become Breeze’s third Florida base of operations. The first Breeze base in Florida was Tampa Bay followed by Orlando International which garnered base status just last month.
Breeze Adding More Destinations From Fort Myers
Breeze’s formula of providing efficient and affordable flights between secondary airports and bypassing hubs for shorter travel time has been a hit with consumers. Couple that with reasonable fares, a great web experience, and a young fleet of Embraer 190/195 and Airbus A220-300 aircraft, and you can see why Breeze has been named one of the country’s best domestic airlines by Travel + Leisure.
Together with the base of operations news, Breeze also announced the addition of 5 new destinations in 5 states to be served from Fort Myers. The new destinations are all popular with seasonal residents visiting Florida between October and April. The new Breeze destinations from Fort Myers (RSW) are:
- Manchester, NH (Seasonal, Wed and Sat, starting October 2);
- Stewart/Newburgh, NY (Seasonal, Wed and Sat, starting October 2);
Lansing, MI (Seasonal, Thurs and Sun, starting October 3);
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, PA (Seasonal, Thurs and Sun, starting October 3); and
Bangor, ME (Seasonal, Wed and Sat, starting October 5).
In addition, Breeze purchased 10 more Airbus A220s last month and now plans to eventually phase out the Embraer planes and convert the entire Breeze fleet to A220s in the very near future. Upon delivery of the 10 new planes, Breeze will have the largest fleet of A220s in the world, according to Airline Videos. (YouTube Video)
Breeze Announces First Full Month Of Operating Profit
In a separate press release today, Breeze also announced that the upstart airline has hit a major milestone: the first full month of operating profit.
The monthly profitability news was accompanied by strong first quarter revenue growth of 30% in 1Q24 compared to 1Q23.
The first quarter was also significant for Breeze from a passenger standpoint, as the carrier flew their 5 millionth “Guest” while also hitting some other important KPIs:
- 99.8% controllable flight completion factor
- 75% controllable on-time performance, and
- One of the lowest mishandled bag rates in the industry (0.27 per 100 bags).
Breeze founder and airline entrepreneur David Neeleman put these achievements in context:
“This milestone is a testament to the hard work, dedication, and pure grit of the more than 1,800 Team Members who, despite a multitude of challenges and setbacks, persevered to build something truly impactful. Starting an airline is not for the faint of heart but we have remained true to our purpose – to give millions of travelers in underserved markets access to efficient and affordable air travel.” – David Neeleman, Breeze Founder & CEO
Contact CII Today
If you own an established aviation support business in Florida or Georgia and would like to get a better understanding of the current market value of your company and important steps you can take today to maximize that value, get in touch with a CII business advisor today.