MacArthur Airport’s new airline flying to Florida

Elite Airways will fly three nonstop routes from Long Island MacArthur Airport when it starts service June 17, the airline announced at a news conference at the Ronkonkoma airport Friday.

Long Island travelers will be able to use the airline to fly to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, Portland, Maine, and Melbourne, Florida, airline officials said.

The Portland service will continue on to Bar Harbor — the first jet service to ever serve that destination, Elite officials said — and the Melbourne route will eventually continue on to Saint Croix, creating a one-stop trip to the Virgin Islands from the Islip Town-owned airport, Elite Airways CEO John Pearsall said.

All three nonstop routes are new destinations never before served by an airline at MacArthur, said acting airport director Rob Schneider after a news conference at the facility, where one of Elite’s Bombardier regional jets was on display for tours and photos.

“We’re very proud to finally bring service here to MacArthur,” Pearsall said. “We will be announcing additional destinations as we get more and more familiar with the market here.”

One of those could potentially be a small airport outside Chicago, he said. The airline already has service at Chicago Rockford International Airport and “we were thinking of connecting that” to MacArthur, Pearsall said.

Pearsall added that Elite has consistently heard a demand from its passengers to fly to Long Island. “The funniest thing is that if it wasn’t for people who are originally from Long Island, we wouldn’t be here either,” he said. “On our route we’re presently flying between Newark and Vero Beach . . . we’ve had more people asking for Islip, Long Island, than any other destination we fly to.”

The one-way starting fare to Melbourne is $149, to Myrtle Beach is $139, and to Portland $99, according to Elite’s reservations website. Travelers can begin booking tickets now.

Islip Town Supervisor Angie Carpenter encouraged Long Islanders to take advantage of the service, reminding them at the news conference that airlines don’t keep unpopular routes.

“It’s up to the rest of us to go out there and let people know this service is here. They’re not going to be running planes out of here if there are only a handful of people on it,” Carpenter said. “I’m counting on you, we’re both counting on you to get out here and talk about the Long Island MacArthur Airport experience.”

Elite’s flights from Islip to all three locations will be offered on Fridays and Sundays. The Myrtle Beach route is expected to be seasonal, Pearsall said.

Source- http://goo.gl/o20fIU

Las Vegas close to landing first nonstop China flights

Las Vegas is close to getting its first nonstop flights to and from China after Chinese aviation authorities approved a route requested by one of that country’s major air carriers.

The Civil Aviation Administration of China has approved Hainan Airlines’ request to fly three round trips a week between Beijing Capital International Airport and McCarran International Airport beginning in September.

Hainan, the fourth-largest air carrier by fleet and the largest privately owned airline in China, is based in Haikou, Hainan, a city on an island just off the country’s southern coastline.

Under Hainan’s proposal, the airline would fly the route with a 213-seat twin-engine Boeing 787 “Dreamliner” jet.

Final approval of the route is required by the U.S. Department of Transportation, and Hainan has yet to file for authority to fly the Beijing route.

When an airline files an application, the department establishes public comment periods of either 15 or 21 days. The Department of Transportation then weighs several factors in making a determination of whether the application is in the public interest.

The timing of an approval is driven by whether there are responses filed to the application or if the application involves any bilateral agreements between the affected countries. For example, when Hainan filed for authority to serve Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport from Beijing in June 2013, there were no objections filed and the application was approved one month later.

Hainan hinted that it was interested in serving Las Vegas in September when an airline executive, vice president Wei Hou, told an aviation conference meeting in Las Vegas that the airline was looking at opportunities to serve secondary U.S. markets. The airline already flies nonstop from China to Seattle and Boston.

At the Boyd Group International Aviation Forecast Summit, Hou explained that under the existing bilateral agreement between China and the United States, Chinese air carriers are limited to 180 flights a week from what are categorized as Zone 1 cities — Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. At the time, Hou said Chinese airlines were flying about 90 percent of the allocated flights within the agreement.

If approved, the route would be the second trans-Pacific Las Vegas flight by an Asian carrier. Korean Air currently offers four flights a week from Seoul, South Korea to McCarran.

Japan Airlines once flew nonstop between Tokyo and Las Vegas and Singapore Airlines flew a route between Hong Kong and McCarran. Japan Airlines withdrew its flights in 2001 after the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. Singapore ended service after nine months in 2003 when the Severe Accute Respiriatory Syndrome virus outbreak resulted in a major downturn in Asian travel.

Most of the airport’s international routes are now focused on Canada, Mexico and Europe.

Source- http://goo.gl/qQxaHN (LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL)

Elite adds Long Island service at Melbourne airport

Elite Airways is adding new nonstop flights between Orlando Melbourne International Airport and Long Island on Fridays and Sundays. Video by Rick Neale. Wochit. Elite Airways, stationed at Orlando Melbourne International Airport, will begin flights to Islip Airport in Suffolk County, New York.(Photo: TIM SHORTT/FLORIDA TODAY)Buy Photo

Elite Airways is adding new nonstop flights between Orlando Melbourne International Airport and Long Island on Fridays and Sundays.

Service will start June 17. Flights will depart Melbourne for Long Island at 8 a.m., and flights will depart Long Island MacArthur Airport for Melbourne at 4:45 p.m.

"Melbourne is a big home to Northrop Grumman. And so that's one of the reasons," said John Pearsall, president of Elite Airways.

"The other reason is, we've had a lot of requests from people that either lived in Long Island or want to go up to Long Island in summer, or other times of the year," Pearsall said.

"We do believe that Melbourne to Islip (Long Island) will do great, given the amount of folks that are from Long Island down in the Space Coast area," he said.

Friday, Elite Airways hosted news conferences on Long Island and in Portland, Maine, to announce the new routes. The Melbourne flights are included in a package of new East Coast flights between Long Island; Myrtle Beach, South Carolina; and Portland, Maine, with continuing service to Bar Harbor, Maine.

Source-  http://goo.gl/irzeUy

Elite Airways to offer non-stop flights to Myrtle Beach

MYRTLE BEACH, SC (WBTW) – Elite Airways is now offering non-stop jet service between Long Island and Myrtle Beach starting June 17.

They will be twice-weekly flights on Fridays and Sundays, and tickets are now on sale at 877-393-2510 and EliteAirways.com.

“Elite Airways is pleased to introduce nonstop service between Long Island and Myrtle Beach with a schedule that is perfect for weekend golf and beach getaways this summer, and for Myrtle Beach area residents to explore Long Island wineries and spectacular beaches along Southampton and Fire Island,” said John Pearsall, President of Elite Airways. “We anticipate passenger demand to be strong in both directions and thank Myrtle Beach and Long Island airport and community leaders for their support.”

“Horry County Department of Airports is excited that Elite Airways has selected Myrtle Beach International Airport as its next airport to offer service,” said Pat Apone, Director of Airports. “Elite Airway’s new nonstop service from Long Island MacArthur Airport to Myrtle Beach International Airport is a welcomed new route currently not served by any other carrier operating at the airport, and should be very popular to the traveling public.”

“We are excited to welcome Elite Airways to the Myrtle Beach market,” stated Brad Dean, president and CEO of the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce. “As we prepare to celebrate National Travel & Tourism Week, Elite Airways’ announcement of new nonstop air service from Islip to Myrtle Beach provides us with even more options and ways to attract new visitors by providing easy and quick access to our beaches.”

Source- http://goo.gl/8yCpJl

Delta launches inaugural nonstop flight to London's Heathrow airport

(KUTV) Want to visit Big Ben, eat fish and chips or take a ride on the London eye? Now is your chance.

Delta Airlines launched its inaugural nonstop flight to London's Heathrow airport this evening.

There were plenty of London-themed festivities at the departure gate, including an appearance by the Queen's guard.

The flight takes about ten hours. This is Delta's third nonstop international flight from Salt Lake -- the others go to Amsterdam and Paris.

Source - http://goo.gl/iB9LqS

Solar Powered Plane Completes Three-Day Nonstop Flight Across The Pacific

An experimental solar-powered plane flying around the globe has landed in California on April 24 after almost three days of nonstop journeying across the Pacific.

Solar Impulse 2, piloted by Swiss psychiatrist and explorer Bertrand Piccard, touched down in Mountain View at 3 a.m. EST. It took off from Hawaii on April 21, after being stalled on Oahu island for nearly 10 months.

The milestone saw the solar aircraft – with a Boeing 747’s wingspan, but approximating the weight of an SUV – flying over the Golden Gate Bridge and into the San Francisco Bay.

“It’s a new era. It’s not science fiction. It’s today,” the pilot told CNN after the voyage, emphasizing that clean technologies can get the job done.

Shortly before the on-schedule landing, co-pilot and Swiss engineer Andre Borschberg said the technology proves to be reliable.

It wasn’t a walk in the park for the pilots, who completed a three-day flight across the Pacific’s great expanse with only 20 minutes of sleep every time inside the small cockpit. There was no heat or air conditioning inside, and they had to constantly touch base with the control center in Monaco.

According to Piccard, the flight was marked by a lot of health checks, including interviews, navigation control and communications. The pilot revealed using self-hypnosis to keep his energy up and used gloves and heating pads in his shoes for warmth.

The solar-driven plane travels at around the same speed as a car, with the Hawaii to California leg – deemed the riskiest due to the absence of emergency landing sites – taking a bit more than 6 hours to finish. The two pilots take turns flying it as it took off from Abu Dhabi in the UAE back in March 2015, and as it traveled through Oman, Myanmar, China, Japan and Hawaii.

“Nobody’s done this before,” Gregory Blatt, Solar Impulse managing director, said about flying the solar plane, which requires almost-perfect conditions because it is the sun that determines the flight schedule and conditions.

The plane’s wings are packed with 17,000 solar cells that run the propellers and charge batteries. Stored energy fuels the aircraft at night.

The achievements of Solar Impulse 2, however, are not without a number of setbacks. In July 2015, it was forced to stay in Hawaii given its battery system’s heat damage coming from its Japan trip. When it also first tried to fly from Nanjing in China to Hawaii, it had to divert to Japan no thanks to a damaged wing and unfriendly weather.

The solar plane project, which has Google as its sponsor, is estimated to be worth more than $100 million. It was born in 2002 to demonstrate advances in renewable energy and innovations relating to use of clean technologies.

Commercial solar-powered air travel is currently impeded by weather limitations, slow travel time and the aircraft’s weight constraint, but in 20 years, it could already be routine given the prevalence of engines using the sun’s energy by that time, envisioned Piccard.


Source-  http://goo.gl/GcwoyQ

What is the Difference Between Nonstop and Direct Flights?

Many people think nonstop and direct flights are interchangeable terms, but there are differences between the two. A nonstop flight does as its name suggests: flies from one airport to another without stopping. A direct flight, on the other hand, makes stops along the way. Often, passengers traveling on direct flights make a stop at a midpoint airport and remain seated on the plane while some passengers exit and others board.

Additionally, an itinerary with connecting flights requires passengers to change planes at a midpoint airport, which may be in a different terminal or on a different airline.

A nonstop flight is generally the quickest way to get from Point A to Point B, but the major airlines may charge a premium for the convenience. Flights that connect through a carrier's hub cities are often less expensive, and flights on low-fare carriers like Southwest often require at least one connection. Note that while connecting flights may be less expensive, you'll have to pay additional airport charges (Passenger Facility Charges or PFCs) for each airport you stop at, which can raise the overall price.

Depending on the circumstances of your trip, the convenience of a nonstop flight may be worth the price imposed by the airlines. But, if you're not in a hurry to arrive, you may be able to save by booking a direct or connecting flight. Compare prices for each type of flight to be sure.

Source- http://goo.gl/onTHgS

United Airlines to provide nonstop flights from Flint to Newark

United Airlines will begin flying nonstop jet service from Flint’s Bishop International Airport (FNT) to Newark Airport (EWR) beginning July 1. Craig Williams, Bishop International Airport director, made the announcement in a press release.

Departure flights are scheduled to leave Flint at 7 a.m. and arrive in Newark at 8:55 a.m. Return flights are scheduled to leave at 8 p.m. from Newark and arrive in Flint at 10:10 p.m.

Williams said that the flight is, “perfectly timed for the Southeastern Michigan business traveler who has work to do in the New York area and wants to do a day trip. Newark is a major hub for United and offers great connections to destinations along the eastern seaboard and internationally. The flight is ideally timed to connect to United’s Asian destinations.”

Newark is one of three commercial airports for metropolitan New York.

“United’s service from Bishop to Newark will connect the Flint region and northern Oakland County not only to New York City but the world,” Oakland County Executive, L. Brooks Patterson said in the release. “Newark is United’s international hub, which means we now will have convenient global access. This is another indication that our seven-county Economic Growth Alliance can compete on a worldwide scale.”

Bishop International Airport is at G-3425 West Bristol Road, Flint. For more information, visit bishopairport.org.



Source- http://goo.gl/hmNPtq (Theoaklandpress.com)

Fort Wayne International to offer nonstop flights to New York

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) Start spreading the news: You can soon leave to be a part of New York, nonstop from Fort Wayne.

United Airlines will begin daily nonstop flights direct from Fort Wayne International Airport to New York/Neward Liberty International Airport Sept. 7. Officials at the Fort Wayne-Allen County Airport Authority announced the new service on Monday.

“Our new daily service to New York/Newark offers United customers numerous opportunities for domestic and international travel,” said United’s Sales Manager Kimberly Egan. “With hundreds of options available at our Newark hub, we are confident our Fort Wayne customers will benefit greatly from this flight.”

The new service will take flight seven days a week. One flight will depart from Fort Wayne International at 6 a.m. and arrive in New York at 7:53 a.m. The return flight will depart from EWR at 7:45 p.m. and return to FWA at 9:45 p.m.

Scott Hinderman, executive director of airports at Fort Wayne International Airport, said the new service will open a range of possibilities for the airport and passengers alike.

“We are excited to welcome Newark service on United to FWA,” said Hinderman. “We’re thrilled to provide our passengers with an East Coast connection that will not only give access to areas in and around New York City, but also provide connection to hundreds of destinations worldwide.”



Source- http://goo.gl/lwtPvQ  ( Wane.com )

Memphis International launches new nonstop flights

Memphis International passengers can now take a nonstop flight to the capital city of Georgia or the coastal city where the St. John’s River meets the Atlantic Ocean.

Frontier Airlines and Allegiant Air launched two new nonstop flights at Memphis International Airport this week, adding weekly options to Atlanta and Jacksonville, Florida.

On Thursday, April 14, Frontier Airlines launched its inaugural nonstop flights from Memphis to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.

“Atlanta has long been a desired destination in terms of adding competition,” said Pace Cooper, chairman of the Memphis Shelby-County Airport Authority (MSCAA) board. “We have heard from the public that they want more options and affordable flights to Atlanta, and Frontier has responded. I applaud our MEM team’s effort to bring about this addition and I strongly encourage our community to support Frontier in its effort to make this link to Atlanta successful.”

The flights will be offered three times a week, on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. Frontier is utilizing a 150-seat Airbus 319 for the Atlanta flights, which were announced in January. Frontier also offers nonstop flights between Memphis and Denver International Airport.

“Allegiant’s addition of this Jacksonville flight provides another great low-cost leisure option to both Memphis travelers and Jacksonville residents looking to experience Memphis,” Cooper said. “Allegiant’s rapid growth at MEM has been a big boost for tourism in Memphis and in our destination cities.”

The Jacksonville flights, announced in January, will run twice a week, on Mondays and Fridays, utilizing a mix of the 177-seat Airbus A320 and the 166-seat McDonnell Douglas MD80 aircraft.

Allegiant currently operates seven flights out of Memphis: to Austin, Orlando/Sanford, Las Vegas, Phoenix/Mesa, St. Pete-Clearwater and Fort Lauderdale. The company will add flights to Fort Walton-Destin in May and Los Angeles in June, bringing its total flights out of MEM to nine.

For more information about these and other flights, visit http://www.flymemphis.com/flights

Source- http://goo.gl/t3oMxR (Bizjournals.com)

Frontier adds nonstop flights from Chicago to seven U.S. cities

Low-cost carrier Frontier Airlines has added new nonstop service from Chicago to seven U.S. cities.

The Denver-based airline on Thursday began flying directly from Chicago O'Hare International Airport to Charlotte, N.C.; Kansas City, Mo.; Nashville, Tenn.; Portland, Ore.; St. Augustine, Fla.; Seattle; and Minneapolis.

Service to Nashville operates daily, with service to the other six cities occurring three or four days a week. Frontier spokesman Jim Faulkner said the new direct flights were accommodated with a combination of new planes and nonstop flights to certain other cities, including Tampa, Fla., and Fort Myers, Fla., being dropped.

Earlier this week, the U.S. Department of Transportation said airlines were able to stick to their schedules 83.6 percent of the time in February, with Southwest Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines and Alaska Airlines having the best on-time arrival rates among a dozen carriers.

Frontier was the fourth-most punctual in February.

Source- http://goo.gl/5Fo9E2 (chicagotribune.com)

Nonstop Flights from Chattanooga to New York City & Chicago coming soon

Starting in September, the Chattanooga airport will offer nonstop flights to New York City and Chicago. United Airlines will fly direct from Chattanooga Airport to Newark Liberty International Airport and Chicago O'Hare International Airport.

"New York City has been the largest market without nonstop service from Chattanooga and is equally the one most desired by our business travelers," said Terry Hart, Chattanooga Airport President and CEO.

Service to both the New York City area and Chicago will include same-day early morning departures and evening arrivals.

"The schedules will be very accommodating for a business traveler who needs to fly out and return the same day," Hart further said. "It is also imperative the community supports the new service to ensure its success."

Chattanooga Mayor Andy Berke responded to the news saying, "With a growing Innovation District and more economic development opportunities everyday, the addition of non-stop flights to these two major U.S. cities will be a game-changer for Chattanooga."

The mayor went on to say, "A lot of hard work over several years went into making this happen and I appreciate everyone who spent time ensuring Chattanooga becomes a more connected city. Starting in September, we will ensure our citizens have convenient access to some of our country's most important destinations -- while inviting more people to travel here and see why Chattanooga is the best mid-sized city in America."

Source- http://goo.gl/jcFnpp ( newschannel9.com )