Good afternoon,
Frontier Airlines today kicked off its three-day-a-week flights to Orlando from New Castle Airport.
This time around, Frontier plans to take things slowly, an approach promised last year – shortly before Covid-19 grounded its plans.
The airline has already shown a lot of patience by not walking away from the airport as the industry struggles with the pandemic.
The first time out, Frontier’s strategy was to offer an option other than Philadelphia International Airport with flights from Trenton and New Castle.
Things worked out in Jersey but bombed here due to various issues that included the short distance to Philadelphia for northern Delaware residents.
Frontier changed course under new ownership and became one of the busier carriers from Philadelphia International Airport.
It also became the first airline to give New Castle a second shot after a few failed attempts that included short stints from Delta and United Airlines.
In recent years, Frontier found that it attracts Delaware travelers for the nearly two-dozen destinations served from PHL.
If Frontier can peel away some of those travelers heading to Philadelphia’s top leisure destination, the airline can build from a solid niche.
Frontier is a far different animal than its original version we saw in 2014. The jet tails’ critters remain, but we now have an ultra-low fare carrier that charges for everything from overhead bins to assigned seats.
The good news is that fares are so low that Orlando flights are a good deal, even when fees are calculated.
And unlike some deep discounters, Frontier has the industry’s newest jet fleet.
As I noted in 2014, Frontier will need strong support. That effort includes passengers, the business community, and state and local government.
Support is also needed from New Castle County, which is looking for another operator for the airport when the Delaware River and Bay Authority’s current deal expires in a few years.
Many of us are still reluctant to fly and for a good reason. But when the time is right, a two-and-a-half-hour flight to the home of the Magic Kingdom (and a side trip to visit my sister-in-law), is on the to-do list – Doug Rainey, chief content officer.
