Midwest Express Airlines (Milwaukee General Mitchell) is moving forward with its planned relaunch after COVID-19 had forced it to put its plans on hold indefinitely, according to a company spokesperson.

Midwest Express spokeswoman Laurie Coleman has reported renewed investor interest in the airline following the roll-out of the US vaccination programme. “Passengers are feeling more confident to fly, which has opened the door to renewed investor interest,” she told the Milwaukee Magazine.

Coleman, however, remained tight-lipped about details and time-frames. Midwest Express President Greg Aretakis was not immediately available to comment to ch-aviation.

Midwest Express has twice pushed back its announced relaunch in 2018. It first announced its intention to return to operations with a private stock offering in May 2018. Its most recent SEC filing, on May 27, 2020, shows it received an additional USD250,000 in investment, bringing the total raised to USD1 million. It has not submitted any regulatory filings since.

In 2019, it announced initial plans for nonstop flights from its home base at Milwaukee General Mitchell to Omaha Eppley, Nebraska; and Grand Rapids, MI, Michigan. It had identified these cities as underserved destinations for Milwaukee business travellers. The airline had intended to announce schedules, pricing, and initial flights in late 1Q20, but the pandemic and a legal battle with Elite Airways (MNU, Portland International Jetport) had stymied its plans.

Midwest Express on March 9, 2020, ended a partnership with Elite Airways and filed a lawsuit against it for breaching an agreement by which the Portland-based carrier was to have provided flight operations for Midwest while it pursued its own operating certificate and aircraft. Midwest Express in May 2020 was awarded USD150,000 in its lawsuit against Elite Airways.

The new entity is inspired by the brand of Midwest Airlines (Milwaukee General Mitchell), which earned a favourable reputation for its two-across seating and baked-on-board delicacies. Midwest Airlines merged with Frontier Airlines (F9, Denver International) under the Frontier name in 2010.