Breeze Airways (MX, Salt Lake City) is contemplating launching a new crew base at Providence airport, but only if the operator provides additional financial support in the form of marketing fees and charge waivers, founder and CEO David Neeleman said during a conference at the Rhode Island airport.
"This airport is tailor-made for Breeze," he said, identifying Providence as a sizeable airport with a hitherto underdeveloped network of direct services.
He clarified that the airline was not asking for subsidies but solely for waivers and assistance in marketing the new routes. The airport operator said that it was a unique opportunity for the city and supported the carrier's ambitions.
Providence, the capital and most populous city in the state of Rhode Island, has no airline bases at this moment. The airport sees 327 weekly scheduled departures for a total of 35,310 weekly scheduled departure seats, the ch-aviation capacities module shows. The largest operators are Southwest Airlines, American Airlines, and Delta Air Lines. The nearest airport with a more extensive network is Boston, located some 80 kilometres away from Providence.
Neeleman did not discuss Breeze's potential network from Providence but said that any of the carrier's existing destinations could be an option for the New England city.
Breeze Airways currently operates from Providence to Charleston International, Norfolk International, VA, and Pittsburgh International. The airline has crew bases at Charleston, Hartford Bradley, New Orleans International, Norfolk, and Tampa International airports, the ch-aviation PRO airlines module shows.
