Breeze Airways Expands to San Diego with Five New Routes, Challenging Southwest

Breeze Airways, a U.S. carrier, is set to expand its network by adding San Diego International Airport (SAN) as its newest destination. The airline plans to launch five nonstop routes from SAN, notably including a transcontinental service to Pittsburgh International Airport (PIT) in Pennsylvania, where it will compete with Southwest Airlines during the summer of 2024.

Starting April 30, Breeze Airways will initiate service from SAN to Raleigh-Durham International Airport (RDU) in North Carolina, offering flights three times a week. This addition marks SAN as the fifth California airport in Breeze’s network. All five routes from SAN will be operated using Airbus A220-300 aircraft.

The expansion continues on May 1 with the airline introducing twice-weekly services to Jacksonville, Florida, and four-times-weekly flights to Norfolk International Airport (ORF) in Virginia. ORF CEO Mark Perryman expressed enthusiasm for the new coast-to-coast service, citing San Diego as a top passenger demand market for Norfolk.

From May 2, Breeze will commence thrice-weekly flights from SAN to Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG). The following day, May 3, marks the start of twice-weekly services to PIT.

Breeze Airways will exclusively operate four of these five routes from SAN, with the SAN-PIT route being the only one where it faces competition from Southwest Airlines. Notably, this route had not been served by any airline since 2019. Breeze’s schedule for the SAN-PIT route includes flights on Fridays and Mondays, in contrast to Southwest’s once-weekly Saturday service from June 8 through August.

Additionally, Breeze Airways will offer daily one-stop service from both Providence, Rhode Island, and Bradley International Airport (BDL), which serves Hartford, Connecticut, to SAN.

Breeze Airways President Tom Doxey highlighted San Diego’s appeal as a popular summer destination, while RDU CEO Michael Landguth emphasized the new route’s significance in connecting two major technology hubs.

SAN will become the 46th airport in Breeze’s rapidly expanding network. The airline, founded by David Neeleman, began operations in May 2021 with 16 airports and currently serves several other Californian destinations including Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), Orange County, San Bernardino, and San Francisco.

In addition to the San Diego routes, Breeze Airways also announced three seasonal routes for its summer 2024 schedule. These include twice-weekly services between RDU and Westchester County Airport in New York, LAX and Charleston, South Carolina, and thrice-weekly flights between BDL and CVG, starting from May 3 and May 2, respectively.