Silver Airways’ first direct flight from Ft. Lauderdale to Gainesville arrived at 7:43 p.m. on Monday as airport, airline and city officials inside the terminal celebrated the touchdown with cake and punch.
Around 50 passengers disembarked from Ft. Lauderdale and 50 more boarded for the next flight. As the arrivals left the terminals, the attendees gathered to welcome them with a Silver Airways branded goodie bag.
Gainesville Regional Airport and Silver Airways announced the partnership in the middle of July, and Allan Penksa, airport CEO, said both staffs worked together for the quick turnaround after the final agreement in June.
Penksa said that the direct flight now opens a fifth international hub that connects to Gainesville, expanding options for residents. He said the route makes sense with so many parents and students arriving from South Florida to attend and visit UF.
The new flight will also allow South Floridians to experience tourism Gainesville’s tourism offerings, he said.
“We’re excited about it,” Penksa said. “One of the questions that the CEO of Silver asked me is ‘where next.’”
Steven Rossum, CEO of Silver Airways, spoke at the celebration launch and highlighted the great partnership. Gainesville Mayor Harvey Ward also spoke along with Penksa and the former and future chairs of the Gainesville Airport Authority Board.
Craig Carter will take over as chair of the airport board on Monday. He said the partnership with Silver Airways allows quick access to the Bahamas to relax and recharge before coming back to Gainesville.
“We just want to wish Silver Airways great success,” Carter said. “We’re looking forward to this partnership as you came on board.”
Penksa said it’s cheaper for airlines to expand from airports where they already operate from. With ground crew, computers and space at Gainesville, the new route can lift off easier.
“If it’s within the range and we can show that there’s a demand here, I think Silver is very willing to look at any route and maximize their investment here,” Penksa said.
July brought 44,331 passengers through Gainesville Regional Airport, and for its fiscal year so far, the airport has surpassed the numbers from 2022. For the first 10 months of fiscal year 2023, the airport has had 443,938 passengers compared with 440,195 in 2022.
Let’s go Gainesville ✈ 🛩 🛬 nice
Great!
How about something that connects to flights from the midwest, maybe Akron or Southern Ohio?
I still want to know if silver ever paid off their huge debt left behind when they abandoned Gainesville a couple years ago!!°
Came here to say the same. I worked for silver when they were in Gainesville and they were absolute garbage. The flight would be delayed by hours and we were instructed to tell people it was a 15 minute delay and then to update it 15 minutes later to say it would be 15 minutes more, ad nauseum. We spent more time booking people taxis than we did flights.