Frontier Airlines Announces Route Changes For 2015: Miami Is In, Fairbanks Out
It seems like geese are not the only big birds flying south for the winter. On Tuesday, Frontier Airlines announced it was ending its seasonal service to Fairbanks, Alaska and adding flights from Miami to Frontier’s other destinations around the country. Along with these changing routes, Frontier also announced they will expand their Chicago services and add routes from Philadelphia, as well.
As reported by NBC affiliate KTUU Channel 2 in Fairbanks, Frontier usually flies a seasonal route from Fairbanks to Denver during Mid-May to Mid-September, but the route will be discontinued starting in 2015. At least three to four flights a week were made between Fairbanks and Denver, but now the only route Frontier Airlines will have connecting Alaska to the lower 48 states will be their Anchorage to Denver route.
The closing of the Flint Hills Resources refinery in North Pole, Alaska was cited as the reason for discontinuing the route. The refinery shut down production in May. Frontier Airlines’ high fuel costs for the Fairbanks flights were also blamed, according to a spokesperson for the Fairbanks International Airport.
Just as services were being cut to and from Fairbanks, Frontier began offering services in both Miami and Philadelphia. To introduce the new services, Frontier Airlines offered a fare of $14.99 each way to Miami from Chicago during a one-day sale on Tuesday. Along with Miami, tickets were also available on Frontier to Las Vegas and Tampa for flights starting in December.
Frontier Airlines had previously stopped servicing Philadelphia in 2013, according to USA Today. In nearby Trenton, New Jersey, Frontier currently offers 18 nonstop routes, and with the addition of a 19th flight from the city, airport officials in Trenton are not worried about Frontier pulling out of their airport. The new nonstop route will be offered between Trenton and the Bahamas.
Frontier, which has a reputation as being one of the best on-time airlines in the country, will also expand services at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport. The reduced fare airline will add four routes, giving Frontier a total of 11 nonstop flights routed from O’Hare and leaving only one flying out of Chicago’s Midway Airport.
The Chicago Tribune noted that Frontier Airlines is moving its Chicago base from Midway to O’Hare because it is an underserved market by discount airlines. The new spring routes from Chicago were not revealed by Frontier during their Tuesday announcement. However, flights from Chicago to Philadelphia and Miami will probably be on Frontier’s schedule.
