Lincoln, Nebraska is the proud home of the newest (almost) airline to launch in the United States. Red Way will launch service as a public charter operator, selling flights to on behalf of GlobalX Air Tours, LLC, operated by Global Crossing Airlines. Flights are on sale now, with service slated for liftoff in June 2023.
Initial markets served from Lincoln will be:
- Orlando (MCO) – 2x weekly beginning 8 June 2023
- Las Vegas (LAS) – 2x weekly beginning 8 June 2023
- Atlanta (ATL) – 2x weekly beginning 16 June 2023
- Dallas-Ft Worth (DFW) – 2x weekly beginning 16 June 2023
- Minneapolis-St Paul (MSP) – 2x weekly beginning 16 June 2023
- Austin (AUS) – 2x weekly beginning 24 June 2023
- Nashville (BNA) – 2x weekly beginning 24 June 2023
The website currently shows Dallas, Atlanta, and Minneapolis increasing to 3x weekly by September, while Nashville and Austin stop operating as the summer ends.
All flights will be operated on Global Crossing’s A320/A321 fleet. Passengers will be able to pay up for extra leg room seats on board, as well as to purchase food and drinks in flight.
Fares are cheap for a Basic Economy offering. They increase quickly as additional amenities are included in the bundle.
The operation is being subsidized by the local government, to the tun of approximately $3 million, according to multiple sources.
Lincoln is served today by United Airlines, with flights to Chicago, Denver, and Houston. In years past it has also occasionally seen service from a Delta Air Lines or American Airlines hub. DOT data via Cirium suggests the airport historically supported about 400 passengers per day. That’s down to about 300 as of September 2022 (most current data). Putting an extra 360ish daily seats into the market (7 destinations * 2x weekly * 180 seats/plane) is a massive increase in capacity.
But even the pricier bundles on the nonstop service are competitive with the cheapest fares United is selling this summer. The big question is whether that’s compelling enough for travelers to book local rather than driving the hour to Omaha for cheaper fares.
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