Vero Beach Airport Director Eric Menger says preparations are on track for the planned Dec. 10 launch of Elite Airways flights to Newark, the return of commercial air service to Vero which generated tremendous excitement when Vero Beach 32963 broke the story in August.
“Everything is going great,” Menger said of the ticketing counter and post 9/ll security modifications necessary for before Elite takes to the air.
Tickets are expected to go on sale shortly for the non-stop flights to Newark Liberty International Airport. Elite is expected to fly the route twice weekly through April.
“It is a very nice service,” said airline president and CEO John Pearsall, whose company began operating passenger service out of Melbourne last fall. “The first bag is free and we don’t charge for a lot of extras. The planes have comfortable leather seats. We are proud of the product.”
Founded in 2006, Elite has a 10-plane fleet of Bombardier jets, currently flies three routes and is slated to launch three new routes this year, including the Vero to Newark run.
It has been almost 20 years since regular commercial passenger service was offered at Vero Beach Airport. Eastern Airlines flew out of Vero for 40 years, from the early 1930s to the early 1970s before shutting down what had become an unprofitable operation. Half a dozen other smaller airlines offered commuter service for various lengths of time before closing up shop. The last flights were in the mid-1990s, when American Eagle flew out of the airport for less than a year.
