Jacksonville International Airport getting flights to Pensacola

Silver Airways will begin flights between Jacksonville International Airport and Pensacola International Airport on March 19, according to a prepared statement from the company.

 

The flights will go back and forth between the cities once a day from Monday through Friday, according to the statement.

 

The route is one of several that has been added to Jacksonville International in recent years. 

Allegiant Air announced last year that in February it will begin flights between Jacksonville and Pittsburgh and Cincinnati, while Southwest Airlines has started a route to Chicago Midway International Airport.

 

But Jacksonville International has also lost a few destinations, including a Delta Air Lines flight to Memphis and Southwest flights to Birmingham, Ala. and Norfolk, Va. A JetBlue Airways flight that once ran to San Juan, Puerto Rico, is no longer listed on the airport’s website.

 

Steve Crandall, owner of Discount Travel Brokerage Services, said the Pensacola flight was a good addition to the airport. “It’s not just Jacksonville and Pensacola — people are going to use it to get to Mobile, Alabama, and Gulfport,” he said.

 

Silver Airways, based in Fort Lauderdale, already runs flights between Jacksonville and Fort Lauderdale, Tampa and Marsh Harbour Airport in the Bahamas. 

The airline is offering an introductory fare of $69 for a one-way flight between Jacksonville and Pensacola. Its flights between Jacksonville and other Florida cities cost from $62 to $130 one-way.

 

Silver Airways specializes in flights between Florida cities, including Orlando, St. Petersburg, Fort Lauderdale, Orlando and Key West. It also offers routes to airports in the Bahamas and between cities in the mid-Atlantic region, including Washington, D.C., Morgantown, W.Va., and Johnstown, Pa.

 

On Monday, the airline also announced new flights between Panama City and Orlando and Tampa. In recent months, the airline has added more flights to the Bahamas. The airline is intent on expanding its presence in Florida, said Misty Pinson, the company’s director of public relations.

 

“What we’re looking to do, and what we have been doing for the past year, is expanding that network, and Jacksonville is obviously an important part of that network,” she said.

 

Silver Airways was founded in 2011 and broke away from United Airlines to become an independent airline in June 2013. It has cut back some of its service routes since it was founded: It once ran flights to Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Virginia, New York, Ohio and Montana, according to its website.