A day after the 10th anniversary of its launch at Charleston International, JetBlue Airways announced it's offering New York City-bound passengers a new option.
The carrier said March 1 that it will commence daily nonstop flights on May 25 to Westchester County Airport in White Plains, N.Y., about 30 miles north of Manhattan.
The flight will bring head-to-head competition between JetBlue and an upstart that already offers service to White Plains from Charleston.
Breeze Airways began offering flights to Westchester County Airport in June. The Utah-based carrier will beef up its service with daily flights to White Plains, starting May 1, according to its flight schedule.
JetBlue already offers flights from the Lowcountry to two other New York City-area airports: John F. Kennedy International and LaGuardia.
As part of the latest announcement, a JetBlue representative cited the airline's pledge to deliver service to more destinations from the Lowcountry.
“JetBlue is proud of our decade-long partnership with Charleston, made possible by the incredible support of the community, and we are excited to offer customers more travel options this summer,” said David Jehn, vice president of network planning and partnerships.
The New York City area is a top market of origin for visitors to the Lowcountry and a popular destination for local travelers, according to Helen Hill, chairwoman of Charleston County Aviation Authority and CEO of tourism agency Explore Charleston.
Charleston airport CEO Elliott Summey said the additional access to the New York area "solidifies JetBlue's commitment to our region."
The roughly two-hour flight will leave North Charleston at 3:15 p.m. and land in White Plains at 5:30 p.m. The departure time from White Plains is 11:59 a.m. with a scheduled landing at 2:14 p.m.
JetBlue, which launched service from CHS on Feb. 28, 2013, also offers nonstop flights from the Lowcountry airport to Boston, Fort Lauderdale and Los Angeles.
