LAFAYETTE TOWNSHIP — For people who would rather drive to a nearby airport to catch a flight to destinations beyond, the new connecting flight between Bradford Regional Airport airport and Washington-Dulles airport may be the answer.
On Wednesday, Bradford Regional Airport authority members Cliff Lane and Marcie Assetta, as well as airport manager Alicia Dankesreiter flew on a nine-passenger Cessna Caravan provided by Southern Airways Express to Washington Dulles Airport. They participated in the round-trip tour to experience the convenience of the 90-minute flights from Bradford.
“We have three flights a day, seven days a week,” Dankesreiter said. “They go direct from Bradford to Washington-Dulles, and the time is blocked at an hour and a half” for the flight.
Once at Washington-Dulles, a passenger can connect with United, a hub in Washington, and continue on to other destinations through American Airlines or Alaskan Airlines. Flights from Bradford can also take passengers to the Pittsburgh airport for connections, a daily service that has been in place for several years.
“Your bags will go right from Bradford to your final destination,” she said of the interline agreement that Bradford has with the other two airline services.
She said the Cessna Caravan flights are very efficient and allow the airport to keep costs down with fees starting at $39 for flights to Pittsburgh. She said the pilots are employed by Southern Airways Express.
In addition to shorter drives to reach the airport, other advantages with the Bradford Airport are that there are no fees associated with parking vehicles at the facility. This is not the case, however, for parking at the Cleveland or Buffalo, N.Y. airports.
“We never stopped our service through the pandemic, it was business as usual here but it was lonely because people weren’t traveling during the pandemic,” Dankesreiter said in remembering last year. “But we’re starting to see a pick-up again.”
Assetta of Elk County said she, too, was happy with the new service and was really looking forward to Wednesday’s flight.
“I think the Dulles connection is going to be very handy,” Assetta said. “I do have several friends who work in D.C. and I suggested they fly into Bradford. I’ve had one person take me up on it … and everybody loves the free parking.”
Lane expressed similar sentiments.
“We originally had (air service) with Colgan Air in 2008” which went out of business in 2009, Lane recalled. “But while we (were with Colgan) we had the most people flying. That’s what I’m looking at (with Southern Airways Express), a boost in people flying.”
He noted that there are 95 domestic connections out of Washington-Dulles as well as 55 international connections.
“I’m excited about this, it’s an important thing,” he remarked.
A passenger who flew in on an earlier flight said she really enjoyed the ride, and arriving closer to home at the Bradford airport.
“It was great and I’d recommend this to anybody,” the woman said.
