JetBlue Airways began its service to Tallahassee Thursday with a flight from Fort Lauderdale that landed at 9:40 a.m. Tallahassee International Airport was in party mode, full of movers and shakers celebrating a long-sought goal: direct, daily flights to the capital from South Florida.
Most of the passengers getting off the flight didn’t know at first that they were part of history. Then they heard the jazz band, saw the crowd, and found themselves being applauded. Their welcome included Congressman Neal Dunn, state Senator Corey Simon and state Representative Gallop Franklin.
Mayor John Dailey was among the passengers, having taken the inaugural flight himself.
“You should see the excitement down in Fort Lauderdale for this direct flight to Tallahassee," he said. "We had a handful of your colleagues from the Legislature that came out – they weren’t even on the flight. They just came out, they were so excited about this direct flight on JetBlue.”
It’s long been a frustration for lawmakers from other parts of Florida that the trip to Tallahassee was so onerous. Connecting flights took them almost as long as if they were driving.
The city first launched a campaign to court Jet Blue in 2015. The airport has struggled to maintain carriers since the early 2000s when a state contract expired – leading to a drastic drop in usage.
Now Dailey is vowing to be the best partner JetBlue ever had. And Robert Land, JetBlue’s general counsel, offered an inaugural fare of $49 per flight through January 5th.
“And this is only going to work if it’s a partnership," he said. "If you go online today, we’re having a sale – $49 [applause] It’s a pretty good deal. You can’t take a taxi across town for 49 dollars. We’ll get you to the beaches of South Florida or even better, like I’m doing this afternoon, my colleague Emily is doing – we go to 40 different places with 150 flights a day from Fort Lauderdale.”
Dunn welcomed JetBlue to his district, reminding its representatives that Florida is the fastest-growing state.
“So, the capital is experiencing explosive growth, as is befitting," he said. "And it’s a terrific city with a terrific workforce – and there’s a lot of terrific institutions here that will grow that workforce as you grow your presence here. You have a very well-run city, a very well-run airport – you have everything you need to thrive!"
Also celebrating were members of Tallahassee’s business community, who said the airport is growing and with it, the city’s financial power.
