Sun-starved Vermonters will have a quicker route to Florida from the Burlington International Airport starting early next year.

A new-to-Burlington airline, Breeze Airways, will begin offering twice-weekly nonstop flights to Tampa on January 31 and to Orlando on February 14, airport officials announced on Wednesday. Breeze offers the same Orlando flight from Plattsburgh International Airport, just across Lake Champlain.

"This new partnership opens new opportunities for Vermonters to travel to popular destinations, and we look forward to welcoming new visitors to Burlington," Mayor Miro Weinberger said in a statement. “I am sure that this will be an often-used and well-loved route for Burlingtonians traveling for work and pleasure alike.”
BTV hasn't had direct service to Orlando since Frontier Airlines pulled out a year ago. The airline had also offered seasonal flights to Denver.



The news comes a week after the airport learned JetBlue would be ending its twice-daily flights to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City. Delta is also scaling back its flights to both JFK and LaGuardia.

The JetBlue service, which will end in early January, accounts for roughly 10 percent of monthly passengers in Burlington.