WICOMICO COUNTY, Md. -- On Monday, Breeze Airways announced it will begin rolling out flights to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, beginning on July 1. This comes just five months after the airline began offering nonstop service to Orlando, Florida.
Bill Chambers, President of the Salisbury Chamber of Commerce, said this was always the plan.
"We always knew there was the market to support multiple airlines to multiple destinations, not only from a leisure standpoint, from a business standpoint," said Chambers. "So, I think Breeze has seen that and we know American knows it as well."
That confidence, according to Dave Ryan, Executive Director of the Salisbury-Wicomico Economic Development Corporation, stems from years of research. It showed that droves of potential passengers were leaving the peninsula, opting to fly out of Baltimore or Washington, D.C., rather than Salisbury.
"Studies have shown there's a leakage, and most of that leakage is passengers wanting to go to the South Florida market," said Ryan.
The arrival of Breeze Airways slowed that down, and at a pace that made the airline feel comfortable enough to expand its service out of Salisbury.
"I think five months is a testament to the quickness that the market has accepted the new air service," said Ryan.
Now, there was always a risk here.
"These kinds of projects, they feel a little risky because it's new, it's different," said Amy Thompson, Executive Director of the Ocean City Chamber of Commerce.
Still, there was enough confidence, at least locally, that Wicomico County, Worcester County and Ocean City all felt comfortable pledging a combined $125,000 back in 2024.
That money played a big role in the airport securing an $800,000 federal grant that incentivized Breeze to come to Salisbury, and now more than ever, local leaders feel like they're getting what they paid for.
"All those that helped to make this happen, those that helped to contribute initially on this whole incentive, I think they're seeing that this is a viable alternative," said John Cannon, President of the Wicomico County Council.
And now, with news of additional flights, there's hope it will attract more people to Maryland's Eastern Shore.
"I don't know that there's any one thing, but yeah, it's the festivals. I see golf as a potential and then supporting these youth sports that are at the convention center," said Thompson.
There's also a hope that the Salisbury Airport will continue trending in the right direction.
"It's a flourishing airport and I don't think we're done yet there," said Ryan. "We're setting ourselves up, we're investing in that infrastructure and heavily marketing that airport for more jobs, for commerce, more tax base for the sustainable future.