SCHUMER ANNOUNCES: SOUTHWEST AIRLINES TO LAUNCH SERVICE TO SYRACUSE; DAYS AFTER SENATOR PUSHED FOR SOUTHWEST CEO TO ADD ROUTES TO HANCOCK INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, SYRACUSE LANDS SOUTHWEST SERVICE
Schumer’s Lands Southwest Airlines Service To Syracuse Airport After Decades-Long Fight; On Call With CEO, Senator Urged Southwest To Make Bold Investment At Syracuse Airport
Following Securing Massive Investment In Airline Industry, Schumer Says Southwest Will Establish Presence At Hancock Intl Airport Starting
Schumer: My Longtime Push To Bring Southwest To Syracuse Has Now Landed
After urging Southwest to add service to Syracuse Hancock International Airport (SYR) last week on a personal call with CEO Gary Kelly, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer announced today that Southwest Airlines has agreed to expand and enhance its presence in Upstate New York by establishing service out of SYR for the first time. With the addition of new routes to SYR, Southwest will now service every major airport in Upstate New York.
On his call with Southwest CEO Kelly last week, Schumer highlighted his long history of working with Southwest and other airlines to bring service to Upstate New York, the success of those routes, and the widely predicted post-pandemic economic boom as proof that establishing service for Syracuse Hancock would be a win-win. Schumer said the new routes to SYR would boost competition, availability of low-cost flights, and connectivity for travelers and businesses in Central New York.
“Today’s news, landing Southwest in Syracuse, is no small peanuts, said Senator Schumer. “And let’s not forget, the decision by Southwest to finally land in Syracuse solidifies years of hard work by all of us to get the airport in tip-top shape—inside and out. The federal funds we’ve used to make the Syracuse airport the crown of regional and affordable travel ensures jewels of service like Southwest are here to stay, with more to come.”
Schumer has long fought to bring affordable air service to Upstate New York. In fact, Senator Schumer’s first major victory on that front came when he successfully advocated for Southwest to start flights from Albany. Southwest’s profitable decision led many other carriers to begin servicing airports across the state that previously were not considered viable. Since then, Schumer has fought to bring new airlines and routes to Upstate New York cities, including JetBlue to Buffalo, Albany, Syracuse and Rochester. Recently, Schumer successfully pushed JetBlue to establish service to Boston from Syracuse. Lastly, Schumer secured nearly $934 million for New York airports during the pandemic, including more than $29 million to Hancock airport.
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