Jan. 28—Southwest Airlines, which is scheduled to launch service at Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport next month, will begin flying between SRQ and Atlanta in March.
The airline will offer daily nonstop service between Sarasota- Bradenton and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport starting on March 11, according to an announcement on Thursday by the airport.
Southwest is already scheduled to begin serving Baltimore, Chicago, Nashville and Houston starting on Feb. 14 on a year-round basis. Seasonal service to Columbus, Indianapolis and Pittsburgh starts on March 13.
"It is great to see Southwest Airlines continue to expand the destinations they will offer out of the Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport," Rick Piccolo, president and CEO of the airport, said in a statement. "This new flight will complement the seven other destinations that Southwest Airlines will be serving at SRQ. We look forward to welcoming Southwest Airlines to our airport and the community."
Atlanta is a major hub for travel in the Southeast. It's the largest hub for Delta Air Lines, offering 963 peak-day departures to 219 destinations worldwide, according to the airline. Delta currently offers direct service from Sarasota- Bradenton to Atlanta year-round.
Sarasota County also has a local connection to the Atlanta area as the spring training home of Major League Baseball's Atlanta Braves at CoolToday Park in North Port.
Despite the astronomical impact of COVID-19 on the travel industry, Sarasota- Bradenton has had some recent successes, including the addition of Southwest. United Airlines announced it will begin daily, year-round service to Houston starting Feb. 11.
Passenger traffic in 2020 fell 37% at the airport compared to 2019, according to SRQ statistics. In 2020, 1,236,986 passengers traveled through the airport, compared to 1,966,950 the year before.
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