2021 was a record year for new air service additions at Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport (MKE). The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on air travel patterns, and airlines responded by adding service in leisure markets while also preparing for increased business travel in 2022 and beyond.
In 2021, several new airlines announced that they would enter the Milwaukee market: JetBlue, Spirit, and Sun Country. Existing airlines also enhanced their schedules from MKE to both leisure and business destinations. In all, air carriers added new or increased service from Milwaukee to 20 nonstop destinations. Many of these markets had not been served from MKE before.
The largest amount of new service was introduced by Spirit Airlines, which started service from MKE on June 24, 2021, featuring daily nonstop service from Milwaukee to Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and Orlando. In November, Spirit began flying daily nonstops to Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, Phoenix, and Tampa. Nonstops to Cancun were added three times per week starting in December.
Minneapolis-based Sun Country Airlines started nonstop flights to both Las Vegas and Minneapolis in August, and then flights to Fort Myers, Phoenix and Cancun were added in December.
And finally, the much-anticipated arrival of JetBlue Airways is slated for March 27, 2022, when daily flights start to both Boston and New York-JFK.
Among existing carriers, American Airlines added daily service to Miami through May 5, 2022.
United Airlines added daily year-round service to Washington-Dulles and winter seasonal service to Fort Myers. United also flew to five coastal destinations (Charleston, SC; Myrtle Beach, SC; Pensacola, FL; Portland, ME; and Savannah, GA) during the summer of 2021.
Southwest Airlines added nonstops to Sarasota/Bradenton while adding holiday/spring break service to the warm weather markets of Cancun, Los Angeles, and Miami. It also added additional frequencies to Fort Lauderdale throughout the year.
Alaska Airlines upgraded its nonstop Seattle service to full-size 737 aircraft year-round.
Air Canada will resume daily nonstops to Toronto, Canada in May.
Apple Vacations/Funjet Vacations is flying nonstop from Milwaukee to five destinations in Mexico and the Caribbean this winter, including Cancun, Mexico; Cabo San Lucas, Mexico; Montego Bay, Jamaica; Puerto Vallarta, Mexico; and Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.
