Frontier Airlines Cuts 90% of Capacity, Flying Only to Orlando from Cleveland Hopkins in April
CLEVELAND, Ohio — Frontier Airlines is cutting more than 90% of flight capacity nationwide in April, eliminating all routes from Cleveland Hopkins except one, to Orlando.
In a statement, the airline said it is hoping to gradually add back service starting in May. “It is the company’s belief that, if there is strong compliance with the U.S. government’s current guidance for Americans to stay at home for an additional 30 days, the airline will be in a position to gradually build flight capacity back up to as much as 35% in May and 100% in the latter half of the year.”
According to online schedule information, Frontier plans to fly to four destinations from Cleveland in May: Orlando, Fort Myers and Tampa in Florida, and Denver. The carrier will average two departures a day in May, according to the airport.
Frontier, a low-cost carrier based in Denver, has developed a large presence at Cleveland Hopkins in recent years, flying to as many as 21 destinations -- more than any other airline. By passenger volume, it was the fifth largest carrier at Hopkins in 2019, with 1.2 million passengers, behind United, Delta, Southwest and American.
The airline industry worldwide has been decimated by the coronavirus pandemic, with carriers slashing capacity and yet still flying nearly empty planes.
Airline analyst Seth Kaplan estimates that capacity cuts in the United States for April and May will likely average between 70% and 90%, depending on the airline. “It’s really tough to calculate because so much of it is being done on a rolling basis,” he said. “But I don’t think 70 to 90% will unusual by the time we’re all done.”
In Cleveland, all carriers have cut capacity and reduced routes, some more than others.
Among recent route reductions: United’s nonstop flight to Los Angeles, which has been discontinued through at least April; all Air Canada’s flights to Toronto; and Delta service to Salt Lake City. At Cleveland’s Burke Lakefront Airport, Ultimate Air Shuttle has suspended service to Cincinnati.
The Transportation Security Administration reported earlier this week that 180,002 passengers were screened at airports in the United States on Sunday -- the lowest number in 10 years, and a rough barometer of the number of people flying.
“Exactly one year earlier, 2,510,294 people were screened at checkpoints across the nation,” TSA spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein wrote on Twitter Monday.
Help is on its way, however. U.S. airlines stand to receive $50 billion in loans and grants from the federal government, part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act passed by Congress last week. The aid package requires airlines to not furlough employees for the next six months and to maintain service to the cities they currently serve.
Federal law requires U.S. airlines to issue a refund to passengers when the carrier cancels a flight, although some airlines are trying to get around that requirement by offering enticements to passengers to accept credits instead.
For information on receiving a refund from Frontier: flyfrontier.com/travel/travel-info/New-Change-Policy.
Read more travel/tourism coverage:
Cleveland-area hotels starting to close amid steep drop in occupancy
Ohio’s hotel, tourism industry facing huge losses during coronavirus crisis
Tourism to Cleveland, region, likely to drop due to coronavirus concerns
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