Frontier Airlines adding flights from Cleveland Hopkins to Charleston, S.C., San Francisco; dropping Portland

Frontier expands in Cleveland

Frontier Airlines is adding two new destinations to its Cleveland network in late April: Charleston and San Francisco.The Plain Dealer

CLEVELAND, Ohio – Low-cost carrier Frontier Airlines is adding Charleston, South Carolina, to its roster of destinations from Cleveland starting in early May, and will resume flying to San Francisco.

At the same time, the airline is ending service to Portland, Oregon.

The carrier will also fly year-round from Cleveland Hopkins to Sarasota, Florida, and Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic, two destinations that recently debuted as winter-only routes.

In a recent phone call, Frontier’s Daniel Shurz, senior vice president of commercial, outlined a series of network additions in Cleveland, which he called “amongst our most successful cities.”

Frontier, known for its low base fares and fee-for-service pricing, has grown rapidly in Cleveland since United Airlines pulled its hub here in 2014.

Among the additions:

* Twice-weekly flights to Charleston, starting May 2. The flights will run Thursdays and Sundays. An introductory sale on the route includes one-way fares starting at $39, if purchased by 11:59 p.m. Tuesday. The Cleveland flights leave at 3:13 p.m., landing in Charleston at 5:15 p.m. The flights from Charleston depart at 6:15 p.m., arriving in Cleveland at 8:12 p.m.

* A return to San Francisco International Airport, a destination it dropped in 2017, in part because of competition on the route from United Airlines. “The overall environment has improved since we pulled out,” said Shurz. “We think it’s a good time to return.” The new route will operate three times a week, on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays, starting April 30. The flight from Cleveland leaves at 3:33 p.m., arriving in San Francisco at 5:54 p.m. The flight from SFO departs at 9:36 p.m., landing in Cleveland at 5:20 a.m. Sale fares on this route start at $79 one way.

* The extension of two seasonal routes, to Sarasota, Florida, and Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic, to year-round destinations.

In addition, the carrier just reloaded San Diego into the schedule for the summer.

The sole summer reduction from Cleveland is a significant one: nonstop service to Portland, Oregon will not return this summer. Frontier is the only airline flying between Cleveland and Portland.

Shurz said that while peak travel weeks in mid-summer had full planes to Portland, late spring and late summer flights didn’t have high enough occupancy. He did not rule out a return to Portland, but he said he believes there is currently more demand for low-cost service to San Francisco.

United Airlines currently flies nonstop between Cleveland and San Francisco, once or twice a day, depending on the season.

United also offers summer-only, once-a-week service to Charleston, which will start back up again in June, according to the airline.

Frontier added Charleston, on the South Carolina coast, to its route network last February. Cleveland will be Frontier’s seventh destination from the city. “Charleston’s status as a destination continues to grow,” said Shurz. “This looks like an obvious next addition to our route network.”

In addition to the new destinations, Shurz said Frontier is adding frequency to several existing routes from Cleveland, including nonstop service to Austin, Orlando, Phoenix, Raleigh and Tampa.

Shurz said Frontier’s passenger numbers in Cleveland this June are projected to be 35 percent higher than the numbers in June 2018. The carrier will have an average of 11 flights a day out of Cleveland this summer, he said.

In 2018, Frontier was the fifth largest carrier in Cleveland, behind United, Southwest, Delta and American. Frontier, however, has more nonstop destinations – 17 – than any other airline serving Cleveland.

The carrier is adding more than a dozen new airplanes to its fleet this year, and is always looking for new markets, said Shurz. “Cleveland continues to be amongst our most successful cities,” said Shurz. “If Northeast Ohio continues to use our services, then there will be more flights to enjoy in the future.”

Top carriers in Cleveland, 2018 (source: Cleveland Hopkins airport)

CarrierPassengersPercentage of total
United2.51 million26 percent
Southwest1.66 million17.2 percent
Delta1.51 million15.6 percent
American1.49 million15.1 percent
Frontier984,06410.2 percent
Spirit856,9628.9 percent
JetBlue266,6992.77 percent
Allegiant226,9842.35 percent
Air Canada84,0760.87 percent
Wow Air32,9880.34 percent
Icelandair24,8720.26 percent

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