Commercial passenger flights from McKinney National Airport are less than three weeks away, and the airline launching them is making the airport one of its home bases.
Avelo Airlines plans to station three 184-seat Boeing 737-800 jets at the airport and to base flight crews there, one of just five such crew bases the airline has nationwide, Ken Carley, who directs the airport, told Dallas Innovates in an article published Thursday.
Planners are counting on roughly 200,000 travelers during the first 12 months of airline service, the article said, and Carley said commercial flights will bring more than 100 jobs to the area.
An Avelo spokesperson, Courtney Goff, told the publication that early bookings are running ahead of the airline's initial projections. She said Avelo seeks out secondary airports that are easier to use in big metro areas, and that Collin County's growth was part of the appeal.
Opening schedule
The four-gate terminal, which covers 46,000 square feet, is set to open Nov. 11, the same day Avelo's first flight leaves for Fort Myers, Florida. Las Vegas and Orlando service begins Nov. 12; Tampa and Fort Lauderdale come Nov. 19. Atlanta, Denver, Nashville, New Orleans, Sarasota-Bradenton and West Palm Beach service starts in December.
Travelers searching for flights will see the airport listed under the code DTX. Pilots, air traffic controllers and general aviation users will keep using its FAA identifier, TKI.
