Last week, airline specialist David Neeleman formally introduced his latest startup to the world. Breeze is looking to fly as early as this year. According to its application for an Air Operator Certificate dated February 7th, 2020, eastern regions in the United States will served first by the firm.

Offering something new

Breeze has been promoted as the "World’s Nicest Airline" by Neeleman. It seeks to offer low-cost flights to those in unserved and underserved areas. Even though it will be headquartered in Salt Lake City, it will begin its operations in more easterly states.

The Points Guy reports that the airline will begin serving routes between points east of the Mississippi River. These flights will also operate between the north and south of the regions. The firm informed US regulators of these plans within its application, which was released publicly today.

Additionally, the carrier claims that the destinations will be secondary leisure markets, which will be affordable to budget travelers. Moreover, Neeleman hopes to serve city pairs that a lot of the major players have missed out on.

There are 26 US states east of the Mississippi. Therefore, it is hard to pinpoint exactly where the operator will serve its first flights.

However, we do know that Neeleman is hoping to provide options in regions that have often been neglected. Altogether, Breeze could be thinking about connecting points across the likes of Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina.

David Neeleman
David Neeleman, founder, chairman, and CEO of Breeze Airways is also the founder of JetBlue, WestJet, and Azul Linhas Aéreas. Photo: Getty Images

The right fleet

To fulfill these operations, Breeze is putting its faith in two aircraft types. While still being dubbed as Moxy, it committed to 50 Airbus A220s. Along with this, Neeleman's other startup Azul will sublease its Embraer E195s to his new venture.

None of the major US airlines operate E195s, with the E175 and E190 usually being the preferred option on regional services. Therefore, Breeze has the opportunity to offer slightly more space on its Embraer services than its future rivals.

It is preparing to operate 28 of these E195s configured with 118 seats. This is before it will introduce its A220-300s in 2021.

Azul Embraer 195
Azul is letting go of all of its 53 leased and seven owned previous generation Embraer E195s. Photo: Getty Images

Suitable starting point

Ultimately, there are plenty of bubbling under cities across the eastern states within the country. With close proximity to key destinations such as New York and Washington, these zones have a lot of potential to grow.

Therefore this area is the perfect testing ground for Breeze to get to grips with operations before it expands west. The airline reportedly has a list of 500 destinations that it wants to serve. So, it won't be an eastern exclusive for long.

What are your thoughts on where Breeze will first? Let us know what you think in the comment section.