After overcoming security issues within the Washington area, Tailwind Air launched its first New York to the DC area seaplane service on Friday. The service was scheduled to begin on September 13th, but regulator's concerns around using Maryland's College Park Airport meant a new Washington DC base had to be found.

Quick, easy and very scenic

The service is now up and running from a private terminal at Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) to the New York Skyport (NYS) on Manhattan's East River. Tailwind will use an eight-passenger Cessna Caravan C208 departing from the Jet Aviation private facility at Dulles IAD, with passengers arriving as little as ten minutes before the flight's departure. With passengers not entering the main airport terminal, they will not need to go through a TSA screening before boarding the 90-minute flight. They will get a window seat view as the Cessna descends into the scenic approach to the East River seaplane base landing space.

Tailwind uses NYS as its base for Manhattan departures to nine destinations: Boston Harbor - Fan Pier Marina (BNH), East Hampton, Sag Harbor, Shelter Island, Montauk, Provincetown, Plymouth, Bridgeport and now Washington DC. Tailwind will initially offer eight flights per week between New York and Washington. Departures from Manhattan are at 08:35 Monday to Friday and 16:40 on Monday, Thursday and Friday. Dulles departures are at 06:55 on Monday, Tuesday and Friday and 15:00 on Monday to Friday.

TailwindZoneMap_V8
Map: Tailwind Air

In August, Tailwind announced it was starting the service on September 13th using College Park Airport. College Park is a general aviation airport often used as a gateway to Washington, located around 25 minutes from the capital and a short walk from the DC Metro system. On September 12th, Tailwind announced it had encountered "additional considerations around scheduled services from new gateways into the Washington, DC area."

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Dulles has its advantages

The Washington Post reported that using College Park was derailed after concerns were raised by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Transportation Security Administration. The airspace around DC is tightly restricted for commuter operations and presented challenges to Tailwind gaining access. However, Dulles IAD falls within less tightly restricted airspace, and CEO Alan Ram told the Post that,

"We are confident that our Washington area IAD service will resonate well with our customers and are looking forward to providing this unique service."

Tailwind Air Plane landing on the water
Photo: Tailwind Air

Tailwind is pitching the service to business people who want to avoid the hassles of a regular airline commute from a major airport while still arriving in Manhattan or Washington faster than by train, with one-way tickets starting at $395. In addition to its three Cessna Caravans, Tailwind operates a fleet of more than 20 jet and turboprop aircraft based at Westchester Airport (HPN) in New York and Bridgeport Airport (BDR) in Connecticut. It is an FAA, and Department of Transportation licensed part 135 commuter air carrier.

It would be great to hear from any of Tailwinds' seaplane passengers about their experience.

Source: Washington Post