STEWART AIRPORT – US Deputy Transportation Secretary Polly Trottenberg toured New York Stewart International Airport near Newburgh on Friday and predicted as the economy of the Mid-Hudson continues to grow, so will passenger service.
At present, Allegiant Airways and Breeze Airways operate non-daily flights to the south – mostly Florida and Play Airlines flies to Iceland with connections to mainland European cities.
In the early to mid-1990s, Stewart was served by most of the legacy airlines including American, Delta, US Airways and commuter airlines including United Express. They have all pulled out. Jet Blue, which had a very successful run at Stewart for years, never returned after COVID-19.
Trottenberg said the issue is not exclusive to Stewart but has impacted regional airports across the country.
“I think I see signs that the system is starting to speed up. We’re starting to get the personnel back in place, get those planes going, and I think once that happens, you are going to see more growth again in smaller airports,” she said. “I will say clearly this is a growing region and it’s growing in population, and I think it’s growing into the potential economic opportunities here. So, I think you are poised potentially to get some of those carriers back.”
Trottenberg, Orange County Executive Steven Neuhaus and Congressman Pat Ryan noted the recent announcement of two significant developments that will get underway soon to build corporate hangar space at Stewart.
