- June 4, 2021, 12:06 PM
The FAA issued an emergency order revoking Universal Flight Services (UFS) certificate to conduct passenger flights, alleging that the Sarasota, Florida-based company conducted illegal charter operations over a span of nearly five years, the agency announced today. UFS received its certificate for passenger operations in March 2019, but the FAA alleged it had operated 26 such flights between October 2015 and February 2019 at airports including Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport, Key West International Airport, Florida Keys/Marathon International Airport, and Witham Field.
After obtaining certification, the company conducted flights between September 2019 and September 2020 using unauthorized pilots and/or aircraft, the agency additionally alleged. On two of those flights, the pilot did not have the requisite medical certificate, did not pass a flight check for flight in instrument conditions, and was not current in instrument conditions, accordi
Starting July 2, Portland, Maine-based Elite Airways will begin offering flights to White Plains Westchester County Airport, New York, from Sarasota Bradenton International Airport.
The company will continue flight service to Portland International Jetport in Maine. Passengers will be able to fly to White Plains twice weekly, on Fridays and Mondays. The flight tickets start at $199 each way.
“Elite Airways is pleased to resume service at Sarasota-Bradenton with twice-weekly nonstops to White Plains, New York, continuing up to Portland, Maine; passengers can also stop in White Plains and access our daily nonstops to Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket this summer,” John Pearsall, president of Elite Airways, says in a press release. “We would like to thank our customers and airport officials for their continued support as we expand our service to meet renewed demand for leisure travel along the east coast.”
Sarasota and Manatee counties haven t seen much rain this month. And starting last Tuesday, conditions seemed to change overnight in Sarasota.
Record demand for water led some residents to use drinking water to keep their lawns green. This caused water outages and low pressure problems for anyone living north of Bee Ridge Road.
The next day, the county declared a drought emergency and urged residents to conserve water for the next week. The persistent dry weather and an increased chance of wildfires also led authorities to impose recreational burn bans across the region.
But the dry conditions didn t surprise forecaster Rodney Winn of the National Weather Service, who said that the area’s below average rainfall this year is uncommon but not extraordinary. Some relief might come as early as this weekend, he said. The region is expecting a 20% to 30% chance of rain starting on Sunday and lasting throughout the next week, a departure from the near zero daily chances tha
By Staff
The flock of new airline flights heading to Maine this summer is getting bigger, with Elite Airways’ addition of four round trips per week beginning in July.
The new flights, announced Monday in a news release, will shuttle between Portland International Jetport and White Plains Westchester County Airport in New York. Continuing service will take passengers to and from two Florida destinations: Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport, on Sundays and Thursdays, and Orlando Melbourne International Airport, on Fridays and Mondays.
Connections also will be available at White Plains for Elite flights to Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket in Massachusetts.
Elite currently flies between Portland and Vero Beach, Fla., but that service will temporarily end on Sept. 6 due to construction planned at the Vero Beach airport.