Delta Connection Begins Atlanta-Florida Keys Marathon Jet Service

An almost seven-year void was filled Thursday, February 15th when commercial air service returned to the middle Florida Keys, with the first arrival of Delta Connection's daily nonstop round-trip service from Atlanta to Florida Keys Marathon Airport.

Previously, Key West was the only airport in the Keys that offered regularly scheduled service for travelers other than South Florida mainland fly-in points. Florida Keys Marathon Airport is centrally located between Key Largo and Key West International Airport, and not more than 1.5 hours by car to any point on the Keys Overseas Highway.

The 40-passenger CRJ-200 jet was filled to capacity and arrived one minute ahead of schedule.

Several hundred Keys business people, politicians and residents cheered as the aircraft taxied to the ramp. The Marathon Chamber of Commerce welcomed passengers with tropical drinks and indigenous Keys cuisine. A woman wearing a giant conch shell costume greeted guests in the terminal.

"When I was coming down before, we were flying in to Miami and had to drive in," said Katie Maginn of Atlanta. "This is so much better and I can start my vacation earlier."

The approximately two-hour flights are to depart Atlanta daily at 10:40 a.m. Return trips from Florida Keys Marathon Airport to Atlanta are scheduled to leave each day at 1 p.m.

On Fridays, Delta adds a second flight that leaves Atlanta at 7:30 p.m. That aircraft is to remain overnight in Marathon and provide a second departure Saturdays, leaving the Keys at 9 a.m.

"Delta Airlines' main hub is in Atlanta," said Monroe County Mayor Mario Di Gennaro, who also is a member of the Keys tourism council. "So anybody, anywhere around the world, can fly into Atlanta and get a connecting flight directly into Marathon."

On the net: Delta Airlines, www.delta.com
Florida Keys tourism, www.fla-keys.com

SOURCE Florida Keys Tourism, Delta Connection