Breeze Airways will begin a direct flight to Fort Myers from Burlington

Starting on Oct. 4, just in time for possible wintery weather in Vermont, you'll be able to fly non-stop to Fort Myers on Florida's Gulf Coast from Patrick Leahy Burlington International Airport on Breeze Airways.

Breeze Airways is the latest airline to fly out of Leahy BTV, beginning service in January with direct flights to Tampa and Orlando, Florida. Breeze added a flight to Jacksonville, Florida, via Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina, later in January, making Fort Myers the fourth Florida destination now served by Breeze out of Leahy BTV.

"This rapid growth in service is a testament to not only demand to destinations throughout Florida, but (also) the market for Floridians to visit Vermont," Nic Longo, director of aviation at Leahy BTV, said in a statement. "We are thrilled to continue to grow with Breeze Airways and look forward to potentially more announcements in the future."

The inaugural flight on Breeze to Fort Myers on Oct. 4 will depart Leahy BTV at 11:25 a.m. and arrive at Southwest Florida International Airport at 3:05 p.m. The first flight from Fort Myers to Burlington will depart Southwest Florida International Airport at 7:15 a.m. on the same day, arriving in Burlington at 10:45 a.m.

The Fort Myers flight out of Leahy BTV will be weekly on Monday and Friday on an Airbus A220-300.

Contact Dan D’Ambrosio at 660-1841 or ddambrosio@freepressmedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @DanDambrosioVT.