New Stewart Airport Operator Could Mean New International Flights

NEW WINDSOR, NY — If the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey approves a contract with a consortium to run and market New York Stewart International Airport, the possibility exists that international flights could return to the Orange County airport.

While passenger numbers at the airport grew 150 percent between 2016 and 2108 when Norwegian Air began offering discount flights to the United Kingdom and Ireland, the most recent data shows the number of passengers is down 9.4 percent from January to June of this year, compared to the same period in 2018, the Wall Street Journal reported.

In August, Norwegian Air decided to end its transatlantic flights between North American and Ireland as of Sept. 15.

The cause was the long-term grounding of the Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, and Norwegian Air said leasing replacement aircraft wasn't commercially viable.

Along with Stewart, T.F. Green in Providence, Rhode Island, and John C. Munro Hamilton in Ontario, Canada, were affected.

The Boeing 737 Max planes were grounded in March after an October Lion Air crash killed 189 people and a March Ethiopian Airlines crash that killed 157 people.

Port Authority commissioners are expected to OK a 10-year contract with a consortium that includes the French company Groupe ADP, which manages more than 20 airports around the world, including the Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris.

Whether Groupe ADP would be able to entice airlines to bring international routes to Stewart is not yet known, but the Port Authority said it is discussing new overseas routes, WPDH said.

Find and “Like” Hudson Valley Patches' Facebook Pages.