The newly branded California Pacific Airlines will launch
flights out of its base at McClellan Palomar Airport in the San Diego County
city of Carlsbad.
The carrier will offer commercial service on 50-seat Embraer
ERJ145 jets at fares competitive with mainline competitors such as Southwest
and Alaska Airlines.
California Pacific's first flights take to the sky on Nov.1.
The carrier will fly a total of 12 frequencies per week between Carlsbad and
San Jose and four times per week between Carlsbad and Reno-Tahoe. On Nov. 15,
California Pacific will commence thrice-weekly flights between Carlsbad and Las
Vegas.
The carrier is owned by San Diego developer and entrepreneur
Ted Vallas, who purchased the small regional carrier Aerodynamic Inc. over the
winter before rebranding it as California Pacific. Aerodynamic also currently
flies federally subsidized flights as part of the Essential Air Service program
between Denver, Pierre, S.D., and Watertown, S.D., under name Great Lakes Jets
Express.
Taking a lead from Southwest, California Pacific won't
charge for the first two checked bags. Cancellation fees for the cheaper nonrefundable
tickets will be $100 and change fees will be $50. A random fare search for
flights from Carlsbad in the first week of December yielded one-way fares of
$99 to Las Vegas and San Jose and $149 to Reno-Tahoe.
California Pacific said it would announce additional routes
soon.