For the second time this year, Cal Jet by Elite Air has suspended its service out of McClellan-Palomar Airport.
According to a statement posted to the company’s Facebook page, CEO Bob Daly and President George Wozniak said the suspension is to give the company time to “prepare for a multiple aircraft operation … as the new schedule and times are finalized.”
The service launched on Sept. 28, 2017, providing residents round-trip service from Carlsbad to Las Vegas. Daly and Wozniak also announced service will return in June with flights to Oakland and Phoenix followed by adding service to San Jose, Sacramento and Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, in July.
The airline, though, has had trouble with operations as customers have complained of last-minute cancellations and delays. Cal Jet previously suspended operations in February for several weeks before returning to service.
Daly and Wozniak said Cal Jet is based on a five-city business plan, although the company is close to adding more airplanes and crew to operate at the desired performance.
Customers, though, have railed against the company’s behavior and lack of communication.
Ashley Sandoval said a recent flight to Las Vegas was cancelled the night before and she had to drive the next day.
Another commenter said she did not receive any notice and had to pay $200 for a Southwest Airlines flight and a $55 Uber ride back to North County.
Kamron Caldwell Henriquez said one of her flights was delayed eight hours flying to Las Vegas, and then she was “notified last minute” the return flight was cancelled. She said paid three times more to return home and find transportation from San Diego.
Still, there are many others who support Cal Jet and wish for it to succeed. Mike Mitchell said it was refreshing to see an airline write a letter thanking its customers. In addition, he said he will fly with Cal Jet in the future and is encouraged by the company’s expansion.
2 comments
These guys didn’t just hit the “pause button,” they’re done, period. And good riddance to these con artists. I hope everybody got their refunds and are taking action for getting unusable “vouchers.”
Yes but we desperately need to EXPAND the airport, right? When will the local politicians like Matt Hall and his cronies figure out that Palomar/McClellan is fine the way it is… a small, local airport serving small planes.
Comments are closed.