FlyORH: JetBlue Arrives At Worcester Regional Airport

Thursday, November 07, 2013

Bill Randell, GoLocalWorcester MINDSETTER™

JetBlue has done its job bringing flights to ORH, now it's up to us to support.

The day is finally here; JetBlue daily to Fort Lauderdale and Orlando starts today. It’s hard to believe it was only last summer, we were producing video posting on Twitter with the hashtag #JetBlue2ORH trying to convince JetBlue to come to Worcester Regional Airport.

Earlier this year when the announcement was made that service would begin, it seemed like November 7th was a long way away. Today the airport will be packed again with VIPs and politicians who will all be taking credit for bringing JetBlue to Worcester. I have been to enough of these and will probably pass and stay at the office.

On Saturday, we will be flying to Florida anyhow. My plan is to give updates on our experiences through Twitter. If you are not following me yet, you can fix that by clicking on this Twitter link.

For the record, there are two main reasons JetBlue is coming to Worcester. If it was not for 1) Massport and 2) JetBlue giving us a chance (mainly because of Massport), this never would be happening. City Manager Mike O’Brien and current Chamber of Commerce President Tim Murray, however, deserve honorable mentions. Thanks for giving us this opportunity!

The test of time

After the ribbon cutting, water cannons, back slapping, and whatever else happens today, it will not be the VIPs or politicians that determine the fate of ORH. It will be you and I. Will people go to ORH and fly JetBlue to Orlando and Fort Lauderdale? It really is that simple.

Talking is done! We will soon find out as each and every day goes by. If JetBlue brings in their larger Airbus 320 with 150 seats, versus the Embraer 190 with 100 seats, then you know we are selling tickets. If JetBlue adds more destinations, you will know we are selling tickets. If other airlines like Allegiant and Spirit want to come to ORH, you will know we are selling tickets.

If this is successful, the people of Central Massachusetts will deserve all the credit. If it is not, the people of Central Massachusetts will deserve the blame. The fate of ORH lies in our hands.

Let’s make this a great airport that we can all be proud of and that will contribute to the commercial tax base which Worcester desperately needs!

Bill Randell is the President of Advantage Benefits, an insurance brokerage house specializing in employee benefits with an emphasis on health insurance, based in Worcester since 1992. He can be contacted at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter (@FlyORH).