United Airlines launched services at Paine Field on Sunday, the second airline to run commercial passenger service out of Everett. The airline began its operations at the new airport about four weeks after Alaska Airlines first flew out of Everett on March 4.
United's first commercial flight was scheduled to depart from Paine Field at 12:20 p.m. It will offer six daily flights with service to Denver and San Francisco.
Alaska Airlines already operates 18 daily flights out of Paine Field. Alaska also flies to San Francisco, as well as Portland, San Jose, Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego, Las Vegas and Phoenix.
Southwest originally planned to fly out of Paine Field but sold their slots to Alaska in November.
Propeller Airports, the company behind the Paine Field venture, expects 600,000-700,000 passengers to travel through the airport each year. That’s compared to 45 million passengers at Sea-Tac Airport.
One of the big reasons for bringing commercial service to Paine Field was to offer travelers a flight option that didn’t require battling Sea-Tac Airport traffic.
Without traffic, it would take travelers from Seattle’s Green Lake neighborhood 23 minutes to get to Paine Field and 31 minutes to get to Sea-Tac, according to Google maps.
If you’re dropping off or picking up passengers, both happen in the same location at the front of the terminal. Paine Field has several short- and long-term parking lots, which cost $5 for 30 minutes and max out at $20-30 per day.
Rideshare vehicles, taxis, and shuttles will pick up passengers to the south of the terminal.
While there has been limited service off and on over the last 50 years, this is the most expansive passenger service the airport has ever offered.