Kalitta Air has started a daily 747 freighter service between Los Angeles and New York Stewart International Airport, eschewing JFK in favour of the small Hudson Valley gateway, north of Manhattan.
The flight is operated on behalf of the US Postal Service, which operates a major facility for region close to the airport.
Originally developed in the 1930s as a training base for the nearby West Point military academy, Stewart International was initially leased to the UK-based National Express Group when it was privatised in 2000. However, seven years later the remaining 93-year lease was acquired by the region’s main airport operator, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey which rebranded it as New York Stewart International Airport in 2018.
Efforts have been made since then to develop the airport as a gateway to New York, although a plan to enhance road access has yet to be fulfilled. FedEx Express however maintains flights to a number of destinations including Rickenbacker, Indianapolis and Memphis.
American Airlines and Delta Airlines also operate passenger flights to Philadelphia and Detroit respectively, while Norwegian has flights to Dublin in Ireland.
