First Two 76-Seat Planes Begin Operations

Mesa Air Group, Inc. announced Friday the entry into service of the first two of 14 Bombardier CRJ-900 Next Generation aircraft. The 76-seat aircraft will be operated for Delta Connection by Mesa's wholly-owned subsidiary, Freedom Airlines.

The operation of the new aircraft was announced in March 2007, and expands Mesa's existing agreement with Delta Air Lines.

"It was great to see these new aircraft with their exciting NextGen interiors commence service yesterday," said Mesa Air Group Chairman and CEO, Jonathan Ornstein. "Everyone at Mesa is delighted Delta has given us the opportunity to expand our partnership. Once all 14 aircraft are delivered, we will operate a total of 50 aircraft under the Delta Connection banner. Mesa is also the only regional airline to operate this type of aircraft for two major airline partners. We believe our industry leading low costs and commitment to service will allow us to continue to expand our operations with existing partners as well as develop new partnerships in the future," Mr. Ornstein added.

The first two aircraft were delivered last month and are configured with 12 First Class and 64 Coach Class seats and begin revenue service today operating in the New York, JFK and Dallas-Fort Worth market. The remaining 12 aircraft are scheduled to be delivered over the next 16 months.

"I would like to thank the entire team at Freedom for their hard work and commitment to great customer service which has contributed to the growth and strength of our relationship with Delta and to the arrival of these exciting new CRJ-900s," said Freedom Airlines President, Jorn Bates.

The CRJ-900s sport an enhanced interior including energy efficient LED lighting, larger cabin windows, redesigned ceiling and sidewall panels, and larger overhead luggage bins.

Freedom currently operates 36 Embraer 145LR, 50-seat aircraft and  two Bombardier 76 seat CRJ-900s with over 200 daily flights for Delta Connection under separate agreements.

FMI: www.mesa-air.com, www.delta.com