ExpressJet Airlines' leisure carrier, aha! - the 'air-hotel-adventure' brand, is set to exceed 1,500 flights today.
The first flight of US carrier aha!, operated by ExpressJet Airlines, was on October 24, 2021, from Nevada's Reno-Tahoe International Airport (RNO) to Washington's Pasco/Tri-Cities Airport (PSC).
ExpressJet is an amalgamation of Atlantic Southeast Airlines and Continental Express, with a history dating back more than 40 years.
ExpressJet most recently served United Airlines as a regional carrier under the United Express brand. ExpressJet was the world's largest operator of the Embraer ERJ145 before losing its contract with United Airlines in 2020.
United had its own problems during the COVID crisis, so it chose to consolidate all of its regional flights with a single carrier. The routes were previously split between CommutAir and ExpressJet.
CommutAir was chosen by United for all regional flights, and with the contract came the title of world's largest ERJ145 operator.
On September 30, 2020, ExpressJet flew its final United Express trip, returned the 130 aircraft to United, and ceased operations. ExpressJet's era came to an end, but it resurfaced as the operator behind the aha! brand.
aha's goal is to serve travellers from smaller towns with convenient, nonstop flights to popular leisure areas like Reno-Lake Tahoe.
It intends to restore direct flight links that have been lost due to airline mergers, as well as open new nonstop connections that are now unavailable.
aha! is based at Reno-Tahoe International Airport and serves nine destinations nonstop. The US states of California, Oregon, and Washington are served.
