Cape Air

History

Cape Air was co-founded in 1988 by pilots Dan Wolf and Craig Stewart along with investor Grant Wilson, beginning service in 1989 on the Provincetown-Boston route after the previous operator on that run ceased flying following airline deregulation. Through the 1990s it expanded across Cape Cod, the Islands and New England, merging with Nantucket Airlines in 1994, and later diversified into the Caribbean (based in San Juan, Puerto Rico) and, more recently, eastern Montana under a federal Essential Air Service contract.

Current Operations

Cape Air is the largest independent regional airline in the United States, operating roughly 550 daily flights to about 30 destinations across three disconnected networks - the Northeast, the Caribbean, and eastern Montana - from bases including Boston, Hyannis, Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket, San Juan and Billings. Its fleet, still built primarily around small Cessna 402s alongside newer Tecnam P2012 Travellers and Britten-Norman Islanders operated under FAA Part 135 rules, is being modernized with Eviation Alice electric aircraft on order. The carrier remains privately held and maintains interline and codeshare agreements with JetBlue, American Airlines and United rather than belonging to a global alliance.

Last verified 2026-09-03· Source: airline public disclosures, company press releases & aviation-industry reporting.

Serves These Profiled Airports3

Sample Routes8