Air Wisconsin has been around since the 1960s but mostly operated under different airlines’ banners since 1985, when it operated for United Express. Since then, the carrier has been switching between United Airlines, then US Airways Express, American very briefly when the two airlines merged, then to United Airlines again, and only stayed with them for a few years before once again going back to American Airlines in 2022 with a five-year contract.
Here we are three years later in 2025, and not only is it not operating for American under that five-year contract, but the airline is also doing something they haven’t done for decades: operating scheduled service under its own brand.
Air Wisconsin wanted to end its CRJ-200 operations for American so it could “focus on Essential Air Service (EAS) Program Markets,” of which the carrier has applied for a handful but haven’t won a single one.
With the EAS contracts not currently panning out for Air Wisconsin, it still needs to operate scheduled commercial flights to keep its Part 121 certificate. So, without the American operations, it needed to think of another way, and what the company came up with is very interesting: once weekly flights.
A Familiar Move
If the Air Wisconsin once-weekly flight schedule sounds familiar, it’s because it is. Eastern Airlines’ third revival had once-weekly flights from Miami to Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic to keep its certificate.
Then, the service dropped down to once a month before stopping altogether. The Eastern website is still active, but when you hit ‘booking,’ it brings you to a blank page.
Air Wisconsin’s flights begin in just three days on Saturday, and will operate between its home base in Appleton, Wisconsin and Milwaukee with the flights leaving Appleton late at night: 9:30 p.m. and getting to Milwaukee just after 10 p.m.
The flight turns around in just 20 minutes and heads back to Appleton, getting there just after 11 p.m. All of the flights will be onboard its 50-seat CRJ-200.
The carrier had a plan of booking flights via their own website. according to one of the EAS proposals it submitted. Currently, the flights are available on the Global Distribution System platform, which means they can be found on most of the popular third-party booking sites.
Air Wisconsin is selling once weekly Milwaukee to Appleton flights, presumably to maintain its Part 121 status. pic.twitter.com/uhjMxfgMnk
— Ryan Ewing (@FlyingHighRyan) April 9, 2025
The flights will operate once a week on Saturdays and are currently only scheduled until the end of May 2025.
