DownEast Executive Airlines began operations in 2007, flying charter flights with a Cessna 421 Golden Eagle and Piper Cheyenne Turbo Prop. We covered the state of Maine from Caribou to Portland, and Bar Harbor to Sugarloaf, carrying passengers from the smallest airports to their major commercial airline connections in Bangor and Boston. The on-demand flights were short and required minimum flight planning.

Interest grew rapidly as word spread regarding the new virtual airline with its simple, but interesting flights. The weather in Maine, especially during the winter, can change drastically from one day to the next. So much so that one could fly the same flight 5 days in a row and never encounter the same conditions twice. The topography in Maine also varies greatly. You can experience scenery ranging from mountain peaks to coastal islands, all within a half-hour flying time.

As interest grew, the need to expand the airline became apparent. Although on-demand charters are still available, DownEast has developed a regular daily flight schedule, comprised of 24 flights, flown by 3 aircraft: 1 ATR-72 500 and 2 Beechcraft 1900-D turboprops.

As one of the original pilots for Meridian Airlines, the founder and CEO of DownEast Executive Airlines has once again joined with Meridian Airlines as a connection partner, providing primary connecting air service between Boston and Maine. Meridian Airlines also provides DownEast’s flight assignment requests, flight dispatch and flight report services, as well as pilot training.

The original reason for starting DownEast was to provide a simple virtual airline environment for pilots who don’t want to spend a lot of time in flight preparation or who just don’t feel like sitting in front of their computers for hours at time. The flights are simple and short. The scenery is interesting. The weather varies from VFR to zero visibility. The flights are realistic and based on real-world demand. We don’t use Default Aircraft. The ATR-72 and B1900 are sophisticated aircraft panels that require more than just a working knowledge of flying. “Realism” is the key to virtual airline satisfaction, and at DownEast, realism is the top goal.