--- description: Find out why Breeze Airways was selected for TIME‘s list of the most influential companies of 2026. title: TIME100 Most Influential Companies 2026: Breeze Airways image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8070ee489b08ddf9/69f369c8fb4e6eef600a422c/time100-companies-2026-Breeze-Airways-Ascent-2.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- Apr 30, 2026 # Breeze Airways America’s fastest-growing airline by [Joe Mullich](/author/joe-mullich/) ## Joe Mullich Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close  Courtesy Breeze Airways While competitors like [Southwest](https://www.cnbc.com/2025/07/23/southwest-airlines-luv-2q-2025-earnings.html "undefined") and [Spirit](https://www.newsweek.com/spirit-airlines-decline-passengers-major-us-city-10957040 "undefined") struggle with declining sales, startup Breeze Airways, founded by JetBlue creator David Neeleman, has managed to become America's fastest-growing airline. Its success is built on three elements: low fares, high quality, and a monopoly mindset. Breeze connects smaller cities—like Evansville, Indiana, or Provo, Utah—that legacy airlines abandoned or never served, making it the [sole operator](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2941198X26000011 "undefined") on nearly 90% of its 220 routes. Even with fares as low as $30 one-way, the airline received the 2025 “best cabin service” [award](https://www.insidertravelreport.com/breeze-airways-beats-out-bigger-carriers-wins-best-cabin-service "undefined") from the Airline Passenger Experience Association. Breeze started 2026 strong, operating nearly 41% more flights in early 2026 compared to the prior [year](https://www.msn.com/en-us/travel/news/huge-41-more-flights-the-us-s-fastest-growing-airline-in-2026/ar-AA1VHTgd?apiversion=v2&domshim=1&noservercache=1&noservertelemetry=1&batchservertelemetry=1&renderwebcomponents=1&wcseo=1 "undefined"). In January, the airline also [added](https://www.flybreeze.com/news/breeze-expands-its-nice-nonstop-service-to-new-destinations-including-nassau "undefined") international service to Cancún, Punta Cana, and Montego Bay. And there's plenty of runway left: Neeleman [says](https://aviationweek.com/air-transport/airlines-lessors/breeze-airways-unveils-new-routes-grows-network-72-airports "undefined") there are potentially an additional 1,500 city pairs Breeze could fly without competing with a major U.S. airline. Breeze Airways: 2026 TIME100 Most Influential Companies ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"Article","@id":"https://time.com/collection/time100-most-influential-companies/2026/breeze-airways/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/collection/time100-most-influential-companies/2026/breeze-airways/"},"headline":"Breeze Airways","datePublished":"2026-04-30T14:45:19.334Z","dateModified":"2026-05-12T07:03:03.579Z","description":"","url":"https://time.com/collection/time100-most-influential-companies/2026/breeze-airways/","keywords":["TIME100 Companies","franchise","list"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8070ee489b08ddf9/69f369c8fb4e6eef600a422c/time100-companies-2026-Breeze-Airways-Ascent-2.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Joe Mullich","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/joe-mullich/"}],"creator":"Joe Mullich","articleSection":"Business","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8070ee489b08ddf9/69f369c8fb4e6eef600a422c/time100-companies-2026-Breeze-Airways-Ascent-2.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/business/","name":"Business"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/collection/time100-most-influential-companies/2026/breeze-airways/","name":"Breeze Airways"}}]}] ```