PLATTSBURGH — Non-stop air service from Plattsburgh International Airport to Punta Gorda, Fla., will begin this weekend.

Direct Air will offer flights from Plattsburgh to Punta Gorda, which is halfway between Fort Myers and Sarasota on Florida’s southwest coast, from Saturday, Nov. 21, through April 17, 2010.

Flights will be offered with rates beginning at $99 each way, with an upgrade to first-class seats available for $100 each way on Direct Air’s MD83 and 737-400 aircraft.

Tickets may be purchased by going to www.visitdirectair.com or by calling toll-free 877-432-DIRECT (3473).

Plattsburgh International Airport opened in the summer of 2007 on the flight line of the former Plattsburgh Air Force Base.

Since then, it has attracted thousands of travelers from northern New York, Vermont and southern Quebec boarding flights to Florida and South Carolina.

“We are committed and focused to work together with the communities to promote the airports in a manner that maximizes its future potential to generate economic growth and opportunity,” Direct Air President and Managing Partner Ed Warneck said.

“This new air service links two great tourist destinations and will open up a whole range of great opportunities to market our region’s tourism assets to a new customer base.”

Direct Air, based in Myrtle Beach, S.C., offered Plattsburgh-to-Punta Gorda service in December 2008 with a stop in Myrtle Beach.

“We are extremely pleased that Direct Air will be providing non-stop service to Punta Gorda,” said Rodney Brown, Clinton County’s deputy administrator.

“Flights from Plattsburgh International Airport to Florida have proven highly successful, and I am confident that Direct Air flights to the Punta Gorda/Fort Myers area will be received by the traveling public just as enthusiastically.”

Garry Douglas, president of the Plattsburgh/North Country Chamber of Commerce, said the new service should be popular among Canadians.

“This marks another step forward for Plattsburgh International Airport, adding yet another stop destination of interest to people in northern New York, Quebec and Vermont,” Douglas said.

“It also further boosts our emerging role as the sun-and-fun airport for our neighbors in Montreal, with many having asked for this kind of service to southwest Florida.”