American Eagle flights in and out of Meridian will start on Nov. 6, officials announced on Friday.

    In a press conference at Meridian Regional Airport, Mayor Percy Bland and Tom Williams, president of Meridian Airport Authority, also announced the flight schedule. Tickets go on sale on Sunday.

    American Eagle was recommended by Bland and a committee in June after it submitted one of two bids for the service. That followed an announcement in April by Silver Airways that it would discontinue service between Atlanta and Meridian and four other airports.

    “The transition to our new airline service has been moving along quickly,” the mayor said. “Our service will be provided by American Airlines. ExpressJet will operate the service for American under the American Eagle brand.”

    American Eagle will have two outgoing and two incoming flights each day to Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport with only one of those with a layover at the Hattiesburg/Laurel airport. The schedule is as  follows:

    • A flight will leave Meridian at 7:25 a.m. and fly non-stop to DFW, arriving  at 9:15 a.m.

    • A flight will leave DFW at 12:50 p.m. and fly non-stop to Meridian, arriving at 2:15 p.m.

    • A flight will leave Meridian at 2:40 p.m. bound for DFW with a stop in Hattiesburg/Laurel, arriving at DFW at 5:15 p.m.

    • A flight will leave DFW at 6:55 p.m. and fly non-stop to Meridian, arriving at 8:20 p.m.

    On weekends, there will only be the 7:25 a.m. flight non-stop from Meridian to DFW and a 6:55 p.m. flight from DFW non-stop to Meridian.

     Bland said passengers will have the opportunity to connect with international flights at DFW.

    “We have an extraordinary opportunity to make Meridian Regional Airport one of the most thriving and successful small airports in the country. Let’s all work to make that happen,” Bland said.”

    Williams emphasized the need to support the airline because, he said, the area doesn’t want to be in the position of possibly losing service when the contract expires in two years.

    “We’ve won one now,” WIlliams said. “We’ve got two years to make sure it works.”

    Businesses and individuals need to make a commitment to use Meridian Regional Airport, he said.

    “It is absolutely critical that we all ‘Fly Meridian, Fly Home,'” Williams said, adding that is a slogan they will use to market the airport in the coming months.

    The U.S. Department of Transportation announced on Friday it has directed Silver Airways to continue passenger service in Meridian and three other Mississippi cities through Sept. 5.

    Government officials say they need more time to review proposals for new subsidized air service. The order extended for 30 days an earlier order that would have expired this week.

    The Associated Press contributed to this report.