Flying out of Grand Rapids to Philadelphia or Charlotte is about to get faster starting in early September a couple days after Labor Day.

The flights will be operated by US Airways Express, American Airlines announced.

With US Airways merging with American Airlines, the direct flights from Grand Rapids to the largest cities in Pennsylvania and North Carolina are two of eight new routes because of the merger.

According to American Airlines:

Beginning Sept. 3, ... customers in Grand Rapids ... will have access to twice-daily non-stop regional service to both Charlotte and Philadelphia. These routes will be operated as US Airways Express with Bombardier CRJs."

Charlotte is also getting direct flights to Fort Wayne and Evansville in Indiana.

WOOD TV has more on the Grand Rapids flights:

Flights from Grand Rapids to Charlotte will operate twice daily departing Grand Rapids at 6:45 a.m. and 11:55 a.m. Flights from Grand Rapids to Philadelphia will also run twice daily, departing Grand Rapids at 7 a.m. and 3:40 p.m.

USA Today has more from American Airlines about how the merger is changing flights:

As we work to fully integrate our two networks, we remain committed to expanding our domestic service to better serve our customers in small- and medium-size markets," Chuck Schubert, American's VP of network and schedule planning, says in a statement. "By building our network presence in these regional markets, we are providing more people in more places access to our global network covering more than 330 destinations in more than 50 countries around the world."

I love seeing more options out of Gerald R. Ford International Airport.

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