Sarasota residents and seasonal homeowners can now join a membership program offering pre-arranged hurricane evacuation flights for $1,250 a year.
Sarasota Bradenton International Airport is one of six Florida departure airports in PriorityEvac's hurricane evacuation network. The West Palm Beach-based company provides pre-arranged air evacuation services from affected areas to Atlanta ahead of major hurricanes.
According to PriorityEvac's website, the program is designed for households caring for aging adults, traveling with pets or raising young children. Instead of spending long hours on the road or spending thousands for a last-minute flight, PriorityEvac gives its members pre-coordinated evacuation access before a hurricane eliminates evacuation options.
“Every hurricane season, families face the same difficult reality: roads become gridlocked, commercial flights sell out, and private aviation options become limited just as demand peaks,” PriorityEvac founder Jason Murgio said in a press release.
“We built PriorityEvac to solve that problem. By securing aircraft capacity in advance and establishing objective activation protocols, we're giving members a plan that's already in place before a storm forms. Our mission is simple—move people out early, safely, and without the chaos, scarcity, and price escalation that often accompany major evacuations.”
While there is a waitlist for 2026 membership, members pay $1,250 annually for priority access to pre-arranged hurricane evacuation flights during the June 1 through Nov. 30 hurricane season. The company offers individual and household enrollment options.
Evacuation efforts are coordinated by an experienced team of emergency management, military, and meteorological experts. PriorityEvac manages the membership program, while Global Crossing Airlines operates the evacuation flights.
In addition to Sarasota, PriorityEvac also provides evacuation flights out of Tampa International Airport, Southwest Florida International Airport, Palm Beach International Airport, Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport and Miami International Airport. (Palm Beach International Airport was officially renamed President Donald J. Trump International Airport on July 9.)
Michaela Galligan is an intern covering a variety of topics for the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. She can be reached at MGalligan@usatodayco.com. Support local journalism bysubscribing.
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Sarasota residents get new hurricane evacuation flight option
