This new connection opens at least 92 new destination possibilities for Gainesville travelers that weren’t previously available.

Nearly 40 airline passengers from Texas were greeted Sunday by a celebratory crowd, dozens of cameras and media outlets just moments after stepping off their flight at the Gainesville Regional Airport.

Some passengers quickly wheeled their bags with bug-eyed stares past the crowd without engaging, while others embraced the welcome party, which featured city leaders, live music, a three-tier cake and a dog named Beamer.

Though not all the travelers understood the significance of the plane ride, the flight marked a major step in connecting area residents to the rest of the world.

“It’s really a game changer for our city,” said airport spokeswoman Erin Porter.

Sunday marked Gainesville Regional Airport’s first nonstop flight with American Airlines from the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. The new DFW connection opens up at least 92 new destination possibilities for Gainesville travelers that weren’t previously available.

American Airlines announced last September it would begin flights to and from Gainesville in an effort to expand its domestic and international routes. Some of the new destinations accessible to people departing from Gainesville now include Hong Kong, Beijing, Mexico and Anchorage, Alaska.

“One of the things we continually hear that can we do better in Gainesville is improve air services,” said City Commissioner Adrian Hayes-Santos. “This is a big step forward toward that.”

Hayes-Santos was among the guest speakers for the event. He said the new routes will better allow companies, clients and customers to connect with each other.

University of Florida Senior Vice President Charlie Lane said he remembers first meeting with American Airlines representatives and Gainesville airport CEO Allen Penksa in February 2017 to sell the idea of expanding the Gainesville airport travel options.

At that time, UF was ranked No. 14 among the best public universities in the country and had announced it would hire about 500 new faculty members, Lane said. Just two years later, the university is No. 8 and has hired about half those positions.

Lane said having the DFW connection will greatly help the university attract and bring in top talent from around the country.

“Providing another means to getting them here is just a big deal,” he said. “I think the more routes we establish, and the more we’re out there, we’re able to convince faculty that we’re not disconnected from the rest of the country.”

And with more than 6,000 international students at UF, the port could also allow easier travel to and from home to visit family or vice versa.

Airport officials and those in attendance cut into a blue, three-tier cake wrapped in Texas sheet cake in honor of the occasion. The top layer was Gainesville themed with a Gators logo and sported an airplane and the airport’s K-9 sniffer, Beamer. The second layer was Dallas themed with a cowboy hat, Dallas skyline and Cowboys star. The third layer was a fondant map of all the continents — and at the bottom read: “Gateway To The World.”

“This is the kind of expansion I can get excited about because what it does is it opens us up to the world, truly,” said County Commission Marihelen Wheeler.