 | It has been suggested thatAllegiant Travel Company bemerged into this article. (Discuss) Proposed since September 2025. |
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 Allegiant AirAirbus A320 | |||||||
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| Founded | January 1997; 28 years ago (1997-01)[1] | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commenced operations | June 1998; 27 years ago (1998-06)[1] | ||||||
| AOC # | WX0A156I[2] | ||||||
| Operating bases | |||||||
| Frequent-flyer program | Allways Rewards | ||||||
| Fleet size | 131 | ||||||
| Destinations | 124[3] | ||||||
| Parent company | Allegiant Travel Company | ||||||
| Headquarters | 1201 North Town Center Drive Las Vegas,Nevada, United States[4] | ||||||
| Key people | Gregory C. Anderson (CEO) | ||||||
| Website | allegiantair.com | ||||||
Allegiant Air is an Americanlow-cost airline headquartered inLas Vegas,Nevada. The airline focuses on serving leisure traffic from small and medium-sized cities which it considers to be underserved, using anultra low-cost business model with minimal inclusions in fares and a greater number of add-on fees.
Allegiant was founded in 1997 and is wholly owned byAllegiant Travel Company, apublicly traded company with 5,600 employees and over US$2.6 billion market capitalization in 2016[update].[5] The airline is thefourteenth largest in North America.
Allegiant Air was founded in January 1997 by Mitch Allee (owner, CEO), Jim Patterson (president), and Capt. Dave Beadle (chief pilot) under the name WestJet Express.[1] After losing a trademark dispute with Westjet Air Center ofRapid City,South Dakota, and recognizing the name's similarity toWestJet Airlines ofCalgary,Alberta, the airline adopted the name Allegiant Air and receivedFAA andUS DOT certification for scheduled and charter domestic operations on June 19, 1998. The airline also has authority for charter service to Canada and Mexico.[6]
Scheduled service began on October 15, 1998, between Las Vegas and the airline's original hub inFresno,California at theFresno Yosemite International Airport withDouglas DC-9-21 andMcDonnell Douglas DC-9-51jetliners. During the second half of 1999, the airline was operating nonstop flights between Fresno and Las Vegas,Burbank andLake Tahoe, and Las Vegas and Lake Tahoe, as well as flying one-stop direct service between Fresno and Lake Tahoe via Las Vegas.[7]
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Allegiant Air opened a small hub inLong Beach, California (LGB), and in 2000, it was operating nonstop flights to Fresno and Las Vegas in addition to Fresno-Las Vegas nonstop service.[8] Later in 2000, Allegiant continued to expand and was operating the only nonstop jet service betweenLake Tahoe Airport andLong Beach Airport in addition to operating new flights intoPortland,Oregon andReno with Portland-Reno and Reno-Fresno nonstops and direct one-stop service between Portland and Fresno via Reno.[9]
Citing higher fuel costs as a major factor, Allegiant filed forChapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2000.[10] The bankruptcy allowedMaurice J. Gallagher Jr., one of the airline's major creditors, to gain control of the business. A veteran leader of low-cost airlines, Gallagher had worked withWestAir and was one of the founders ofValuJet Airlines. In June 2001, Gallagher restructured Allegiant to alow-cost model, focusing on smaller markets that larger airlines did not serve with mainline aircraft. Allegiant's headquarters and operations were also moved to Las Vegas.[11]
In the fall of 2001, Allegiant exited bankruptcy and the case was officially closed in early 2002.[12] In March 2002, Allegiant entered into a long-term contract withHarrah's to provide charter services to its casinos inLaughlin and Reno, Nevada.[13] At the same time, the airline acquired its firstMcDonnell Douglas MD-80 jetliner. From 2002 through 2004, the airline developed its scheduled-service business model. By 2004, Allegiant was flying from 13 small cities to Las Vegas and offering bundled air and hotel packages.
In May 2005, the airline's holding company, Allegiant Travel, completed aprivate equity placement worth $39.5 million.[14] In November 2006, Allegiant filed a registration statement with theSecurities and Exchange Commission in anticipation of a plannedinitial public offering of itscommon stock. It raised $94.5 million in equity capital with 5.75 million shares worth $18 each.[14] It began trading on theNASDAQ Stock Market under the ticker symbol "ALGT" in December 2006.[14]
Also in 2006, the airline had a fleet of 21 MD-80s and was flying non-stop to and from 40 small cities. Most of those flights went to and from the hubs of Las Vegas orOrlando/Sanford, Florida.[11] In October 2007, Allegiant opened a fourthfocus city and operations base atPhoenix-Mesa, Arizona, connecting 13 cities already served by Allegiant and one new city to the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Mesa Airport joined Las Vegas, Orlando, andTampa/St. Petersburg as major hubs for the airline. At the time, Allegiant maintained a fleet of 32 planes going to 53 destinations in total.[15] The Mesa Airport announced a 10,000-square-foot (930 m2) expansion in August 2008, which increased the number of gates from two to four and allowed Allegiant to triple the number of flights from Phoenix.
On November 14, 2007, Allegiant opened its fifthfocus city and operations base atFort Lauderdale, connecting other Allegiant cities toSouth Florida. In January 2008, Allegiant opened its sixth base atBellingham, Washington.[16] Expansion in Bellingham has been largely driven by its proximity toGreater Vancouver,British Columbia.
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In January 2010, the airline celebrated its one-millionth passenger to fly out of Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport. Allegiant's parent company also announced that it had purchased 18 additional used MD-80 aircraft fromScandinavian Airlines.[17] In February 2010, Allegiant opened its ninth base at Grand Rapids'Gerald R. Ford International Airport in Michigan. The airline based twoMcDonnell Douglas MD-80 aircraft inGrand Rapids, but ended their airport's status in 2011. The airline continues to fly out of Grand Rapids in a reduced capacity.[18]
On July 1, 2010, Allegiant returned toLong Beach Airport (LGB) inLong Beach, California, having previously served LGB with DC-9 jets with nonstop flights to Las Vegas (LAS) and Lake Tahoe (TVL) in 2000.[19][20] The airline also intended to fly fromBellingham andStockton several times a week; however, that plan never came to fruition. Allegiant continues to serve Stockton with flights to Las Vegas, Phoenix/Mesa and San Diego.[21] About 16 months later in November 2011, Allegiant closed its Long Beach facility.[22]
In March 2010, Allegiant purchased six usedBoeing 757-200 jetliners as part of plans to begin flights toHawaii, with deliveries from early 2010 to the fourth quarter of 2011.[23] It gained approval for the type with the FAA in July 2011,[24] and then worked with the FAA to obtain the appropriateETOPS rating in order to be able to serve Hawaii. Allegiant no longer operates service to Hawaii.[25]
In mid 2015, a rash of midair breakdowns drew federal scrutiny. "Before the night was finished on June 25, 2015, five Allegiant flights had been interrupted in four hours, all because different planes had failed in midair," reported theTampa Bay Times.[26] In October 2015, theFederal Aviation Administration began to keep Allegiant under close supervision.[27][28][29]
In July 2015, Allegiant Air announced that bases would be established at theAsheville Regional Airport andCincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport.[30]
In August 2017, Allegiant announced that a new base would be established at theIndianapolis International Airport. The base began operations in early 2018. Throughout 2017, the airline flew 12 million passengers on its 99 planes to 120 destinations from California to Florida.[31] In February 2018, Allegiant also announced that a new base would be established at theDestin–Fort Walton Beach Airport. In June 2018, Allegiant added another base atMcGhee Tyson Airport inKnoxville, Tennessee. In January 2019, Allegiant announced that it would be adding another base atGerald R. Ford International Airport inGrand Rapids, Michigan. Allegiant announced that they would be adding an additional base atDes Moines International Airport inDes Moines, Iowa by November 2019. The base was delayed as a result of theCOVID-19 pandemic and opened in 2021.[32]
On February 12, 2021, Allegiant launched flights toJohn Wayne Airport with 8 initial destinations includingBoise,Grand Junction,Las Vegas,Medford,Missoula,Provo,Reno/Tahoe, andSpokane.[33]
On August 10, 2021, Allegiant announced that they would be opening 2 more operating bases atAppleton International Airport andBishop International Airport beginning March 2022.[34]
On October 7, 2021, Allegiant began serving non-stop flights fromMinneapolis-St. Paul International Airport toAsheville, North Carolina, andPalm Beach, Florida. They would later serve 5 more, includingPunta Gorda, Florida,Destin-Fort Walton Beach, Florida, andPhoenix-Mesa, Arizona. They serve all of these routes usingAirbus A320 family aircraft. During the same year, it entered into a joint venture withViva Aerobus to expand routes between the United States and Mexico.[35]
Allegiant Air is a wholly owned subsidiary ofAllegiant Travel Company, a publicly tradedholding company. The corporate headquarters for both the airline and its holding company are inSummerlin, Nevada, a suburb of Las Vegas.[36]
Allegiant aims primarily to serve leisure travelers, particularly those from colder northern climates going to warm-weather tourist destinations such asPunta Gorda,Tampa,Las Vegas,Orlando, andPhoenix.[37] The airline often serves smaller destinations that have few direct flights by major carriers[38] and tend to fly routes which avoid competition from other airlines, with only 18% of its 518 routes as of early 2020 also flown nonstop by other airlines.[39][40]
The airline also seeks to maintain a low operating cost at airports.[41] For example, Allegiant sometimes rents ticket counters on an hourly basis and contracts with other companies to provide staffing.[11][42] The company also prefers to use secondary airports when those facilities charge smaller fees, such asOrlando Sanford,MidAmerica St. Louis, andPhoenix–Mesa, where Allegiant is the only commercial carrier with year-round service.[43]
Although it does not fly to Canada, Allegiant advertises in the country and flies from about a dozen small airports near theCanada–U.S. border. Many of its customers at airports such asBellingham, Washington andPlattsburgh, New York are Canadians, who save money on airfare by crossing the border to the U.S. and flying domestic routes from U.S. airports.[44]
Part of the airline's business model includes keeping labor and fleet costs low. Allegiant purchases jets either second hand or at steep discounts.[11][45] Given the low initial purchase price, Allegiant is able to operate its aircraft at a lower duty cycle (seven flight hours per day on average compared to 13 hours per day atJetBlue Airways), which helps keep labor costs lower.[11] Allegiant schedules their crew members so that they typically return to their home base at the end of the day, avoiding the expense of hotel rooms.[45]
Allegiant maintains control over pricing by offering flights exclusively through its website, which also offers ancillary products for a fee. It has no toll-free phone number but it does sell tickets through internet travel agencies.[38] It also does not offer any connecting services, with customers only able to purchase non-stop itineraries on its website.
SimilarRyanair, another low-cost airline, Allegiant looks to ancillary revenue to supplement ticket revenue.[11] Ancillary fees include those for checked luggage, carry-on luggage, onboard food and drink purchases, and advance seat assignments.[38][45][46] Allegiant CEO Maurice Gallagher said in 2009, "We collect $110 from you at the end of your trip. If I tried to charge you $110 up front, you wouldn't pay it. But if I sell you a $75 ticket and you self-select the rest, you will."[47]
Allegiant also earns commissions by offering hotel rooms, car rentals and admission to tourist attractions on its website. It sells package vacations under the brand name Allegiant Vacations. The company has arrangements with 34 hotels in Las Vegas and 21 in theOrlando andDaytona Beach, Florida, areas. In 2008, the airline sold 400,000 hotel room nights.[47] Commissions on hotel and rental car packages were up to one-third of the airline's revenue in 2009,[45][47] with ancillary revenues coming in at $33.35 per passenger.[48] In the second quarter of 2024, ancillary revenues were $75.34 per passenger.[49]
Allegiant's air charter operation contributed 7% of its revenue in 2009.[50]
In March 2011, Allegiant took over charter service toWendover Airport for Peppermill Casinos, Inc. to shuttle customers to Peppermill's three casinos inWest Wendover, Nevada.[51]
Allegiant also transports firefighters for theUnited States Forest Service as well as college basketball teams.[50] Allegiant had a contract to supply charter flights from Miami to four cities in Cuba beginning June 2009.[50] The contract was for fixed-fee flying, meaning all the airline was required to do was provide the dry aircraft and the flight crew. The contractor was responsible for all other costs including fuel. Allegiant ended this service in August 2009.[52]
The company had charter contracts withCaesars Entertainment to ferry customers to Caesars casino properties throughReno-Tahoe International Airport,Laughlin/Bullhead International Airport andTunica Municipal Airport.[53] These contracts ended in December 2012 when Caesars Entertainment signed a new contract withRepublic Airways to provide the charter service to Caesars properties inAtlantic City,New Jersey,Tunica,Mississippi, andLaughlin,Nevada.[54]
In July 2018, Allegiant became the official airline ofMinor League Baseball (MiLB).[55] In September of the same year, Allegiant partnered with theNational Hockey League'sVegas Golden Knights as its official airline partner.[56] On June 3, 2019, soccer clubFC Cincinnati announced that they had entered a multiple-year agreement with Allegiant making them the club's official airline partner. The agreement includes club and stadium assets, game-day experience and more. Allegiant also offers its popular Fan Flyaway Program to FCC fans. FCC'sTQL Stadium also has an entry gate named after the airline.[57]
On August 5, 2019, Allegiant signed a 20-year agreement with the NFL’sLas Vegas Raiders for the naming rights to their new stadium,Allegiant Stadium, inParadise, Nevada.[58] Allegiant was also a main sponsor withGMS Racing in theNASCAR Xfinity Series and theNASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series and continues to be an associate sponsor for the team co-owned by ChairmanMaury Gallagher,Legacy Motor Club in theNASCAR Cup Series. In January 2020, Allegiant became the official airline of theIndianapolis Colts.[59]
Allegiant Air's livery features a bright sunburst design on the tail, emphasizing the airline's "sun" destinations. A similar livery is used byJet2.com on aircraft which carry theJet2holidays livery, the only difference being the airline name on the aircraft.[citation needed] The livery was created for the airline by Tiami Designs,Atlanta, Georgia.[60]
Flight attendants at the carrier voted to organize under theTransport Workers Union of America in December 2010, citing scheduling concerns and other issues in their work rules.[61] In August 2012, the pilots voted to organize and joined the Teamsters.[62] Allegiant's chairman and then-CEO,Maurice J. Gallagher Jr., was critical of theunionization of airline employees, saying, "Unionization is one of those things that clogs the arteries and makes you less quick and not as nimble as you need to be on top of your game... In this industry and others that are heavily unionized, you ultimately end up with bankruptcy as the primary driver."[61]
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In 2015, Allegiant Air was monitored by the FAA after several emergency landings and aborted takeoffs.ABC interviewed a former Allegiant mechanic, who said "Dedicated steps were not being performed with maintenance manuals or even with general practices, before an aircraft is released."[63] A survey found that 46 of the company's 86 aircraft had made emergency landings, all of which involved MD-80s.[64] The average age of Allegiant's MD-80 fleet was 29 years, compared to less than 13 years for its Airbus fleet.[65]
In May 2016, the FAA confirmed they moved up a regularly scheduled five-year inspection.[66] Allegiant Air proclaims the FAA gave them a clean bill of health after the 2016 audit.[67]
In November 2016, theTampa Bay Times noted that Allegiant's planes were four times more likely to have in-flight failures than other major US airlines,[68] and a60 Minutes report by CBS News in 2018 continued to investigate the issues.[69] Public records cited in the investigation found that the airline had more than 100 serious mechanical incidents between January 1, 2016, and October 31, 2017, including "mid-air engine failures, smoke and fumes in the cabin, rapid descents, flight control malfunctions, hydraulic leaks and aborted takeoffs."[69] Other public records further revealed that Allegiant aircraft, on average, were nearly three and a half times more likely to have mid-air breakdowns than American, United, Delta, JetBlue and Spirit.[69] Allegiant responded to the investigation stating that many of the issues occurred on their older MD-80 model aircraft which have since been replaced with Airbus A320,[70] and also defended its safety record, citing the 2016 FAA audit, which found the company's safety issues "minor" and "non-systemic."[70]
As of November 2018,[update] all of its MD-80s have been replaced by newerAirbus A320 family aircraft.[71][65]
As of December 2021, Allegiant offers service to 133[72] destinations throughout the United States, mostly to smaller non-hub regional airports and all usually only a few times each week. It chooses its routes after calculating expected costs and revenue and adds or ends service to particular destinations as demand warrants.
| Rank | Airport | Passengers | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Orlando/Sanford, Florida | 1,486,280 | 100.00% |
| 2 | St. Petersburg/Clearwater, Florida | 1,304,950 | 99.50% |
| 3 | Punta Gorda/Fort Myers, Florida | 1,090,820 | 99.54% |
| 4 | Phoenix/Mesa, Arizona | 1,041,150 | 98.07% |
| 5 | Las Vegas, Nevada | 972,850 | 3.83% |
As of August 2025[update], the Allegiant fleet consists of the following aircraft:[74]
| Aircraft | In service | Orders | Passengers | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Y+ | Y | Total | ||||
| Airbus A319-100 | 31 | — | 18 | 138 | 156 | |
| Airbus A320-200 | 9 | — | 18 | 159 | 177 | To be retired by the end of 2025.[75] |
| 75 | — | 168 | 186 | |||
| Boeing 737 MAX 7 | — | 24 | TBA | Option for 80 additional aircraft.[76][77] Deliveries until 2027. | ||
| Boeing 737 MAX 200 | 16 | 10 | 21 | 169 | 190[78] | |
| Total | 131 | 34 | ||||
Allegiant Air is known in the aviation industry for purchasing jets either second-hand or at steep discounts.[11][45] Used aircraft tend to besignificantly less fuel efficient, but fuel costs are less of a problem for Allegiant, which operates aircraft at relatively low duty cycles.[citation needed]
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At the start of operations in the late 1990s, Allegiant purchased usedMcDonnell Douglas DC-9 jets, which it operated until 2002, when they were replaced by newer, but still aged,McDonnell Douglas MD-80s, a later variant of the DC-9.[citation needed]
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Starting in 2010, Allegiant purchased sixBoeing 757-200 aircraft fromThomson Airways.[79] Over the next few years, the airline experimented operating service betweenHawaii and several cities.[80] Ultimately, Allegiant discontinued the service and slowly disposed of the planes rather than incur the expense of performing comprehensiveD checks on the aging planes.[81]
In 2012, Allegiant announced that it would shift its primary aircraft from the MD-80 to theAirbus A320 family. A total of 35Airbus A319-100 aircraft in a high-density seating configuration, fitted with four overwing exits, were purchased fromeasyJet andCebu Pacific.[82][83][84] In 2013, the airline started adding theAirbus A320-200 to its fleet, purchasing used aircraft fromIberia andPhilippine Airlines, and leasing other aircraft.[85][86][87][88]
In 2016, Allegiant purchased its first new aircraft, buying 13 A320s direct from Airbus, taking advantage of lower prices for an older model as the aircraft manufacturer prepared to begin production of theAirbus A320neo.[89] These new aircraft seat 186 passengers due to a smaller lavatory.[90]
On October 31, 2017, the final 757 was retired from service, and in November 2018, the last MD-80s operated by Allegiant were retired.[91][65]
Allegiant purchased additional new aircraft in January 2022, this time buying 50Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, taking advantage of low prices as other airlines cancelled their orders in the wake of thenearly two year grounding of the type.[92][93][77] Allegiant plans on retiring the oldest Airbus A320 aircraft in its fleet that are configured with 177 seats, but will continue to operate its other A320s alongside the 737 MAX.[77]
Allegiant Air previously also operated the following aircraft types:[citation needed]
| Aircraft | Total | Introduced | Retired | Replacement |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boeing 757-200 | 6 | 2010 | 2017 | Airbus A320 family |
| McDonnell Douglas DC-9-21 | 1 | 1998 | 2002 | McDonnell Douglas MD-80 series |
| McDonnell Douglas DC-9-51 | 3 | 1999 | ||
| McDonnell Douglas MD-82 | 2 | 2003 | 2013 | Airbus A320 family |
| McDonnell Douglas MD-83 | 49 | 2002 | 2018 | |
| McDonnell Douglas MD-87 | 4 | 2001 | 2013 | |
| McDonnell Douglas MD-88 | 8 | 2008 | 2018 |
On 24 June 2024, Allegiant Air was voted2024Best Low-Cost Airline in North America bySkytrax. It was the first time the airline won such recognition.[97]
By 'comprehensive audit,' Gust is likely referring to the 2016 review of Allegiant's FAA certificate. Nevertheless, CBS came up with over a hundred reports of serious mechanical problems in Allegiant's fleet since then.
