New budget airline adds new East Coast routes
Travelers searching for summer flights should put the country’s newest airlines on their radar.
Avelo Airlines and Breeze Airways, which debuted a year ago, have been growing rapidly and tout cheap fares and nonstop flights on routes generally not served by major airlines.
Avelo Airlines on Thursday announced five new East Coast routes, including three new flights to vacation hotspot Orlando and its first service in Wilmington, North Carolina. The flights begin in late June and early July with one way introductory fares ranging from $29 to $59.
The new flights, announced on the airline’s first anniversary, are in addition to seven new routes from Avelo’s growing base in New Haven, Connecticut, which were announced earlier this year and begin in May. The destinations include popular vacation spots such as Nashville, Chicago, Savannah, Georgia, Myrtle Beach and Charleston, South Carolina.
FIRST HAND LOOK AT AVELO: Cheap tickets, tiny airports and infrequent flights
WE FLEW BREEZE: Small planes, cheap tickets but no help by phone
Avelo founder and CEO Andrew Levy, a former executive with Allegiant and United airilnes, said summer travel bookings are strong as travel surges back. He said Orlando, which the airline already serves from New Haven, is a natural choice for more summer flights as it remains popular in the summer while interest in other Florida destinations falls off. The airline will offer new flights to Orlando from Charleston, Baltimore and Wilmington.
“It’s just such a huge destination,” he said.
Wilmington, North Carolina, is attractive because it’s a growing second home and retirement community, Levy said. In addition to Wilmington-Orlando, Avelo will add flights between Wilmington and New Haven and Baltimore.
Last week, Breeze Airways announced 10 new routes including its first service in metropolitan New York just weeks after announcing 35 new routes including its first cross-country flights.
The airlines are still tiny compared with major airlines, of course, focus on smaller airports on one end of the trip and in many cases only offer flights a few times a week on each route.
Both are also quick to jettison routes that aren’t performing. Avelo recently decided to end flights between Burbank, California, and Spokane, Washington, before the service began and axed Eureka, California, to Las Vegas flights. Breeze has exited New Orleans-Oklahoma City and New Orleans-Tulsa, among others.
