New budget airline Avelo announces 12 cities, will begin flying April 28
Say hello to Avelo Airlines.
The new budget carrier – one of two start-ups set to launch this year – plans to begin flying April 28 with service from its base in Burbank, California, to 11 cities in the West. Fares will begin at $19 one way, with sales beginning Thursday at 11 a.m. ET, according to the new airline's website.
Avelo's inaugural flight will be from Burbank to Santa Rosa, California.
The carrier's business model will focus on connecting underserved markets that currently lack nonstop connections. It's targeting routes that currently require connections, betting that major rivals won't follow it into the smaller markets it plans to serve.
"After more than 20 years of steadily shrinking consumer choice, the American flying public wants and deserves more options and lower fares," Avelo Founder and CEO Andrew Levy said in a Thursday statement detailing the launch. Levy helped launch Avelo after time at both Allegiant and United, including as the latter's chief financial officer.
If Levy's start-up plan for Avelo sounds familiar, it should. It's the same strategy that serial airline entrepreneur David Neeleman – best known in the U.S. for launching JetBlue – is using for his own start-up. That carrier, Breeze Airways, also is expected to start flying this spring.
For now, though, Avelo will get the jump.
It will fly 189-seat Boeing 737-800 aircraft with 129 standard slimline 29-inch pitch seats and an extra-legroom section with 60 seats.
Another start-up? David Neeleman's new airline, Breeze, just cleared a major hurdle
Avelo's base fares may be low, but the carrier says it will offer "several unbundled travel-enhancing options" that will cost extra. They include:
- First Checked Bag: $10
- Carry-On Overhead Bag: $35
- Priority Boarding: $10
- Pet in the Cabin: $95
Additionally, advance seat assignments also will cost extra. "Pre-reserved" window and aisle seats start at $5 per passenger. The extra-legroom section – where seats offer anywhere from 31 to 38 inches of pitch – will start at $18.
While Avelo will launch April 28, its full roster of initial destinations will slowly ramp up through late May. The full list of Avelo's first cities and launch dates are below. For now, all flights will be to or from Avelo's base in Burbank (BUR).
- Arcata/Eureka, California (ACV): Begins May 19 (4x weekly)
- Bend/Redmond, Oregon (RDM): Begins May 13 (3x weekly)
- Bozeman, Montana (BZN): Begins April 30 (4x weekly)
- Eugene, Oregon (EUG): Begins May 12 (4x weekly)
- Grand Junction, Colorado (GJT): Begins May 9 (4x weekly)
- Medford, Oregon (MFR): Begins May 9 (4x weekly)
- Mesa/Phoenix, Arizona (AZA): Begins May 12 (daily)
- Pasco, Washington (PSC): Begins April 29 (3x weekly)
- Ogden, Utah (OGD): Begins May 4 (6x weekly)
- Redding, California (RDD): Begins May 20 (3x weekly)
- Santa Rosa, California (STS): Begins April 28 (daily)
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