For the past 17 years Allegiant Air has had a simple strategy. It flies passengers from what it calls “underserved markets” – with little or no service by the major carriers – to popular holiday destinations such as Orlando, Los Angeles and Las Vegas while offering non-stop flights and low fares. But, this airline is more than just a carrier, it’s a full travel business, providing low-cost packages – not only on airline tickets, but for hotels, rental cars and entertainment. Using a mixed fleet of McDonnell Douglas MD-80s and Airbus A320 Family jets, Allegiant Air flies scheduled services from 118 US cities and provides charter flights throughout the US, Mexico and Canada.
The carrier – initially named WestJet Express – was founded in January 1997 by owner Mitch Allee, President Jim Patterson and Chief Pilot Dave Beadle. However, its name triggered a trademark dispute with Westjet Air Center, in Rapid City, South Dakota, which the fledgling company lost. A title change followed quickly afterwards.
’Allegiant’ was chosen to convey the dictionary meaning of loyalty, while the logo is said to symbolise the reliability of each day’s sunrise.
Originally based at Fresno Yosemite International Airport in Cal…
