Two new low-cost airlines are deploying smaller routes in the United States

Americans are traveling in quantities not seen in over a year and will soon have two new low-cost airlines.

Both hope to attract passengers by taking smaller routes on the network that spans the United States.

Avelo Airlines It said Thursday it will begin flying to 11 destinations from Burbank, California this month. The new company plans to add other routes in the western United States as the fleet of Boeing 737s grows.

Avelo was launched by an experienced airline who thinks there is room for low-cost airlines in addition to those already on the market.

“There are too few seats offered by low cost airlines in the United States. That’s why we think the opportunity is huge, ”said Andrew Levy, president and CEO of Avelo. “Passengers really want a cheap way to get from point A to point B.”

Waiting to start is Breeze Airways, the new creation by David Neeleman, the manager who helped launch Canada’s WestJet before founding JetBlue and Brazilian airline Azul.

Breeze plans to fly to “neglected, forgotten” destinations, including many abandoned by the major airlines. Breeze is conducting test flights for the Federal Aviation Administration and may announce details on its routes and prices next week and begin transporting passengers in May.

Plans for the two airlines began before the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, but both will kick off as Americans try to resume travel after more than a year of lockdowns. More than 1 million Americans have flown every day for the past month, and the number is expected to increase in the summer.

The last new airline in the United States was Virgin America, which began flying in 2007 and disappeared after being acquired by Alaska Airlines for $ 2.6 billion in 2016.

Avelo

Levy is a former Allegiant Air and United Airlines manager who has finally realized a long-time dream of launching his own airline.

Avelo’s strategy comes straight from the Low Cost Airlines Handbook originally written by Southwest in the 1970s and copied by others, including Allegiant. Portion of the The strategy is to limit itself to secondary airports, which have lower costs and less congestionAs planes land, take on new passengers and take off quickly, spending more time in the air and less time on the ground.

Breeze

However, Breeze hasn’t detailed where it will start its operations has hinted it will be in the southeastern United States, including Florida, a popular destination for leisure travel. Neeleman says the time is right.

“Pleasure traffic is insane right now. Many people have been vaccinated and the youngest and healthiest people are not afraid to travel, ”Neeleman said in an interview. “There is a lot of pent-up demand, probably greater than the number of available seats.”