Small Las Vegas-based airline plans expansion in Orlando

Wednesday, March 30, 2005 | 10:58 a.m.

Allegiant Air, a privately held airline that links Las Vegas with several small and intermediate sized airports, will attempt to duplicate its success in another tourism hotbed, Orlando, Fla.

The Las Vegas-based company announced Monday that it would create a second base of operation at Orlando's Sanford International Airport northeast of Orlando.

Company spokeswoman Tyri Squyres said today that the airline is announcing service between Orlando and four cities this week. The company already announced flights to Madison, Wis., on Monday, Lansing, Mich., Tuesday and Peoria, Ill., today. The fourth city is expected to be announced Thursday.

"We plan to mirror our Las Vegas operation in Orlando," Squyres said. "We'll have hotel and theme park packages and eventually, car rental deals."

Allegiant will offer the first scheduled service at the Sanford airport, which takes a number of domestic and overseas charter flights. The airport is located about a half hour from the center of Orlando's resort and theme park areas and also serves the Daytona Beach area.

Allegiant, founded in 1997, currently has about 450 employees systemwide and plans to add 50 more when the Orlando base opens. Squyres said the new employees would be a mix of workers transfering to Orlando and locally hired employees.

New employees will include customer service representatives, flight crews, mechanics and management. The airline will dedicate two of its 12-plane fleet to Orlando. Allegiant flies the twin-engine MD-80 series of jets with a capacity of about 130 passengers.

The airline said in its announcements that it would begin Orlando service May 26.

The company has built a customer base by offering weekend and midweek packages with flights to Las Vegas from small airports such as Fort Collins, Colo., and Fresno, Calif. The airline plans to add service to Missoula, Mont., Tri-Cities Airport in southern Washington, Springfield, Mo., and MidAmerica St. Louis Airport in southern Illinois in the weeks ahead.

While Allegiant has flights to 17 cities, not every market has been a home run for the company. The airline recently discontinued flights to Redding, Calif., and had planned service to Baton Rouge, La., scratching that operation before it even got started because of poor advanced bookings.

In addition to offering scheduled leisure service, Allegiant flies charters for Harrah's Entertainment Inc., Apple Vacations, the U.S. Forest Service, several collegiate athletic teams and several film production companies.

Squyres said Allegiant's Orlando service has been in the planning stages for months. Maurice Gallagher, president and chief executive of Allegiant Air LLC, has experience in the Florida market, having served as an executive with ValuJet, an Orlando-based airline that eventually evolved into AirTran Airways.

Squyres said that while Allegiant plans to grow its Orlando operation, it won't ignore Las Vegas, with additional service announcements planned as the company continues to add to its fleet. The airline will continue to keep Las Vegas as its corporate headquarters.