Allegiant adds new bases in Florida, Indianapolis

Las Vegas-based Allegiant Air plans to designate Florida’s Destin-Fort Walton Beach Airport (VPS) as its 14th year-round base this summer. Allegiant said Feb. 13 it will invest more than $49m to open a two-aircraft (Airbus A320) base of operations at VPS, expanding on the leisure-travel carrier’s usage of the airport as a seasonal base in summer 2017. Allegiant first began flying to Destin-Fort Walton Beach in 2016 and, as of last year, operated routes to/from 16 cities. Five new seasonal routes will be added in June, for a total of 21 cities with service to VPS. The new routes include Northwest Arkansas Regional; Lexington, Kentucky’s Blue Grass Airport; Evansville Regional in Indiana; and North Carolina’s Concord Regional and Raleigh-Durham International airports. Allegiant operates all nonstop flights on an out-and-back model, in which aircraft and crews return to base after a day of flying.<br/>