Allegiant Air Announces 9 New Routes And Schedules First Boeing 737 MAX 8-200 Flights

Summary Allegiant Air is expanding its domestic network by adding nine new routes and bringing back a tenth route.
The new routes are scheduled to begin in June and will offer flights twice weekly on various days.
The airline will soon introduce the Boeing 737 MAX 8-200 aircraft to its fleet, with flights expected to begin later this year.
Ultra-low-cost carrier (ULCC) Allegiant Air, whose name will come into the spotlight at Super Bowl LVIII on Sunday, has expanded its domestic network, adding nine new routes along with a tenth route returning. The all-Airbus airline has scheduled the new service to begin in June.
“All-Airbus,” however, will soon be a phase of the past as the carrier plans to take delivery of its first Boeing 737 MAX 8-200 aircraft this Spring. Allegiant reportedly aims to begin operating the plane type in “mid-August” out of Orlando Sanford, and St. Pete–Clearwater, Florida.
Summertime routes
In a social media post on Saturday, the ULCC announced that it added 10 routes to its flight schedule.
According to the airline, all routes will commence the week of June 10th. Additionally, flights on each route will be offered twice weekly, on various days. Three routes will begin on June 12th, two on June 13th, and the remaining five will start on June 14th.
June 12th routes:
City Pair Frequency Days of Operation Rockford, Illinois (RFD) – Los Angeles, California (LAX) 2x weekly Wednesday & Saturday Plattsburgh, New York (PBG) – Sarasota/Bradenton, Florida (SRQ) 2x weekly Wednesday & Saturday Laredo, Texas (LRD) – Los Angeles, CA (LAX) 2x weekly Wednesday & Saturday
June 13th routes:
City Pair Frequency Days of Operation Belleville, Illinois (BLV) – Knoxville, Tennessee (TYS) 2x weekly Sunday & Wednesday Evansville, Indiana (EVV) – St. Pete–Clearwater, Florida (PIE) 2x weekly Sunday & Thursday
June 14th routes:
City Pair Frequency Days of Operation South Bend, Indiana (SBN) – Knoxville, TN (TYS) 2x weekly Monday & Friday Jacksonville, FL (JAX) – Knoxville, TN (TYS) 2x weekly Monday & Friday Harrisburg, Pennsylvania (MDT) – Jacksonville, FL (JAX) 2x weekly Monday & Friday McAllen, Texas – St. Pete–Clearwater, FL (PIE) 2x weekly Monday & Friday Rapid City, South Dakota (RAP) – Los Angeles, CA (LAX) 2x weekly Monday & Friday
According to independent aviation blog, Ishrion Aviation, RAP-LAX is a returning route. It is unclear whether Allegiant will designate specific aircraft types for each route or will equally deploy the A319 and A320. The airline has 120 active aircraft in its fleet – 32 A319s and 88 A320s, according to ch-aviation.
Headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada, Allegiant was granted the naming rights to the Las Vegas Raiders’ stadium in 2020. Located near Harry Reid International Airport, the stadium is the host of this year’s Super Bowl match-up between the San Francisco 49ers and the Kansas City Chiefs.
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Welcoming the MAX 8
On top of expanding its route network, Allegiant will grow its fleet this year with new 737 MAX 8-200s. The plane type is a specially modified 737 MAX 8, designed to accommodate more passengers in a high-density seating configuration.
Photo: Allegiant
Allegiant originally expected late last year that deliveries would begin during “the first week of 2024,” but they have been delayed. In a statement obtained by ch-aviation last week, the airline’s Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Robert Neal, shared an updated timeline of the aircraft deliveries.
“As of now, we are estimating that deliveries will begin in late March or early April. Our current estimates differ from contractual commitments as we are conservatively planning to take delivery of twelve and place into service ten B737-8-200 aircraft by the end of this year.”
The aircraft’s initial routes
According to preliminary reports from Ishrion Aviation, the carrier has the aircraft scheduled on over 30 routes:
From To Orlando Sanford International Airport (SFB) Akron/Canton, Albany, Allentown, Bangor, Bloomington, Columbus/Rickenbacker, Concord, Dayton, Evansville, Indianapolis, Knoxville, Lexington, Memphis, Omaha, Peoria, Plattsburgh, Springfield, Toledo St. Pete–Clearwater International Airport (PIE) Akron/Canton, Asheville, Belleville, Bismarck, Chattanooga, Columbus/Rickenbacker, Evansville, Fort Wayne, Greensboro, Hagerstown, Lexington, Moline, Omaha, Richmond, Roanoke, Rockford, South Bend, Stewart
Simple Flying contacted Allegiant late Saturday for comment on the development and has not heard back. The MAX 8-200s will reportedly accommodate 190 passengers and “will begin rolling out progressively starting around mid-August,” Ishrion Aviation reports.