The new airline Avelo continues its operation to other international destinations, including Cancun from Bradley Airport in Hartford, United States.
The airline announced that it will begin flights on Wednesdays and Saturdays starting November 20. Avelo will operate the route with Boeing B-737NG (Next Generation) aircraft from Bradley International Airport in Connecticut.
The airline, which had focused on domestic flights, decided to launch flights outside the United States, beginning last year with the route to San Juan Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in Puerto Rico.
This year, the ultra-low-cost airline will also operate flights to Jamaica. “Starting November 16, Avelo Airlines will begin operating flights from Bradley International Airport to Montego Bay, Jamaica. A few days later, on November 20, the airline will begin service to Cancun International Airport. These routes will operate twice weekly, providing a convenient and economical connection for travelers from the northeastern United States,” the airline said in a statement.
As reported by REPORTUR.us, the airline was considering opening these new routes to the Caribbean since 2023, provided it managed to continue with long-term sustainable growth, as reported by Simple Flying, with which it planned to debut in Cancun to compete in the destination with major US airlines such as American, United, Delta, Southwest, Spirit or Frontier.
History of Avelo Airlines
Avelo Airlines (formerly Casino Express Airlines, then Xtra Airways) is an American airline ultra low cost airline’s first flight under the Avelo name was on April 28, 2021 from Burbank to Santa Rosa, California. Avelo is certified by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to carry out national and international operations.
Avelo Airlines Established in 1987 as Casino Express Airlines, the airline began operations in 1989 with the use of Boeing 737-200 aircraft that were flying exclusively to the Red Lion Hotel and Casino in Elko, Nevada. Casino Express operated 737 jet service from Elko Regional Airport nonstop to many U.S. cities. In 1994, Casino Express operated nonstop weekend-only scheduled flights between Elko (EKO) and Portland, Oregon, (PDX) and Seattle (SEA) with McDonnell Douglas MD-80 aircraft.
Casino Express Airlines also operated a plane of passengers Boeing 737-200 for the new airline Tahoe Air, which provided scheduled passenger air service from South Lake Tahoe Airport, nonstop flights to Los Angeles International Airport in Southern California and similarly nonstop service to San Jose International Airport in Northern California.
A former Xtra Airways Boeing 737-800 landed at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport in 2017.
Casino Express quickly expanded its customer base to include government agencies, sports teams, foreign dignitaries, press corps, other gaming properties, and other types of public and private charters. It changed its name to Xtra Airways on December 8, 2005, to reflect its broader focus.
Xtra Airways changed the livery of its plane in 2015 to a style of executive jet which displayed the flag with blue and red stripes.
In September 2016, a Boeing 737-800 (registration: N881XA), repainted in a sky blue and white livery with «Stronger Together» titles, began operating for Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign. Shortly thereafter, a second aircraft, a Boeing 737-400 (N314XA), was likewise put into service for the campaign, painted with a sky blue stripe and «Clinton/Kaine» titles.
Andrew Levy, former chief financial officer (CFO) of United Continental Holdings and former CFO, president and COO of Allegiant Air, acquired Xtra in August 2018, with the goal of transforming the charter airline into a low-cost scheduled carrier… Xtra had sold most of its fleet to Swift Air but kept one Boeing 737-400 to retain its FAA Part 121 Regularly Scheduled Air Carrier certification. By April 2019, the airline was considering operating Boeing 737-800s due to the Boeing 737 MAX groundings.
In February 2020, Levy announced Xtra’s new holding company, called Houston Air Holdings, Inc., reflecting the company’s headquarters in Houston. During that month, the company raised US$125 million in funding and took delivery of its first aircraft from GE Capital Aviation Services ahead of its plans to debut operations scheduled later in 2020.
