Allegiant ceases operations from Lehigh Valley to Denver

A fire truck sprays down Allegiant Air Flight 167 as it taxis to the runway at Lehigh Valley International Airport on Thursday, June 15, 2023. More than 160 people boarded the first nonstop flight from LVIA to the Mile High City. (Rick Kintzel/The Morning Call)

Lehigh Valley International Airport’s largest airline plans to limit its flights to Denver and possibly make the city a seasonal destination.

At the Lehigh-Northampton Airport Authority committee meetings on Monday, it was announced that Allegiant Air will cease service to Denver starting in November and is expected to resume in the spring.

Darren Betters, director of business development at LNAA, said delays in the delivery of Boeing aircraft have affected Allegiant’s schedule.

“One of the biggest impacts will be our Denver service,” Betters said. “Our Denver service will shut down in November and it looks like we won’t see it all winter. It will probably resume in the spring.”

He said Allegiant had finalized its flight schedule through February, but no flight information for next spring had been released.

“But when you talk to them, it looks like it’s going to be more of a seasonal route at the moment,” Betters said.

In addition, it would be more efficient to use the aircraft on routes to closer destinations, Betters said, pointing out that one flight to Denver is equivalent to two or three flights to Florida.

“It’s just a use of resources,” he said.

First flight to Denver departs from Lehigh Valley International Airport | PHOTOS

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Allegiant launched its Denver service from the Lehigh Valley in June 2023.

In other destination news, Betters said LVIA is “on Delta’s short list” to resume service to Detroit.

Meanwhile, LVIA has published its passenger figures for May. A total of 85,243 passengers used the airport, which represents an increase of 16.5% compared to the previous year and is the highest figure since May 2004.

“Air travelers throughout the Lehigh Valley benefited from increased seating capacity in the market. Allegiant Air launched nonstop service to Orlando International Airport and American Airlines added Landline Bus Service to Philadelphia,” said Tom Stoudt, executive director of LNAA. “Summer is always a busy time at ABE and we expect this trend to continue in the coming months.”

In numbers, Allegiant saw a 31.7% increase and American’s passenger traffic increased 16.8%, while Delta was flat and United saw a 17% decrease compared to May of last year.

About 19 million pounds of air cargo were handled in April, a decrease of 17.1% from May 2023.

Morning Call reporter Evan Jones can be reached at [email protected].