{"id":2934,"date":"2018-01-23T18:33:31","date_gmt":"2018-01-23T23:33:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/doctoraviation.com\/?p=2934"},"modified":"2018-04-17T17:16:17","modified_gmt":"2018-04-17T22:16:17","slug":"allegiant-a-new-way-to-travel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/doctoraviation.com\/allegiant-a-new-way-to-travel\/","title":{"rendered":"Allegiant: Perhaps A New Way to Travel?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Allegiant, a new way to travel.\u00a0 At least that is the conclusion that I have arrived at.\u00a0 For those that have not used this Ultra Low Cost Carrier (ULCC), aka inexpensive airline, let me explain how it works.<\/p>\n

But, before I get into the technical details, let me share my own personal experience.\u00a0 I first flew Allegiant from Cincinnati to Phoenix in October of 2015.\u00a0 My son was going for a college visit, so I looked for the most affordable rate I could find, Allegiant won.\u00a0 I flew the airline and was not happy.\u00a0 There are a number of reasons why.<\/p>\n

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First of all, they seemed to charge for everything.\u00a0 For example, I purchased a ticket online and then the website wanted to charge me for a seat!\u00a0 What am I supposed to do, fly on the airplane without a seat!\u00a0 How can you have a ticket, but not a seat?\u00a0 They charged for bags, including carry-ons!\u00a0 Once I got in the seat I purchased, I found out that it did not recline.\u00a0 It also had less legroom than a sardine can.\u00a0 When the beverage cart came by, they charged for water!\u00a0 When they sent me a survey after the trip, I vented about being, \u201cnickel and dimed to death\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0 My attitude changed later, which I will explain below.<\/p>\n

Allegiant’s Business Model<\/strong><\/p>\n

So what is Allegiant all about and what is their business model?\u00a0 Allegiant likes to operate aircraft from smaller cities (e.g. Toledo, Ohio) to popular vacation spots like Phoenix, Los Angeles and cities in Florida, such as Orlando.\u00a0 This allows individuals who would not normally fly to get a discount ticket to an attractive destination.\u00a0 In the past these individuals would either: drive to the destination (aka road trip), drive to a major city and then fly, or the most common alternative, not go at all.\u00a0 As a result, they are tapping into a new market.\u00a0 That is Allegiant\u2019s niche.<\/p>\n

They are not targeting business travelers or families going on specific vacations.\u00a0 They leave those individuals to the major airlines.\u00a0 They are targeting leisure passengers who have discretion on how they travel.<\/p>\n

<\/figure>\n

One of their keys to success is their scheduling.\u00a0 You can fly from Cincinnati to Phoenix or vice versa, but only on Mondays and Friday.\u00a0 One can see why business travelers do not rely on Allegiant.\u00a0 They offer flight to Ft. Myers every day of the week during peak season (e.g. Spring Break in March), but maybe not in September.\u00a0 In other words, they offer more flights at busy travel times and less flights at non-busy times.<\/p>\n

<\/figure>\n

Another of their keys is to fly from some less popular airports near major cities.\u00a0 For example, they use Punta Gorda in Florida, which is about 40 minutes from popular Ft. Myers.\u00a0 They use Bellingham, Washington instead of SEATAC in Seattle.\u00a0 This is a popular technique pioneered by Southwest Airlines.<\/p>\n

Additionally, they buy older jets and use them when they need them.\u00a0 Buying a used jet is like buying a used car.\u00a0 If you can find a good one, you avoid all of the depreciation costs accrued during the first few years of ownership.\u00a0 If you don\u2019t owe a lot for your planes, you can afford to have them sit on the ground in non-peak seasons.\u00a0 They also use a limited number of aircraft: MD-80s, Airbus 320s and the Airbus 319 (all the photos in the blog) that I flew on this past weekend.\u00a0 Aviation Week Network published a more complete explanation of the business model that I recommend for further reading:\u00a0 http:\/\/aviationweek.com\/commercial-aviation\/allegiant-prospers-ulcc-business-model<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

De-Planing in Phoenix and Cincinnati (weather difference in January?)<\/em><\/p>\n

Finally (and I like this one the best from the human perspective).\u00a0 They schedule their crew to fly out and backs and return home every evening.\u00a0 A crew may have the Phoenix to Cincinnati flight, turn around and flight back and the day is done.\u00a0 They may do Cincinnati to Orlando, to Ft. Lauderdale, to Cincinnati.\u00a0 By having their crew return home each evening they save substantial amounts on food and lodging costs for the crews.\u00a0 They also avoid the trouble that can occur with a bored crew on the road.\u00a0 Finally, it strengthens families to have a spouse home each evening.\u00a0 It makes for happier crew members as well.<\/p>\n

A New Perspective<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/figure>\n

So why did I changed my tune?\u00a0 First of all, I now better understand what I am getting into.\u00a0 When I returned to Phoenix this past weekend, I paid around $55 outbound and $62 inbound.\u00a0 I paid $50 for my luggage.\u00a0 I learned that if you do not select a seat and pay for it, they still give you a seat, they just chose it for you.\u00a0 So the whole trip cost me around $170.\u00a0 I knew that my seat would not recline (less maintenance costs for them) and that I would have my knees rammed into the seat in front of me.\u00a0 The remedy: I just got up every hour and walked up and down a wide and tall aisle.\u00a0 I knew I would buy no food or water, so I was well hydrated and fed in advance.\u00a0 However, I was plenty hungry for the Double-Double waiting for me at In-n-Out Burger upon landing.<\/p>\n

<\/figure>\n

So why was I happier this second time using Allegiant?\u00a0 Because I knew what to expect and figured it was worth it for $170.<\/p>\n

Speaking of dollars.\u00a0 Allegiant\u2019s business model has proven to be a profitable one.\u00a0 They made a 216 million dollar profit in 2016 (http:\/\/atwonline.com\/airline-financials\/allegiant-air-posts-220-million-2016-net-profit<\/a>). Through 2017, they recorded their 60th<\/sup> consecutive quarter of making a profit.\u00a0 That is fifteen years of straight profit (including the Great Recession years of 2008-2011).\u00a0 Few airlines can boast that streak.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Allegiant, a new way to travel.\u00a0 At least that is the conclusion that I have arrived at.\u00a0 For those that have not used this Ultra Low Cost Carrier (ULCC), aka inexpensive airline, let me explain how it works. But, before I get into the technical details, let me share my own personal experience.\u00a0 I first […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":338,"featured_media":2927,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"footnotes":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[24],"tags":[641,484,640,639,638,637],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nAllegiant: Perhaps A New Way to Travel? - Doctor Aviation<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Allegiant, a new way to travel.\u00a0 At least that is the conclusion that I have arrived at.\u00a0 For those that have not used this Ultra Low Cost Carrier (ULCC), aka inexpensive airline, let me explain how it works and share my experience\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/doctoraviation.com\/allegiant-a-new-way-to-travel\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Allegiant: Perhaps A New Way to Travel? 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