Avelo Airlines marks 1-year milestone serving Daytona. Could more destinations be coming?

DAYTONA BEACH ― Saturday marked the one-year anniversary of Avelo Airlines' inaugural flight to Daytona Beach from its hub airport in New Haven, Connecticut.

To mark the milestone, the airline, which touts its "ultra low cost" passenger ticket prices, announced Friday that it will offer one-way fares on its nonstop Daytona Beach-New Haven route as low as $84.

Avelo spokeswoman Courtney Goff said the special low one-way fares include taxes and are for travel on that route between now and Aug. 14. The tickets must be booked by June 27. Prices vary but are typically around $100 each way on the airline's Daytona Beach-New Haven flights, she said.

Daytona Beach International Airport officials are hopeful that the strong performance of Avelo's Daytona Beach-New Haven route could lead to the airline adding service to other destinations in the near future.

"There potentially could be announcements of new destinations to and from Daytona Beach coming soon," said Cyrus Callum, Volusia County's director of aviation and economic resources, told The Daytona Beach News-Journal in a phone interview on Friday. "It's dependent on Avelo being able to get deliveries of additional aircraft. We've been told we're one of the markets they are contemplating adding additional services."

How often does Avelo offer Daytona-New Haven flights?

Avelo currently offers nonstop flights from Daytona Beach to New Haven on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays through the end of August. It will then revert back to offering flights here on Sundays and Thursdays in September and October, according to its website.

How has the route performed so far?

Since launching its Daytona Beach-New Haven service on June 22, 2023, Avelo in its news release stated that it has flown nearly 50,000 passengers on just under 350 flights on that route. It began offering flights to New Haven just two times a week on Mondays and Fridays, but increased the frequency to three each way a week on June 10.

Excluding weather-related cancellations outside of Avelo's control, the airline did not cancel any scheduled flights at Daytona Beach International Airport, according to the news release.

"Today's milestone demonstrates the appeal our low fares, nonstop access and friendly service are having with travelers throughout the region," stated Avelo Chairman and CEO Andrew Levy in the news release. "It is also clear the fast and easy travel-friendly experience DAB (Daytona Beach International Airport) offers has played an equally significant role in inspiring so many people to fly with us."

Karen Feaster, the airport director for Daytona Beach International Airport, said, "We are excited to be celebrating one year of service with Avelo Airlines. The greater New York area has traditionally been one of our top markets for air service and these Avelo flights to/from New Haven to Daytona Beach have proven that Daytona Beach is its own destination and (that) travelers will support new service."

Avelo's Daytona-Wilmington/Philly route still on hold

Avelo a year ago also launched twice-weekly nonstop flights from Daytona Beach to Wilmington, Delaware, which it touted as service to the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania area because of Wilmington's close proximity to the City of Brotherly Love. It suspended that route in January.

The airline was expected to only suspend service on that route for two months, but as of Friday it has yet to resume its Daytona Beach-Wilmington/Philadelphia flights, confirmed Joanne Magley, director of marketing and customer service for Daytona Beach International Airport.

"DAB is Avelo's most requested route to return to ILG (the airport in Wilmington, Delaware) so we are confident we will see that route return," said Magley.

Avelo charges additional fees for extra services

The $84 one-way anniversary special rate allows passengers to take a personal item with them on the flight. However, Avelo charges additional fees for carry-on bags, checked luggage and other optional services as well as for passengers who want to pick their own seats as opposed to being randomly assigned a seat.

Avelo's operations have been partially subsidized by Volusia taxpayers

Avelo in its first three months of operation here used over $226,000 from a Volusia County taxpayer fund set aside to ensure a minimum amount of revenue for the airline. The fund, which has a maximum cap of $1 million, was used as an incentive by the Volusia County-run airport to persuade Avelo to give flights to and from Daytona Beach a try.

The minimum revenue guarantee fund offer expires after two years. The money comes from the county's Economic Development fund and is used to promote business activity in the county.

Callum, whose department includes Daytona Beach International Airport, said $191,000 of the $226,000 was to cover revenue shortfalls for Avelo's service to Wilmington/Philadelphia. An additional amount has been withdrawn to offset the airline's continued revenue shortfalls for its Daytona-Wilmington/Philadelphia service. He did not know the exact amount off the top of his head on Friday, but said the Wilmington route portion of the revenue guarantee fund has been exhausted.

But other that the initial approximately $35,000 pulled from the fund for its Daytona-New Haven route, no additional money has been withdrawn by Avelo, said Callum. "Service to New Haven has been very successful, which is why they increased service on that route to three days a week."

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Avelo Airlines trots out 1-year anniversary fares for Daytona