Alright, let's get this straight. Avelo Airlines is adding new routes, expanding in Florida, and patting themselves on the back for "inspiring travel." Give me a break. What they're really inspiring is a deeper dive into the ethical abyss.
So, Avelo's adding flights to Lakeland, Florida, because, you know, snowbirds gotta snowbird. And they're dropping other routes because... well, because capitalism. Demand is low, so buh-bye. That's how it works, right? But let's not forget the elephant in the boarding area: this is the same Avelo that caught heat for partnering with ICE to run deportation flights.
Remember that? Protests erupted. People were rightly pissed. But Avelo's CEO, Andrew Levy, basically shrugged and said it was about "stability" and keeping employees paid. Translation: morality takes a backseat when there's money to be made. Protesters call on UD to cut ties with Avelo Airlines over deportation flights
And now they're expanding, adding new routes, and acting like nothing happened. Like those deportation flights were just a minor blip, a little turbulence on their otherwise sunny journey to budget airline dominance.
It's like a twisted version of "planes, trains, and automobiles" – except instead of a heartwarming Thanksgiving story, it's a masterclass in corporate cognitive dissonance.
But hey, at least they're giving us "affordable" fares. $34 to fly to Detroit! What a steal! ...Assuming you can stomach the fact that your ticket might be subsidizing the same airline that's shipping people out of the country against their will.
And don't even get me started on the Concord-Padgett Regional Airport situation. They dropped the Nashville route last April due to "poor performance," but now it's back! Why? Because they added a second aircraft and suddenly have the capacity to "let the route mature." Budget airline in Concord adds route, restores another 7 months after dumping it
Right. So, it wasn't about demand; it was about their own logistical screw-ups. And we're supposed to applaud them for fixing their mess?
Look, I get it. Airlines are businesses. They need to make money. But there's a line, isn't there? A line between "doing what you have to do to survive" and actively profiting from human misery. And Avelo seems to have gleefully tap-danced right over that line.
Then again, maybe I'm the crazy one here. Maybe I'm expecting too much from a budget airline. Maybe we're all just supposed to shut up, pay our $34, and enjoy the flight.
Avelo is even planning on adding Embraer 195-E2s to their fleet in 2027. Cool, I guess? What does that even mean for the average traveler? More legroom? A slightly less soul-crushing in-flight experience? Or just another way to squeeze more profit out of every flight?
And they're bragging about serving 41 cities, spanning 15 states and Puerto Rico. They fly to Jamaica, Mexico, and the Dominican Republic. They want us to think they are expanding travel and connecting people.
I wonder if they connect all people equally, or if some connections are more equal than others.
Avelo wants to be your friendly neighborhood budget airline, offering cheap flights and convenient routes. But they can't erase the stain of those deportation flights. They can't pretend that their bottom line isn't built, in part, on the suffering of others. And frankly, I'm not sure I want to fly an airline that's so comfortable with that kind of moral compromise.
