Allegiant Air to Offer Flights From Newark Airport
June 28 2016 - 11:40AM
Dow Jones News
NEWARK, N.J.—Allegiant Air has been given final approval to
begin offering service at Newark Liberty International Airport,
making it the first discount carrier to operate there since a
federal lawsuit charged United, Newark's dominant airline, with
monopolizing takeoff and landing slots and keeping competitors
out.
Allegiant will begin offering flights in November between Newark
and Cincinnati, Ohio; Savannah, Georgia; Asheville, North Carolina
and Knoxville, Tennessee, the airline said. Tickets can be
purchased starting Tuesday, some for as low as $39 one-way.
The airline will operate two flights a day during the morning
hours, out of Newark's Terminal B.
"It's been something we've talked about for years, and now we're
just so excited to serve the New York metropolitan area," said
Lukas Johnson, Allegiant's vice president for network and
pricing.
Allegiant was one of several smaller, low-cost carriers which
wrote last fall to U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx to
complain that United, Delta and American were driving up fares at
New York-area airports by controlling the vast majority of slots,
which are takeoff and landing authorizations.
Chicago-based United controlled about 900 of the roughly 1,200
slots at Newark -- more than 10 times as many slots as any other
airline -- the Justice Department lawsuit last fall alleged, and
wasn't fully using the slots it had.
In April, United announced it had abandoned its plan to purchase
24 additional slots at Newark from Atlanta-based Delta Air
Lines.
Around the same time, the Federal Aviation Administration opened
up more slots at Newark by relaxing hourly limits on arrivals and
departures that had been put in place in 2008 to reduce delays.
It remains to be seen if fares will decrease at Newark with the
arrival of low-cost carriers like Allegiant. Currently, a one-way
fare for a weekday flight on United from Newark to Cincinnati
begins at $161.
"We compete vigorously with many airlines throughout our
network, including at Newark Airport, and believe customers will
continue to value our frequent flights to more than 150
destinations world-wide and our extensive support of organizations
throughout the region," said United spokesman Rahsaan Johnson.
Allegiant's base fare is often lower than its competitors but it
adds on extra fees that many travelers aren't used to. The Las
Vegas-based airline charges extra to book flights online, or to use
a credit card. Selecting a seat in advance costs $5 to $75 each
way, depending on the length of a flight. Even a bottle of water
costs $2. Placing a suitcase in an overhead bin is $10 to $25
extra, each way. Allegiant offers an inch or two less legroom than
full-service airlines like United.
Big airlines like Delta have been reacting to low-cost carriers
by offering on some routes deeply discounted tickets that come with
restrictions such as no advance seat assignments. United is
expected to unveil its highly restrictive bargain fares in the
coming months.
"It's important to note that we serve a very different customer
than United," Johnson said. "They have a tremendous amount of
frequency and service and they serve the business customer. For us,
it's really about the leisure-only customers, and flying to those
markets 3-4 times a week. So we really look at this as a separate
customer."
Copyright 2016 Associated Press
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 28, 2016 11:25 ET (15:25 GMT)
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