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Avelo Airlines announced this week that it is adding Nashville as its ninth destination from Lakeland. And the city’s airport director said passenger service, now in its fifth month, is meeting the goal of 60% of passengers being tourists coming to Lakeland and 40% being locals flying out.
Why it matters: Avelo’s growth represents opportunities for both Central Florida tourism and convenience for local travelers at an airport that had previously been known more for cargo operations like Amazon and aviation organizations like the NOAA Hurricane Hunters and Drakken International.
Routes: Avelo’s new Nashville route adds to the eight other destinations the airline already offers out of Lakeland Linder International Airport: Philadelphia/Wilmington; Manchester/Boston; Rochester, New York; New Haven, Connecticut; Atlanta; Charlotte/Concord; Hartford; and San Juan, Puerto Rico.
The Nashville flights will begin on March 6 and run on Thursdays and Sundays. An introductory $49 fare for travel between March 6 and March 31 is available until next Monday, Nov. 11.
Destination requests: Kris Hallstrand, director of Lakeland’s airport, said Nashville is a destination she has personally advocated for and a request that kept popping up on the airport’s social media sites. She said she and her team pay attention to destination requests on those sites and relay the info to the airline.
“I’ve been pushing for a Michigan destination. I can only encourage … I have zero say in where they fly as it’s a private business that makes private business decisions,” Hallstrand said.
The airline flies out of Lakeland Linder every day of the week except Tuesdays.
Popular routes: So far, the most popular destinations from Lakeland have been Rochester, Manchester, and San Juan, Puerto Rico.
“Flights have been received very well. We have over 40 percent of our bookings originating in LAL (Lakeland’s airport code), meaning the community is utilizing the routes. Some other Florida markets we see mostly inbound traffic, not out,” said Courtney Goff, a communications manager for Avelo Airlines. “Overall, we’re very happy with our start at LAL. It’s been less than six months and we continue to see great growth.”
Ticket sales have been slowest for the Atlanta route, which has been on sale for several months and where service began this week. “We just haven’t seen the support of Atlanta,” Hallstrand said.
International flights from Avelo are off the table for now, as the airport’s current customs office can accommodate only general aviation flights or corporate flights with 19 passengers or fewer, Hallstrand said. Future plans for the airport’s expansion will include a customs office that can accommodate commercial flights, she hopes.
Economic impact
Avelo Airlines has a fleet of 20 Boeing Next-Generation 737 aircraft, and one of those jets is based in Lakeland, as is its crew.
With the addition of the Nashville route, Lakeland Linder has now become a regional base of operations for Avelo Airlines; it has one plane assigned to the Lakeland airport, which means the plane and its crew starts and ends its day in Lakeland.
“The pilot and crew are members of our community. It’s a big deal to me because we support all of these aviation programs in our community and this is how we keep young talent here by providing them with jobs,” Hallstrand said.
With the eight destinations, Hallstrand projects that around 40 jobs have been created in Lakeland by Avelo’s presence. By the spring, she expects that number to rise to about 100.
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