Fuel Prices Spur Allegiant Cuts

With the cost of jet fuel climbing to near-record levels, Las Vegas -based Allegiant Air has decided to drop its six longest flights to and from McCarran International Airport, including one route that has yet to begin flying.

The cuts are expected to be completed by the end of the holiday travel period and affect flights between Las Vegas and Lansing, Mich. ; Gulfport, Miss. ; Huntsville, Ala. ; and Marion, Springfield and Champaign, Ill. Allegiant was planning to start service to Marion later this year.

Passengers who have bought tickets on Allegiant for flights to those destinations will be offered full refunds.

Allegiant flights between Gulfport , Huntsville and Lansing to two Florida destinations served by the tour-packaging operator won't be cut.

Allegiant spokeswoman Tyri Squyres said jet fuel has climbed from $1.97 to $3 a gallon since the beginning of the year, prompting executives to consider alternatives. While fare increases have occurred on some routes, airline officials said they didn't think the market would bear increases to levels necessary to make the routes profitable.

" Lansing is the longest route in our system and it's been really profitable in the past, but we simply can't afford to keep flying there from Las Vegas with the amount of fuel we burn," Squyres said.

Aircraft used on the canceled routes will either be used to add flights to popular short-haul destinations or to increase Allegiant's charter operations, Squyres said.

"We'll evaluate all our routes and may bump up the number of flights we offer to some of our most popular destinations," she said.

Allegiant, described by analysts as a "boutique carrier" that profits by offering tour packaging to resort cities for customers living in small-town America , also makes money with its laundry list of ancillary income-generating programs — charging for food and drinks on flights, for roomy exit row seats and for first choice of other seating.

Earlier this year, the airline, which went public in December, added suburban Phoenix to its list of resort hubs, joining Las Vegas and Orlando, Fla. The Arizona service wasn't affected by the cuts.

Allegiant is McCarran International's seventh busiest air carrier and operates 110 routes systemwide. None of the company's 1,400 employees will be laid off as a result of the cuts.

Other airlines are feeling the pinch of higher fuel costs and are taking different approaches to addressing the economic crunch.

Most domestic airlines have raised fares by Southwest Airlines, the busiest carrier serving McCarran, has cut many of its least-profitable flights. None of them affected Las Vegas operations.$10 to $20 to offset some of the costs.

United Airlines has decided to ground some of its least fuel-efficient operations, many of them commuter routes to small cities scattered around the country.