Allegiant suspends Bellingham flights until June after coronavirus border closures
Allegiant has announced that it is temporarily suspending operations at the Bellingham airport effective Tuesday, March 24.
The company said in a statement that the closure of the U.S.-Canada border to non-essential travel was the reason for the closure, and hopes to restart operations around Wednesday, June 3.
“The governments of the United States and Canada made the decision to halt travel for tourism and recreation in an effort to slow the spread of coronavirus Disease / COVID-19. This border closure virtually overnight had a direct and profound impact on our Bellingham flights, as the majority of our customers in Bellingham are leisure travelers from Canada,” Allegiant said in a statement sent by email.
Allegiant offers flights out of Bellingham to Anchorage Alaska, Phoenix, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Oakland, Palm Springs California, San Diego and Tuscon, Arizona.
Reestablishing flights in June will depend on whether the border is open by then, according to Allegiant.
“Our teams are in constant contact with both United States and Canadian officials, as well as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other regulatory agencies, monitoring the latest developments,” the airline said in the statement.
Bellingham International Airport has been an Allegiant base since 2008, employing approximately 100 people. During this temporary suspension in service, Allegiant said it is formalizing potential options for impacted employees.
The airport’s aviation director, Sunil Harman, said this decision did not come as a surprise to him given the dramatic drop in passenger traffic as the governments were contemplating closing the border to non-essential traffic. The passenger loads on some flights had dropped to below 20%; typically flights are nearly fully out of the Bellingham airport.
Rob Fix, the Port of Bellingham’s executive director, said it fully expects Allegiant to resume the same service in June.
“Our No. 1 goal is to ensure we are always providing a safe airport facility for travelers and airport staff. We stand ready to welcome Allegiant travelers back early this summer when the virus is contained and borders are once again open for unrestricted travel,” Fix said.
Passengers affected by the service change with Allegiant’s flights should contact Allegiant Travel Company directly to cancel or modify their reservations. Due to high call volumes, Allegiant is requesting passengers cancel or modify their reservations online at allegiantair.com.
“We apologize for the inconvenience that this unavoidable service interruption has caused. Given the unprecedented situation, we ask for continued patience and understanding as we all work to ensure the safety and health of both travelers and employees,” Harman said in an email.
The Bellingham International Airport continues to remain open and operational, with daily commercial flights to Seattle through Alaska Airlines.
This story was originally published March 19, 2020 at 4:36 PM.
