Avelo Shifts Focus East As It Winds Down Burbank Operations

Avelo Airlines will shut down its base at Hollywood Burbank Airport (BUR) by early December, ending a four-year presence at its West Coast hub.

The airline cited challenging market conditions and limited financial returns in the region. It will instead target more profitable opportunities on the U.S. East Coast and in charter flying.

“This was not an easy decision,” Avelo CEO Andrew Levy said in a statement. “Our company’s deepest operational roots are in BUR, having launched our first flight there over four years ago during the COVID pandemic.”

The company added that continued operations from Burbank would “not deliver adequate financial returns amid a highly competitive backdrop.” Service will begin winding down from Aug. 12, with flights set to cease by Dec. 2.

The move marks the end of Avelo’s West Coast base, which launched in April 2021 with high ambitions to fly underserved regional routes. At its peak in July 2021, the carrier operated 49 weekly departures from BUR to 11 destinations, accounting for more than 13% of the airport’s seat capacity, according to OAG Schedules Analyser data.

As of the week of July 14, 2025, the airline serves eight destinations on a scheduled basis, with 25 weekly flights and 3,725 departure seats, representing a 4% share of the market—behind Southwest (57.2%), Alaska Airlines (12.9%), United Airlines (8%), Spirit Airlines (5%) and American Airlines (4.5%).

The decision to exit Burbank reflects a broader network shift toward its East Coast bases, including New Haven, Connecticut, and Wilmington, Delaware.

As part of that strategy, the LCC has also been expanding internationally, beginning with its first overseas route from Hartford’s Bradley International Airport to Montego Bay, Jamaica, in November 2024. Since then, it has added seven more international routes, including flights to Cancun, Punta Cana and San Juan.

However, the airline has made some East Coast cuts in recent months, pulling back from scaling up its new base at North Carolina's Concord-Padgett Regional Airport, by dropping several routes. Additionally, Avelo has faced increasing criticism from immigrant rights groups for its role in operating charter flights for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, transporting deported migrants.

The airline currently operates a fleet of 21 aircraft, the CAPA Fleet Database shows, comprising eight Boeing 737-700s and 13 737-800s.