This week Allegiant Airlines announced a new nonstop flight from Minot International Airport to Florida that will start in time for the winter holidays.

This is a good addition to the Minot airport’s offerings of flights for passengers in the city and surrounding area. Passengers will be able to fly without dealing with layovers or driving miles to another airport to access a direct flight to Florida. It’s good for the local community when people can use local services provided for their businesses or personal travel.

The new route will take travelers to Orlando Sanford International Airport in Sanford, Florida. Sanford is about 27 miles from Orlando, Florida.

Las Vegas-based Allegiant made its new route out of Minot more enticing for travelers by offering introductory one-way fare on this route and other new routes across the airlines’ network. Those one-way fares had to be purchased by July 12 for travel by Feb. 12, 2024, according to the announcement.

Allegiant says it is continuing to see historically high demand from leisure travelers. It may reflect continued pent-up demand stemming from the pandemic, when people either couldn’t or didn’t choose to travel. However, Allegiant’s market niche with lower cost, targeted destinations also has been a successful one for the company. Drew Wells, Allegiant’s senior vice president and chief revenue officer, acknowledged as much in stating the new Florida flights from Minot and other selected communities will “build on the success we’ve had in these markets.”

For the Minot airport, overall passenger numbers could receive a boost and some additional Canadian visitors might be on the way as our friends to the north look to take advantage of the new flight offering.

Minot has the newest and largest commercial terminal in North Dakota. Delta, United and Allegiant provide the airline service. There are direct flights available to and from Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota; Denver, Colorado; Las Vegas, Nevada; and Phoenix-Mesa, Arizona, according to airport information.

We believe this new route will complement the existing routes and make Minot’s airport even more attractive for flying in and out of North Dakota. It certainly will benefit residents of Minot and the surrounding area.