Flying Allegiant out of Mesa? Better read this (credit, dangerous)

[Dewey59]

Long article, but very eye opening!

Thousands of people flew Allegiant thinking their planes wouldn?t fail. They were wrong. | investigations | Tampa Bay Times

Makes you wonder if the few bucks you save is worth the risk!

[ScottsdaleMark]

Thanks for posting this. Another great longform/investigative piece by the TB Times.

I'd say on the one hand the planes aren't crashing, but on the other hand, the more in-air issues you have, surely the more risk you have of eventually having a crash and/or fatalities.

I have avoided Allegiant because I'd rather just pay one fare and be done with it than be nickled and dimed every step of the journey along the way, and because Sky Harbor is more convenient for me than Mesa Gateway, but this is well noted and is another thing to think about.

I will give the airline management credit for being accessible to reporters to address these issues; oftentimes companies hide behind a wall of silence or plausible deniability.

[azriverfan.]

Like with anything in life, you get what you pay for. At the same time, I like having choices. I think it's great that we have an airport in the East Valley that gives people out there the option of catching a quick flight rather than driving all the way to Sky Harbor. I wish more domestic carriers flew out of Mesa. But overall I support Allegiant and think we are lucky to have a steady set of flights leave out of there.

But at one point, didn't Mesa have 3 budget airlines: Allegiant, Spirit and Frontier? I have a lot of friends and family that have flown Spirit and have had good experiences with them.

[jlawrence01]

There is another thread on this subject on the travel forum.

https://www.city-data.com/forum/trave...alirlines.html

The fact that Allegiant's CEO was also involved in ValuJet Airlines, another carrier who had safety issues is a great concern.

[mzbk2l]

Interesting info. Being in the flight path Allegiant takes to Mesa, I've seen a lot more of the Airbuses lately; I think they're working pretty hard to get rid of the MD-80s. Someone in my family flies them at least once a month. We've had a couple of delays, but no cancelled flights or obvious in-flight problems yet.

I wondered about the quote in the article that the jet the guy got on was grimy on the outside & the seats were torn. Maybe those are the Florida jets.

[DougStark]

If I'm not mistaken, even their old planes are "refurbished" on a regular basis. I saw a documentary about how American Airlines does this with their old MD-80s

I suspect Allegiant "refurbishes" these older aircraft to ensure their safety.

[Dewey59]

Originally Posted by DougStark

If I'm not mistaken, even their old planes are "refurbished" on a regular basis. I saw a documentary about how American Airlines does this with their old MD-80s

I suspect Allegiant "refurbishes" these older aircraft to ensure their safety.

Did you read the article? Yes they are refurbished and maintained on a regular basis according to Allegiant. The gist of the story is that they are obviously not maintained to the same standards as other airlines (or perhaps to the FAA standards). Here is a quote from the article pertaining specifically to the MD-80s:

"Only three major U.S. carriers still use the MD-80 model jet as part of their regular fleet. Allegiant’s MD-80s are twice as likely to break down as those flown by the other two."

[DougStark]

^^^ No, honestly I haven't read the article yet. I will admit, as a skittish flyer, I'd prefer a newer plane vs. an old MD-80. But if Allegiant's planes are "dangerous", the FAA would ground them.

I've heard of incidents with Allegiant's planes, but never any crashes.

[Bungle]

My parents fly in on Allegiant tomorrow night. Not concerned one bit. There's probably a much greater chance of us getting in a fiery car wreck on the drive home.

[JGMotorsport64]

I've flown Allegiant many times from Mesa to family in smaller towns in Montana. The planes are certianly old and squeaky. I've never felt endangered per se, but the experience isn't really one I'd recommend if you don't like flying.

Allegiant as a concept is great, you use Sky Harbor for large city to city flights, but Allegiant from Mesa to other small towns. But Allegiant itself is not a great experience, and while tickets start at 40, they fee every step you make.