US startup Breeze Airways is planning to significantly expand its operations on the US West Coast next year, and will expand its new flights on the same route that its rival Discon Abelo Airlines is set to depart this year.
On July 17, Breeze said in March 2026 that it had expanded to five cities in the western United States, including Burbank and Alcata in California, Eugene and Redmond in Oregon, and Pasco in Washington.
“Our continued growth is evidence that a unique form of air travel, combining affordability and ease with valuable options such as premium seating and in-flight Wi-Fi, is highly desired by travelers today,” says David Neeleman, CEO of Breeze.
Many of Breeze's planned expansion targets are routes from Hollywood Burbank Airport, where Abelo is scheduled to be ejected.
Specifically, Breeze in March is scheduled to start three flights per week from Burbank near Alcata on California's north coast to Humboldt County Airport, with two flights per week to Eugene, Pasco and Redmond.
The airline will also expand operations in Provo, Utah, with plans to fly to Alcata, Burbank, Eugene, Las Vegas, Pasco and Redmond in March. It will also be selling flights from Las Vegas to Redmond.
The expansion came days after news broke that Avelo was scheduled to withdraw from the US West Coast by the end of the year.
Houston-based Abelo's first flight departed Burbank in 2021 and got off the ground. The airport then became Abelo's main base, which flew from there to cities such as Alcata, Eugene, Pasco and Redmond.
“Our deepest operating roots lie in Burbank,” Abelo said of Burbank's withdrawal a few days ago. “There is rarely a singular reason for such decisions to be made, and this is no different. We believe that continuing services from Burbank in our current operating environment will not provide sufficient financial returns against a very competitive background.”
Avelo will cut Burbank operations to a single aircraft by August 12th, and will leave Southern California for good by December 2nd.
“The closure of (base) closes the entire West Coast because all the planes that promote operations on the West Coast are in (Burbank),” Abelo said.
Last year Abelo began focusing on operations in the Eastern US, adding flights from locations such as New Haven and Hartford in Connecticut.
“Burbank aircraft are expected to support the growth of our East Coast base, where we have a significant increase in the opportunity to continue our path to sustainable cash flow generation,” Abelo said.
Again, Abelo began operating deportation flights for US immigration and customs enforcement, citing weak demand for low-cost airline seating. The move has generated some public backlash.
Avelo and Breeze are both discount airlines that reached the air in 2021. Both target leisure travelers and often fly twice as weekly.
But while Breeze has top-notch seats, Avelo's jets have all the economical cabins.
In recent months, some low-cost US airlines have been working to install more premium seats on their jets in response to the excess capacity and limited demand for cheap tickets.
Frontier Airlines has moved from the university-wide model with plans to install first-class seats on its Airbus Jet aircraft, but Southwest Airlines has added League Room Economy Seats to its Boeing 737.
