The merger between Allegiant and Sun Country has been one of the quietest I’ve seen. Perhaps it’s because they’re both small. Or maybe it’s that they just don’t have any overlap. It could be that there was just no drama with the feds in the process. Or it’s possibly because they have a limited presence in all the major media markets. Regardless, the merger is done, and now we’re all just waiting to see how the integration progresses. We finally have some news to talk about, and I would call it somewhat encouraging.
There are two notable changes going into place at the airline in the form of free drinks and First Class. You might think First Class is the bigger deal, but I’m far more interested in the free drinks. Let’s talk about both.
Free Drinks For All
Allegiant has now announced that it will be adopting Sun Country’s current service program which includes free water, soda, and juices for all starting this Saturday, August 1. Previously, Allegiant used the true ultra low-cost carrier (ULCC) model that charged for everything.
Sun Country may have switched to a ULCC model back when Jude Bricker came over as CEO, but it had gone “Minnesota Nice” by keeping free drinks. Allegiant was more hard-nosed on the idea… until now. I asked the airline for comment on why this change was being made, and I was told this:
The decision to introduce complimentary beverages was based on what we have heard from passengers. While the integration process provides us with an opportunity to evaluate best practices across both airlines, this decision ultimately reflects Allegiant’s commitment to the customer experience.
This is a far cry from the Allegiant of old, but it is smart. Maybe the decision comes thanks to learnings from Sun Country, or maybe it’s an adaptation to the changing market that Allegiant is serving (read: the Twin Cities). Either way, this is why I find this more interesting, because it shows Allegiant’s willingness to change as this merger keeps going ahead.
Oddly enough, this is a decrease in benefits for Allegiant credit cardholders… which is kind of funny. See, they get one drink for free when they fly, and it can be anything that’s under $16. (Here’s the Allegiant beverage page.) That excludes the two $22 bottles of wine and the $17 Don Julio tequila, but it certainly included sodas, water, and juices. Now everyone gets those for free.
Allegiant is trying to play up the importance of the card, however, by noting that it still has all these “elevated” beverages that are only free for cardholders. That includes, “coffees, protein shakes, sports drinks or alcohol and a mixer,” excluding the expensive liquor, of course. I don’t think the beverage menu has changed, but Allegiant is really trying to play up this benefit.
A First Class Test is Coming
Allegiant is joining the revolution that… well, every other airline has joined lately. It will be offering a first class cabin called Allegiant First.
This is a small cabin with only two rows of two-by-two across recliners. It looks like this:
My initial thought was… did they just get a cheap deal on buying all of Spirit’s Big Front Seats? But no, these are different.
This is actually pretty minor, at least for now. Allegiant confirmed to me that they will only be installed on new B737 MAX deliveries that arrive from the start of 2027. Right now the plan is to put this on only 23 aircraft. It sounds more like a test to me with seats going on sale from mid-August.
The airline’s page talking about the product says that it will initially be available from Punta Gorda (PGD). Why Punta Gorda? Is it all those rich people up north that have been clamoring for a First Class product? No, it’s logistics.
Up until now, Allegiant’s B737-8 MAXs have been focused on Fort Lauderdale, Orlando/Sanford, and St Pete. Punta Gorda, however, has been almost all Airbus. According to Cirium schedule data, that starts to change significantly in December. By January, the MAX is 44 percent of Punta Gorda departures, and I assume it will keep growing when the schedule is extended.
We now know this will only go on new deliveries. Looking at Cirium fleet data, it shows three MAX 8-200s being built between mid-December and mid-March next year. But even more interesting, there are three MAX 7s that should be built for Allegiant in the first three months of next year. The certification of that airplane seems imminent, so perhaps this will starts out on the -7. Or maybe it’ll be the -8. Either way, those airplanes are heading to PGD.
First Class is not something Sun Country currently has. It got rid of that during its ULCC transition a decade ago. This is presumably more about following all the other lemmings off the cliff in adding premium, but it does also make me wonder if there is something else we just don’t know yet. Maybe the -7’s monuments (galleys, lavs, etc) and exit doors don’t lend themselves well to squeezing an extra row in at Allegiant’s seat pitch. So it’s possible that Allegiant doesn’t lose a row by putting these in but rather just loses two seats in each row, a worthy trade-off.
We may not know yet, but what we do know is that Allegiant has shown the first sign that it isn’t just turning Sun Country into the Allegiant that existed before the merger. I hope we continue to see what I can only assume are well-calculated changes as the merger moves ahead.
