Ultra-low-cost carrier Avelo is reportedly planning to end service at Bradley International Airport in Connecticut next year.
The Connecticut Airport Authority, which operates Bradley and the state’s general aviation airports, announced Avelo’s planned withdrawal on Thursday, according to a report from WFSB-TV in Hartford. The carrier’s three nonstop routes from Bradley – to Montego Bay, Jamaica, Cancún, and Punta Cana, Dominican Republic – will terminate in January 2026.
“The CAA is disappointed and surprised to learn of Avelo’s decision to pull out of Bradley International Airport, particularly its decision to cancel the state’s only nonstop service to Montego Bay,” the CAA said in a statement.
Avelo said it opted to leave the airport due to “multiple business factors,” including lack of demand, but the CAA was openly critical of that reasoning. The agency called Avelo’s decision to abandon the Montego Bay route “inexplicable” and suggested the airline wanted to take advantage of state-provided incentives while dodging its “obligations” as an operator at Bradley.
Revenue Guarantee
According to the Hartford Business Journal, the state provided Avelo with a revenue guarantee, assistance with marketing, and waivers of airport landing fees and terminal rent for its first year of operations.
“Like all business decisions we make, this exit was made based on facts – the revenues on the market did not cover the costs,” Avelo said in a statement to WFSB. “Any other insinuation to the contrary is unfortunate, false, and uninformed.”
Avelo’s tenure at Bradley was notably short-lived, with its first flights to Montego Bay and Cancún taking off in November 2024. The CAA said it will work to restore nonstop service between Connecticut and Jamaica by bringing another airline to Bradley.
Avelo will maintain a presence in Connecticut through its base at Tweed-New Haven Regional Airport.
