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Peoria Airport Getting New Allegiant Flights To Denver, Sarasota This Spring

Gen. Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport in Peoria.
WCBU
Gen. Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport in Peoria.

Allegiant Airlines has announced it will be adding two new destinations to the General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport.

The Peoria-to-Sarasota Bradenton International Airport flight will begin on May 27, with flights running Thursdays through Sundays. Peoria International Airport also will schedule flights to Denver International Airport beginning on May 28. These will run on Fridays and Mondays.

Travelers can begin purchasing Allegiant flights to the two destinations, but information regarding fares is not finalized.

At a news conference Tuesday morning, airport director Gene Olson said the expansion of destinations is a positive step for Peoria International Airport, and Allegiant is positioning itself for growth following the pandemic.

"It's really exciting, and it's really an indication of Allegiant's confidence in the Peoria market," Olson said. "We've probably been running less than half of our usual traffic loads, due to COVID."

Olson said he wants the Peoria International Airport to thrive as the nation rolls out the coronavirus vaccine and the travel industry is restored to what it was before the pandemic.

"We're really excited that there's a vaccine available. And I really hope that people get vaccinated as quickly as possible," Olson said. "And that that will kind of start people getting back to normal. I'm looking forward to our resumption of business travel, which I think will happen in the second or third quarter of the year."

 Olson said he's looking forward to announcing more new flights as more people become vaccinated and feel safer traveling again.

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Jordan Mead is a reporting intern at WGLT. She joined the station in 2021.