Allegiant Air is still considering returning to South Lake Tahoe, but the commercial airline will begin air service July 7 at the Reno/Tahoe International Airport.
"When American Airlines pulled out of Reno our plans changed and we needed to decide how to use our resources," said Allegiant President Jim Patterson. "It was attractive to us because American had already been flying the routes we will take up so we didn't have to create new ones."
Allegiant's plans call for two daily round-trip flights between Reno and Portland, Ore., and one daily round-trip flight between Reno and Fresno, Calif.
The opportunity to provide service to Reno was also attractive to Allegiant because it is a low-yield market, meaning it offers low fares.
"Allegiant's service to Portland will help us make up two of the three flights we'll lose on July 2," said John Farahi, vice chairman of the Airport Authority of Washoe County. "In addition, we will begin service to a new destination, Fresno. We have not had non-stop service to this market since 1998 and Fresno provides critical access to and from California's Central Valley for many business and leisure travelers."