Avelo Airlines ends West Coast service, leaving Bay Area passengers grounded with vouchers

Thursday, July 31, 2025

SONOMA COUNTY, Calif. (KGO) -- A low-cost airline headquartered in Houston, Texas is stopping service out of Sonoma County next month and to the entire West Coast before the end of the year.

Viewers reached out to 7 On Your Side after they received travel vouchers they say they have no way of using. The airline is also facing criticism for running deportation flights.

In April, Avelo Airlines announced it had signed an agreement for a long-term charter program flying for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Immigration Customs and Enforcement agency.

At the time, the company's founder and CEO referred to it as a sensitive and complicated topic, saying after significant deliberations, Avelo determined the charter flying would provide stability to continue expanding the airline's core scheduled passenger service and keep crewmembers employed. But now, Avelo's West Coast scheduled passenger service is ending.

"It didn't seem fair if they're not going to provide a service that they keep my money," said Jo Ellen Ihinger, who lives in Santa Rosa.

Service out of Sonoma County will end Aug. 11, leaving customers like Ihinger grounded. Most of the other West Coast flights also end in August, while some end at the start of December. Ihinger and other passengers want a refund, not a travel voucher they have no way of using from the west coast.

"I'm really shocked that this is their policy and that they are not willing to refund people that can no longer use their flights," Ihinger said. "I think it's bad business. It's treating the public like we don't matter."

The company's CEO has said it wasn't an easy decision, with the airline's deepest operational roots in Burbank, where Avelo's first flight occurred more than four years ago. Avelo said continuing service from Burbank would not deliver adequate financial returns.

Rohnert Park resident and Avelo passenger Barbara Mansinne canceled a flight prior to the announcement and wound up with a credit. But now, given the change in operations, she says she can't use it. She asked Avelo to consider extending the credit's expiration date beyond Oct. 1 so she could attempt to travel from a city Avelo is still flying out of, but was told no.

"They're not doing the right thing and terribly frustrating," Mansinne said.

In an emailed statement to 7 On Your Side, an Avelo spokesperson writes in part, that Mansinne canceled her own trip, and it is standard for customers to receive travel credits for cancelling their own trips. They went on to say that she is welcome to use her Avelo Travel Funds while they remain valid on any flight in the airline's network.

At least one passenger 7 On Your Side spoke with was able to get a refund to her original form of payment. Jen O., who asked that we not use her last name, had to cancel a trip because her dad passed away. She booked another trip using her credit to see her son in Salt Lake City, Utah instead, but then Avelo canceled that flight. She wound up with another travel voucher.

"There's no place that Avelo flies from near my house anymore, so a voucher to me is pretty worthless," she said.

Frustrated with customer service, she emailed Avelo's senior leadership and CEO.

"I didn't really expect to hear anything back but off it went. I hit send and off it went," Jen O. said.

She received an email back from someone on behalf of the leadership team, saying in part, in recognition of the reason for her original cancellation, they would make a goodwill exception, cancel the Avelo Travel Funds voucher and give her a refund.

"They let their customers down," she said. "And I guess my hope is that they'll do the right thing for other people, because it's a lot of money for people."

Avelo has not said how it expects passengers to use the vouchers when they live in cities Avelo is no longer flying out of. Avelo's CEO has said the company will be redeploying West Coast aircrafts to areas the airline sees more efficient for longer-term growth prospects while also building depth and breadth to Avelo's East Coast operation.

The airline's Communications Manager emailed 7 On Your Side Wednesday afternoon, saying in part: "Fares on Avelo are non-refundable unless they meet certain Department of Transportation rules that call for a refund to a customer's original form of payment. These rules help to protect customers as well as to ensure the reliability of scheduled service that airlines provide. We issue Avelo Travel Funds typically due to either a service issue or in connection with a fare that a customer has cancelled and is not eligible for an original-form-of-payment refund. Avelo Travel Funds do not hold monetary value and are only redeemable for services on Avelo. At no point are Avelo Travel Funds eligible to be converted to cash under the terms of our Contract of Carriage. We are sorry once again about any impact our network changes may have had on travel plans and hope Customers will be able to take advantage of these funds on a future flight elsewhere within our network."

Avelo also said it reviews every passenger inquiry as it comes in and will ensure that DOT rules are followed above all else.

"I want to reiterate that for any booking that is canceled or altered by the airline, we will provide the refund as required by DOT rules and regulations," said the communications manager. "All those who have flights the airline has canceled will get their money back to their original form of payment. Those who have used their Avelo Travel Funds (ATFs) for payment, get their money back via that form. Individuals need to reach out to our Avelo Support Center for their specific reservation information."

Regarding the customers 7OYS interviewed, the communications manager provided the following:

Barbara Mansinne
"Canceled her own trip. We did not cancel. Our standards state if you cancel your own trip, you get ATFs back."

Jo Ellen Ihinger
"Her first trip, the airline canceled, and she was refunded her to her original form of payment. She split the cost between her card and ATF, so she was refunded the amount she paid for on her card to her card and refunded the amount she paid for in ATF to ATF. Her second flight in June, she canceled herself and was not eligible for refund to original form of payment and was given an ATF."

Jen O
"She canceled her flight last year and received ATF, per our standards. When she rebooked using her ATF, we had to cancel that flight, and she was refunded to her original form of payment and that was ATF. The flight we canceled, she paid for with all ATFs, except about $54 that was refunded to her card. The rest, which was paid by ATF, was given back on a new ATF that is valid for five years."

These are the final days for West Coast flights:

Portland/Salem, OR (SLE) -- 8/10/2025

Sonoma County, CA (STS) and Las Vegas, NV (LAS) -- 8/11/2025

Kalispell, MT (FCA) -- 8/30/2025

Redmond/Bend, OR (RDM) and Eugene, OR (EUG) -- 12/1/2025

Eureka/Arcata, CA (ACV), Pasco/Tri-Cities, WA (PSC), Medford, OR (MFR), and Burbank, CA (BUR) -- 12/2/2025

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