An Avelo Airlines 737 parked at a gate at Raleigh-Durham International Airport’s Terminal 1. Avelo moved its RDU operations to the terminal on Feb. 16, 2023. Richard Stradling [email protected]
Avelo Airlines will begin flying nonstop between the Triangle and Nassau, the capital of the Bahamas, in June.
In May, the low-cost carrier will two new domestic destinations — Grand Rapids, Michigan, and Wilmington, Delaware.
Avelo’s new Bahamas flight will operate on Wednesdays and Saturdays, using Boeing 737s, starting June 11. Flights to Wilmington will operate on Thursdays and Sundays, starting May 22. The Grand Rapids service begins May 23, and will operate Mondays and Fridays.
No other airline currently flies between Raleigh-Durham International Airport and Grand Rapids or Nassau.
Nassau becomes the third international destination for Avelo from RDU. Last month, the carrier began flying nonstop from the Triangle to Montego Bay, Jamaica, and Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.
Those flights are among the first international service from Avelo, which got its start in 2021. The airline chose RDU for overseas flights because the Triangle has been a strong market for the company, said Giselle Cortes, vice president for airport operations.
Avelo becomes the only airline to fly between RDU and the Bahamas. BahamasAir began flying nonstop between RDU and Freeport on Grand Bahama Island in November 2022 but has discontinued that service.
The announcement Tuesday brings to 15 the number of new nonstop international flights that airlines have from RDU this year. In addition to the three Avelo flights, Bermudair will begin regular nonstops between RDU and Bermuda in April, while WestJet will begin flying from the Triangle to its hub in Calgary in June.
RDU has aggressively recruited new airlines and routes, touting the Triangle’s growing, affluent population and offering financial incentives in some cases.
Triangle travelers now have a record 15 international destinations to choose from.
This story was originally published March 11, 2025 at 11:41 AM.
