Pilots not happy with standards - Allegiant

Pilots at Allegiant Air Question Safety Standards

Conflict between the pilots and Allegiant's chairman and chief executive has become increasingly tense over the last two years.

For the last decade, Allegiant Air has built a thriving business buying secondhand jets and connecting small cities to leisure destinations like Las Vegas and Honolulu.

By keeping costs low, offering cheap fares, and flying from places that other carriers have neglected, like Fort Wayne, Ind., or Allentown, Pa., Allegiant has grown rapidly. Today, the airline has one of the highest profit margins in the business and among the lowest costs.

But Allegiant's scrappy success is now being questioned by its pilots, who say they are worried about repeated mechanical problems with the airline's fleet of older planes, poor maintenance operations and a culture where profits come before safety.