A drawback of the low-cost airline can often be the location of the airports it serves.
To save on fees and secure competitive gate slots, budget airlines will often not fly from a large city's main airport but will from a smaller one a bit away from the city center.
In Los Angeles, Frontier Airlines (FRON) flights will go not out of LAX but rather John Wayne Airport or Ontario International Airport about 50 miles outside town.
Another example: Texas-based Avelo Airlines does not run flights into NYC at all and instead has a hub in New Haven, Conn.
Flying into the city that never sleeps also comes with steep fees that are sometimes unprofitable for ultra-low-cost carriers.
🗞️ ✈️ Don't miss the move: SIGN UP for TheStreet's FREE daily newsletter 🗞️ ✈️
Frontier launches major NYC expansion
Frontier Airlines, which started up in 1994, has slowly started running more flights into New York. While it has been flying into LaGuardia and Newark airports for years, the Denver carrier began serving JFK in June 2024 when it started twice daily service into the Puerto Rican capital of San Juan.
This week, Frontier announced a further expansion into JFK with flights to three new destinations: Miami, Los Angeles and Dallas Fort-Worth.
The daily flight to Miami International Airport (MIA) will launch on March 30 while the JFK-DFW route will run four times a week as of April 22. The daily nonstop service between JFK and LAX will follow with a May 1 start date.
Related: Frontier Airlines to launch 16 new flights to destinations you need to get to
"This is an exciting day for consumers as we once again expand our offerings at JFK," Frontier's vice president of network and operations design, Josh Flyr, said in a statement.
"With the launch of these ultra-low-fare flights to Miami, Dallas and Los Angeles, we are increasing the availability of affordable travel to top destinations for New Yorkers, as well as making a New York adventure or business trip that much more affordable for budget-savvy consumers across the United States."
More on travel:
- Aircraft manufacturer files for bankruptcy and reveals its plans
- This national park sees the most winter dangers
- Another country just issued a new visa requirement for visitors
As part of advertising the new routes, Frontier is offering those who are able to commit to travel early promotional fares of $19 each way for the Miami flight, $29 for JFK-Dallas and $49 for JFK-LA.
Here's how to score a $49 flight from New York to LA
The flights are already available for booking. You need to purchase tickets on Frontier's website before Jan. 13, 2024.
Travel can take place between the day the flight launches and Aug. 18, 2025, but certain dates are blacked out for periods around Spring Break and popular summer travel periods: April 18-21, May 22-23 and May 26, and June 28-29.
These are one-way fares. You can buy a one-way ticket at these rates or a round-trip ticket at double the rates.
Each is a day flight from New York (leaving at 1 p.m. for Dallas and 11 a.m. to Los Angeles and Miami, respectively) and an evening one on the return.
In the case of the return LAX-JFK flight, the flight is a redeye, departing at 9:20 p.m. local time and arriving at JFK at 6 a.m. the following day.
With Frontier currently flying into JFK from Atlanta, Las Vegas, Orlando, Tampa and San Juan, the latest expansion brings its network to the city to a total of eight flights.
Related: Veteran fund manager issues dire S&P 500 warning for 2025
