Overview
- Avelo will cease participation in the DHS/ICE charter program on Jan. 27 and will shut its Mesa, Arizona base with associated layoffs.
- The carrier is also closing bases in Raleigh-Durham and Wilmington, while continuing limited service to those airports from select origins.
- The airline will return six Boeing 737-700s and concentrate scheduled operations on 737-800 aircraft as part of a broader network reset.
- Avelo has flown deportation missions since spring 2025 as a subcontractor to CSI Aviation, which holds an ICE charter contract worth more than $560 million.
- CEO Andrew Levy said the charter work failed to deliver predictable returns, and the flight attendants’ union backed the decision following months of protests and boycott calls.