A third Allegiant Air flight to Florida is coming to the Columbia Regional Airport.
Allegiant Air flights to St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport from COU will start on Nov. 19, according to a Tuesday news release from Allegiant Air. St. Petersburg and Clearwater are on Florida's Gulf Coast at the Tampa Bay.
Allegiant Air has two other flights out of COU starting in early June — one to Destin-Fort Walton Beach Airport and one to Orlando Sanford International Airport.
The Columbia City Council approved an air services agreement with Allegiant Air at its Monday night meeting, authorizing Allegiant Air to provide service at COU between June 3, 2026, and June 1, 2028.
"Allegiant Air is a highly sought after, low-cost carrier that will allow people here in mid-Missouri the opportunity to have direct flights to vacation destinations," Columbia Airport Manager Mike Parks said at the meeting. "Although this agreement is only for a period of two years, we look forward to a long-term relationship and growth that Allegiant will provide residents in Columbia and mid-Missouri."
A council memo said seasonal and annual destinations with direct flights on Allegiant Air from COU could include Nevada, Arizona, Alabama, Tennessee and Louisiana, in addition to Florida.
The City Council unanimously approved the air services agreement.
Parks said at the meeting that the agreement is expected to generate $800,000 for the city over the two-year period from passenger facility fees, entitlement funds and other fees.
The air services agreement had a total cost of $1 million, and the City Council approved an $82,000 appropriation from the Transportation Sales Tax toward the agreement. The remaining $918,000 came from private and public contributions and had already been appropriated, according to a council memo.
